Are you suffering in silence?
Living with unnecessary pain seems to a regular occurrence for Brits, with more than 30 million of us coping with it.
Research shows that rather than turning to qualified medical professionals people are shunning their help and choosing to cope with it.
The findings published by the UK’s largest healthcare charity, Nuffield Health, suggest 45 per cent are in pain at least once a week, rising to almost three quarters at least once a month. Of those in pain, more than three quarters say it negatively affects their everyday life.
Despite this, 59 per cent don’t seek help from professionals such as GPs or physiotherapists when in pain and people are as likely to turn to the internet for advice as visiting a health professional trained to treat injuries such as a physiotherapist, osteopath or chiropractor.
Liz Adair, Director of Physiotherapy at Nuffield Health, comments: “The findings reveal our approach to dealing with injuries is stereotypically British - we ‘grin and bear it’ or don’t want to cause a fuss. Half of us are living in pain and potentially making ourselves worse because we’re not sure how to seek help or where to seek it from, but there are appropriate and easy to access treatments and advice available. Our physiotherapists often see people who have done more harm than good by trying to deal with pain themselves or by not doing anything at all.”
The charity has issued a warning to individuals to be more aware of the damage that can be caused by putting up with pain resulting from injuries and other ailments after the research revealed that one in five respondents made their injury worse through failing to take appropriate advice or action. The most common reasons for suffering in silence are assuming the injury will heal itself, answered by almost a quarter of regular pain sufferers and not wanting to bother a doctor.
The research also suggests there could be serious long term implications of failing to act, including an over-reliance on pain medication. For a quarter suffering with pain, their injury has never been successfully resolved. In addition, with half of UK adults turning to over-the-counter medication at the first sign of pain, over a third feel dependent on painkillers. More than a quarter say they would ‘do anything’ to make pain stop. Previous Nuffield Health research revealed that untreated injuries can lead to dependency on painkillers with one in five people using painkillers every day and over a quarter taking them consistently for more than five years.
Sue Rees, Chair of the Chartered Society of Physiotherapy (CSP) said: “Physiotherapists can work with other health professionals to help patients manage pain, increase their physical function, and achieve the best possible quality of life. Physiotherapy can also improve sleep for those suffering with pain and reduce reliance on pain medication, by teaching breathing and relaxation exercises.”
In terms of the research, Nuffield Health have found over 30 million Brits are living in unnecessary pain, rather than turning to qualified medical professionals for help. Most critically, 1 in 5 people made their injury worse through failing to take appropriate advice.
In response to these findings, Nuffield Health is issuing a warning to those, who adopt a stereotypically stiff upper lip to pain, to be more aware of the damage that can be caused by putting up with pain resulting from injuries and other ailments. For over 1 in 5, they don’t even want to bother their doctor with their complaint.
Tagged in Health