Does your doctor believe you? How to find one who does. Does your healthcare provider take the time to listen? Do you feel more like an inconvenience than a client? And when you share your symptoms and concerns, does your doctor believe you? You need to learn how to find one who does. The relationship…
Is your stress showing up as back pain? When you feel a twinge of pain in your back, you probably attribute the source to “overdoing it”. What you might be overdoing is the stress you’re living with. Is your stress showing up as back pain? Stress changes the way the body works. Stress can trigger…
30M people with a painful condition often go undiagnosed SCOTTSDALE AZ—Imagine being afraid to move, afraid to eat, or afraid to be close to your partner. An estimated 30 million people in the United States suffer from a central sensitization syndrome (CSS). A condition that stems from dysfunction in the nervous system leading to…
Work overload really blows your mind! Work stress and chronic headaches go together. But too much angst hits you in physical ways you might not realize, resulting in a stress-related disorder. Here’s a story about how stress overload really blows your mind! Stress has a sneaky way of destroying your life. When you go…
Nerve Sensitization Symptom Evaluator Author: Shana L Johnson MD, AskDrShana Signs that pain is related to nerve sensitization (nociplastic pain) includes long-standing symptoms symptoms (> 3 months), spread of symptoms beyond the boundary of the injury area, marked increased sensitivity to painful stimuli, and non-pain symptoms that cause system-wide symptoms like severe fatigue, disrupted…
Author: Shana L Johnson MD, AskDrShana There are multiple classes of medications that lower the reactivity and pain signals from nerves. Many of the medications were developed for other medical conditions but were found to reduce nerve pain. I refer to them as “neuropathic agents” since they lower reactivity and pain signaling from the nerves.…
Author: Shana L Johnson MD, AskDrShana Nerves gone rogue! How stress sparks extreme pain Imagine suffering from constant headaches, debilitating back pain, or embarrasing digestive symptoms but being told nothing is wrong. Your told your medical tests are mostly normal. This discrepancy between pain and pathology can be explained by nerve sensitization.…
Author: Shana L Johnson MD, AskDrShana Leaning In How an overworked mom went numb from stress. Jenna was a 30-year-old mom with a precious four-year-old named Chase. Her son, Chase had big, blue eyes and an even bigger heart. Chase was on the autism spectrum. He needed extra help with talking and communicating in…
Author: Shana L Johnson MD, AskDrShana Technology-induced thumb pain is common. As people spend more time working on computers, texting, and swiping right, overuse injuries occur. Tech thumb describes multiple injuries that occur from repetitive motion injury. It may injure the muscles, tendons, or joints resulting in tendonitis, and joint pain. The thumb plays…
Mechanical low back pain is back pain coming from the bones and muscles of the spine. It is very common and increases in frequency with age. Many people start experiencing back pain in their 30’s and 40’s. Fortunately, exercise helps most people with back pain feel better. More specifically, functional exercise that includes core strengthening…