1 out of every 10 of us spend a day in pain during a month -- and 86 percent of us don't sleep because of it. Try these tips to prevent pain from disrupting your sleep.

By Ellen Michaud with Julie Bain

13 Sleep-Better Tips

Pain not only interferes with your ability to get a good night’s sleep, it actually disrupts the sleep you do get by encouraging your brain to wake you up throughout the night. That’s because pain and sleep share common biological pathways, says Julie K. Silver, M.D., an assistant professor of physical medicine and rehabilitation at Harvard Medical School. So even if your eyes remain shut most of the night, chances are your brain still isn’t getting the deep, restorative sleep it needs. As a result, you wake up in the morning feeling far from refreshed. Also, sleep deprivation actually increases your sensitivity to the pain. Yeah, you read that right. So pain = less sleep = more pain.

Want to escape from that nasty little loop and get some sleep? Here’s what Dr. Silver prescribes.

1. LISTEN TO YOUR BODY. When pain first raises the alarm that something’s wrong, pay attention. Precisely where is the pain? On a scale of 0 to 10, with 0 being no pain and 10 indicating the worst possible pain imaginable, where is your pain? What makes your pain worse? Do any other symptoms accompany it?

2. TRACK YOUR PAIN. If the pain’s not severe—and remember, severe pain requires a doctor’s immediate intervention—keep a pain log and track the pain for a month, says Dr. Silver. Jot down when it occurs, its rank on a scale of 1 to 10, and what makes it better or worse.

3. MEDICATE. Whether it’s delivered as a pill, patch, cream, or injection, medication can be God’s gift to the hurting. Ranging from acetaminophen and lidocaine patches to low-dose antidepressants and muscle relaxants, the arsenal is awesome. But every one has side effects, and not every one works in every situation. Work with your doctor to find the best approach.

4. ENLIST YOUR DOCTOR'S HELP. There is no virtue in bearing pain. Its your body’s alarm system that something is wrong. So get to the person who can help you figure out what your body’s trying to say: your doctor.

5. DON'T DO ANYTHING STUPID. While you’re waiting to see your doctor, don’t aggravate your pain. If you have hip pain every time you run, don’t run. Walk instead.

6. HEAT IT UP. Try applying a hot pack to the area in which the pain occurs for 20 minutes a day.

7. COOL IT DOWN. Try a cold pack for 20 minutes once a day. Wrap the area in a towel to make sure the outside of the pack doesn’t touch your skin. Cold packs reduce inflammation and provide a temporary numbing effect.

8. HAVE A MASSAGE. Schedule one session a week and see how you feel.

9. OR TRY ACUPUNCTURE. Just keep in mind that it takes six to eight sessions before you’ll notice any effect. This is not a quick fix.

10. MOVE. Have your doctor refer you to a physical therapist who can design a personal movement program that targets the area in pain. Also, work with your therapist to get an aerobic exercise program that works for you.

11. STAY ON TOP. Treat pain aggressively early in the day, says Dr. Silver, and you’ll be more likely to control it more effectively and with less medication throughout the day and evening. Play tough girl and let it remain at a low ebb all day and it’s sure to build. Then, when everything’s quiet and you’re lying in bed trying to sleep, it’ll get you but good.

12. PARY. A survey by researchers at Stanford University Medical Center found that 62 percent of women under 50 who had pain prayed for relief. Seventy-one percent of women over 50 prayed. The result? Prayer worked in half of those who tried it. Amazingly, it relieved pain just as well as prescription meds.

13. SEE THE PAIN DOCTOR. If you still can’t get on top of your pain, schedule an appointment with a doctor who specializes in treating pain.
在每個(gè)月的某一天，我們每十人中就會(huì)有一個(gè)遭受疼痛的折磨。這其中大約有86%的人因?yàn)樘弁炊鵁o(wú)法入眠。試試下面這些小竅門(mén)，他們能夠讓你免受因疼痛導(dǎo)致的失眠之苦。

13個(gè)讓你睡得更好的小竅門(mén)

疼痛不僅讓你無(wú)法好好睡一覺(jué)，實(shí)際上它可能讓你整夜無(wú)法入眠。哈佛醫(yī)學(xué)院身體醫(yī)學(xué)和復(fù)原專(zhuān)業(yè)的副教授Julie K. Silver解釋說(shuō)，這是因?yàn)樘弁春退�眠共用的是同一條生物通道。因此，即使你整夜閉著眼睛，你的大腦很可能也無(wú)法進(jìn)入它所需要的深層的，恢復(fù)精力的睡眠狀態(tài)。結(jié)果，你早上醒來(lái)，感覺(jué)精神一點(diǎn)都沒(méi)有得到恢復(fù)。不僅如此，由于睡得不好，你對(duì)疼痛會(huì)更加敏感。所以，現(xiàn)在你就明白了這樣一個(gè)道理：疼痛導(dǎo)致睡得少，睡得少導(dǎo)致疼痛加劇。

想逃出這個(gè)怪圈，讓自己睡得好些么？以下是Silver醫(yī)生開(kāi)的處方：

1。聽(tīng)從身體的感受

疼痛剛開(kāi)始的時(shí)候就予以注意。是哪個(gè)部位疼？假如把痛程度分為0-10這11個(gè)級(jí)別，0代表著一點(diǎn)都不疼，10代表你能想到的最疼的程度，那么你的疼痛屬于哪個(gè)級(jí)別？那些東西或者行為會(huì)加劇疼痛？除了疼痛之外，有沒(méi)有其他癥狀？

2。把疼痛記錄下來(lái)

Silver醫(yī)生說(shuō)，如果疼痛不是太嚴(yán)重（記住，嚴(yán)重的疼痛發(fā)生時(shí)，必須立刻尋求醫(yī)生的幫助）那么試著給建立一個(gè)記錄表，記下一個(gè)月內(nèi)疼痛發(fā)生的時(shí)間，每次疼痛的劇烈程度（從1到10）以及會(huì)使疼痛加劇或者減輕的一些情況。

3。尋求藥物治療

無(wú)論是吃藥，貼劑，抹藥膏或者打針，藥物是上帝送給疼痛受害者的禮物。從撲熱息痛和賽羅卡因貼劑到低劑量的抗抑郁藥以及肌肉鎮(zhèn)靜劑，種類(lèi)繁雜，舉不勝舉。但是，每種藥物都有副作用，而且也不是萬(wàn)試萬(wàn)靈。所以，要同你的醫(yī)生一起努力，找出適合你自己的最好的治療方案。

4。尋求醫(yī)生的幫助

一味地忍受疼痛是沒(méi)有必要的。疼痛是身體的警報(bào)，告訴你身體中的某個(gè)部位出現(xiàn)了異常。因此，到能夠破解警報(bào)真相的那個(gè)人，也就是醫(yī)生那里去尋求幫助。

5。別使疼痛加劇

在等待醫(yī)生診療的期間，可別因?yàn)槟承┬袨槭固弁醇觿　＜偈鼓忝看闻軇?dòng)的時(shí)候，腰骨部位都會(huì)疼痛，那么千萬(wàn)別跑動(dòng)，老老實(shí)實(shí)的走。

6。試試熱敷

每隔20分鐘，試著用熱水袋對(duì)疼痛部位進(jìn)行熱敷，也許會(huì)有幫助。

7。試試?yán)浞?br />
每天一次，試著用冰袋對(duì)疼痛部位冷敷20分鐘。記得用毛巾在疼痛部位的四周?chē)鷤�(gè)圈，這樣可以防止冰袋的觸及正常部位的皮膚。冰袋能夠減少疼痛部位的灼熱感，同時(shí)也起到暫時(shí)性的麻痹效果，減少疼痛。

8。做一做按摩

每周做一次按摩，看看情況是有所改善。

9。試一試針灸

記住，針灸可不是立竿見(jiàn)影的治療方法，大約在6-8次治療之后，才能感覺(jué)到效果。

10。讓身體動(dòng)起來(lái)

讓醫(yī)生給你推薦一位物理治療師，請(qǐng)他給你設(shè)計(jì)一套專(zhuān)門(mén)針對(duì)疼痛部位的活動(dòng)方案。同時(shí)，跟你的物理治療師一起設(shè)計(jì)一套適合你的有氧運(yùn)動(dòng)項(xiàng)目。

11。堅(jiān)強(qiáng)地面對(duì)疼痛

Silver醫(yī)生說(shuō)，盡早地，主動(dòng)地治療疼痛，更有可能在一整天內(nèi)少依賴(lài)藥物治療，同時(shí)更加有效地控制疼痛。堅(jiān)強(qiáng)地面對(duì)疼痛，一整天內(nèi)都別對(duì)疼痛太過(guò)在意，肯定能夠成功。然后，夜深人靜的時(shí)候，就躺在床上試著睡覺(jué)，你肯定能睡著而且睡得好。

12。祈禱

斯坦福大學(xué)醫(yī)學(xué)中心的研究人員開(kāi)展的一項(xiàng)調(diào)查表明，50歲以下受疼痛折磨的女性中，有62%的人希望通過(guò)祈禱減輕她們的疼痛。而這個(gè)比例在50歲以上的女性中是71%。結(jié)果如何？幾乎半數(shù)以上祈禱的人真的不疼了。這的確令人驚奇，祈禱就像處方藥一樣解除了疼痛。

13。看疼痛科專(zhuān)家

如果試過(guò)以上方法仍舊不能戰(zhàn)勝疼痛，那就約見(jiàn)專(zhuān)治疼痛的專(zhuān)家，尋求他的幫助