Electrodes, plants, meditation… How to relieve chronic pain without a prescription

In France, eight out of ten consultations are devoted to pain. A striking figure, especially since 12 million French people suffer from chronic pain, that is to say pain that lasts more than three months. Among them, 70% would not be properly relieved. Faced with this, Sophie Coisne, journalist for 60 Millions de Consommateurs, and Didier Bouhassira, neurologist, guests on the show Bienfait pour vous, give some tips for relieving pain without a prescription.

But first of all, how to explain such a figure? “We do not have enough structures to be able to take care of all these patients. And it is true that the care leaves something to be desired. Even in the very specialized structures, we are not able to relieve everyone with the drugs. Even if the drug is frankly not the panacea for chronic pain”, recognizes the neurologist at the microphone of Julia Vignali and Mélanie Gomez.

Transcutaneous neurostimulation

In the latest issue of 60 Millions de Consommateurs, “Pain, everything that works”, the editorial staff talks about a non-drug method that can be used against certain pains: transcutaneous neurostimulation. “It’s sold in pharmacies and it can be rented. It’s a small device that has electrodes. You will adjust it and the small electrodes sent will make it possible to relieve the pain more or less”, specifies Sophie Coisne, editor in deputy magazine editor.

This technique has existed for 30 years and is increasingly prescribed. Today, there are 600,000 device prescriptions per year in France. These can be partially reimbursed and they can be used for sprained ankle problems or even lumbago. On the other hand, “it works on localized pain, so you have to stick the electrodes fairly close to the painful region”. But concretely, how does it work? “We will scramble the message for the brain. It will confuse the message with the pain. We will filter it”, explains the neurologist.

CBD and its limited effects

“It promotes sleep, so from this point of view, it’s useful. But on the pain itself, it’s not very powerful”, recognizes Didier Bouhassira. On the other hand, there is currently an experiment in France to precisely verify how to use not only cannabidiol, CBD, but also THC, the other component of cannabis, called therapeutic cannabis. Developed in most European countries and in many other countries around the world, such as the United States, this method takes time to arrive in France. “These are studies that are ongoing,” admits the neurologist.

Phytotherapy

Still at the plant level, some have already been used for millennia against pain. However, there are precautions to take. “During the health crisis, the High Authority for Health advised against taking turmeric because it had an anti-inflammatory effect which could interfere with a potential treatment and interact with doliprane”, warns Sophie Coisne. Their effect, for many, is based on tradition. That is, for a millennium this method has been used and it does not hurt.

On the other hand, before embarking on herbal medicine to relieve pain, it is important to ask your doctor. “Plants can be toxic and also have side effects as important as with drugs”, underlines Didier Bouhassira. In addition, Sophie Coisne specifies that it is also important to take advice from a specialist when taking food supplements because this can lead to potential interactions.

mindfulness meditation

Mindfulness meditation is also a useful way in case of chronic pain. “The idea is to try to teach the patient to better manage and control his pain. This technique can be interesting, but again, it does not work for everyone”, indicates the neurologist. This method also works on the brain. It is a way to stimulate these famous systems that control pain.

“There are objective effects of meditation or even hypnosis that can be measured with functional MRIs. We see the activity of the brain which decreases during the agglutination of this technique. not suggest that it works for everyone,” he says. In addition, the patient must be an actor in his care. “We will teach him the techniques and it will be up to him to appropriate them and use them wisely,” concludes the doctor.

If meditation does not work, the patient may be sensitive to music. “The idea is to test several types. This can be mediation, hypnosis or music therapy. But also nettle therapy, a technique that is being developed and which consists of gardening. The goal is to find its natural painkiller”, explains Sophie Coisne.