pain is what the patient says it is

I have recently suffered the pain of leaving my homecountry to come to live in this wonderful part of the world. The truth is of course that mine was a self inflicted pain, a pain which was easily cured.

In Norway I worked as a nurse in the cancer department of the University hospital of Oslo. The team I worked with, treated mostly terminally ill patients. I have consequently learnt a lot about pain, its causes and effects, and about the different possibilities available to deal with it.

Pain is a complicated matter. Pain can be short, like when we hurt our elbow and feel the pain running down the arm because we have hit a nerve. Pain can have a burning sensation like the pain we feel after a severe bruise. Pain can be pulsating like a toothache.

Pain can be understandable and tolerable when we know why the pain is there and we also know that it will disappear soon, like the pain we feel after having been exercising and using muscles which have not been used for some time. Pain can be almost pleasant, like the slight sunburn we can feel after a long day on the beach. Pain can also be so horrible that life sometimes feels not worth living any longer.

In between these extremes, there are all shades of pain, psycological pain being one of them. The pain I mentioned above, about feeling a little homesick sometimes, is an example. Much more painful is is when we suffer the pain of loosing somebody we love.

It is therefore important to understand pain before it is possible to treat and relieve it. Most people will consult their doctor which may lead to a course of medication or referral to specialists.

Problems arise when pain is re-current or permanent due to incurable illness or injuries that have been left untreated. In these cases we have to learn to live with pain and/or we can make use of the many alternative therapies to cure or minimize its effects on life.

There is no need to resign to the pain totally, there is always something that can be done, even when the pain cannot be totally removed.

In Norway I had a private practice in addition to my work at the hospital. In addition to being a registered nurse, I am a trained reflexologist, massuese, counsellor and therapist, as I specialized in pshyciatric nursing.

My aim is to do some of the same work in the La Herradura area as I did in Norway. I would certainly like to work with, and help people who suffer any sort of pain.