Art of Distraction: Pain Management - and Fashion?!

asrotman
Jul 18
4 min read

Updated: Jul 29

I think I speak for a lot of people when I say I hate taking medicine. I prefer to minimize the number of pills I have to take daily to the necessary ones, and actively seek out holistic alternatives. When it comes to pain management in particular, I like to try less cumbersome remedies before opioids whenever possible, whether that be natural remedies or methods of distraction. There will be times of course when opioids are the necessity; your body needs pain managed in order to focus its energies on healing, like after surgeries. Its crucial not to fall behind on controlling the pain, and not to ween off of the opioids too early in that case, but the trade off is the side effects (sleep, mood, bowels, mental sharpness, drowsiness, etc.). Recently, however, I was able to participate in a DFCI pain management App trial that helped me better understand opioids - when they should be the first line response, and perhaps when they don’t need to be but have been historically. This relates a lot to the connection between the mind and the body and how our brain processes pain. This helped me to maximize the benefits of the medicine and reduce the amount I was reaching for for breakthrough pain. I want to share some of what I have learned with you, and when this App goes live I highly recommend its use (I will update this post with the App information when it becomes available and it goes live). And for me, there was a direct and unintended link to fashion, dressing for my changing body, and a reduction in pain. Allow me to elaborate...

Research has shown that negative thoughts can lead to more pain, distress and ultimately more illness or disability. Trialing the DFCI App, the suggestions were alternative remedies to supplement the opioids:

Distraction: TV, book, activities

Rest: Napping, laying down

Relaxation: Meditation (highly recommend the Calm App)

Socialization: Time with friends or family, making plans

Heat/Cold: Heating pad, cold packs, pain patches like icy hot

Lesser Medications (escalation in medicine type as needed): Tylenol, Advil

During my weeks navigating the App content (symptom/emotion/activity surveys, quick informative videos, gaming format lessons, etc), and by asking me to set goals, track my pain and use of alternative remedies, volume of opioid use, etc., I quickly realized that on days when I was distracted, using alternative remedies and managing my negative and intrusive thoughts, my pain was better (see this post on the Power of Positivity). Conversely, on days when I let the negative thoughts wield power, my pain was worse. Positive thinking won’t make my pain go away completely, and neither will a good nap, but the improvement in how I look and feel is undeniable. So yes, the way you think does impact the way you feel, and ultimately how much we focus on and therefore feel pain.

Fashion Distraction and My Changing Body

Now, where does fashion come in? In the first most basic way, body temperature is an obvious link. With the loss of muscle mass I have trouble regulating my body temperature and I am always running cold. This makes my back tense up and leads to strong lower back pain that often requires breakthrough pain medication. I have learned to dress in layers, travel with extra layers, etc in order to mitigate this, but in ways that the clothes don’t look like they’re swallowing my smaller frame whole, haha. Think the classic look of a draped sweater or over the shoulders jacket for instance with unique head wraps, head or neck designer scarves I bargain hunt for on consignment, and thicker compression socks that double as leg warmers with a cute pair of loafers so you’d never know they’re compression socks.

Now for the more complex connection: in trying out different combinations of alternative remedies, my most cathartic distraction was purging my closet and trying different outfit combinations. There was no way around it, chemotherapy had dramatically changed my body from how much I weighed to a complete loss of muscle mass and a totally different clothing size. I had to go through my closet piece by piece and analyze: is this worth keeping if my body changes again? Should I tailor this to fit now? Should I donate this, resell or recycle it? How can I implement accessories like jackets and belts to manage items that I am attached to but are just too big? On the days I dug through item by item, I felt a weight off my shoulders and I was so invested in the process I barely had a negative thought or reached for a breakthrough pain opioid. Beyond that, I fell in love with fashion again after months of pajamas and oversized sweatsuits and had a strong desire to put on my favorite pieces and parade them outside my apartment, even on the tiniest errand or trip to the corner coffee shop. I got creative with accessories and engineered ways to secure oversized pants and skirts. Dressing up sparked joy, joy sparked positivity and I looked and felt lighter and brighter going into an uncertain future. It was a powerful example of the link between how I was thinking and how I was feeling and I didn’t feel so burdened or held back by pain. I felt less afraid and stressed; I felt most like myself again. The hunter in me reemerged and I spent time searching for that bargain and that sale for a distracting thrill - never pay full price! The architect in me loved the trials and errors of temporary stitching, use of accessories like wrap belts, binder clips, hair elastics, you name it. If any of you are having a similar struggle in managing your closet for your changing body, but find the process daunting rather than a positive distraction, find someone like Ali Difrancesco, a personal stylist who will do personal shopping, capsule wardrobe, and a closet audit:

Fashion Stylist Ali Difrancesco @mostlyhigh_and_lows (Instagram)