February is the month for love, but if you suffer with chronic back pain, your relationship may often seem more “cucumber sandwich for one” than “hot dinner date for two”! But your partnership doesn’t have to suffer at the hands of your back pain. Here, our Southend chiropractor shares a few simple tips that will help your relationship thrive through your back pain.
1: Be Open and Honest
If pain is currently part of your life, then the people in your life need to know about it. Staying silent and brushing your condition under the carpet will only cause your loved ones to feel helpless and even disconnected from you. In order to empathise with how you feel, people need to know how you feel. Many chronic pain patients end up feeling frustrated with their partner for seemingly not understanding their level of pain, but this is often down to a lack of communication.
2: Keep Plans When You Can
Feeling isolated from your social circle can bring a lot of negativity to you relationship. Try not to let your back pain keep you from socialising. Tell your friends about what activities you can and can’t do and make plans that you know you will be able to carry out.
3: Take on New Roles
Your back pain may make it difficult to perform certain chores that were once your responsibility. If this is the case for you, replace your previous responsibilities with more manageable ones. Let your partner bath the children while you take care of helping with homework, for example. Back pain may mean that you can’t always do all the things you once did, but it’s vitally important to your mental health that you remain a contributing member of your family.
4: Ask for Help
Don’t assume that people don’t care because they haven’t offered help; quite often people will avoid asking for fear of offending you. Give your partner the opportunity to feel closer to you by asking them for help. If you’re having trouble with a task, ask your partner to lend a hand.
Don’t let back pain define you or your relationship with you partner. It may currently be part of your life, but it certainly doesn’t have to control it.