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12 Types Of Pain You Should Never Ignore (Especially #9!)
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If you are like most people, you try to avoid going to the doctor for every little ache and pain. They can’t really do anything for those kinds of pains anyway and who wants to spend time sitting in the waiting room only to be told there is nothing they can do but come back if the pain gets worse?
Most people are in tune enough with their bodies that they know that their aching back is due to a weekend of helping your cousin move or the pounding headache they have is probably due to the kids being stuck inside the house all day.
The truth is that most minor aches and pains will go away on their own in two weeks or less. Anything lasting longer than that should be seen by a doctor.
However, there are some pains that you should never ignore or wait two weeks to see if they go away. They could be nothing, but on the other hand, they could be something very serious.
Take a look at the top 12 types of pain that you should never, ever ignore.
1. Back Pain and Numb or Tingling Toes
This combination could mean that you have a slipped or ruptured disc in your lower back. Some people feel a numbness or a tingling in their toes but others feel this in their butt, depending on which disc is giving you the trouble. This type of pain will not go away on its own. Try heating pads for 24 hours but if they do not help or if they help the pain but not the numb feeling, see a doctor right away. You can cause permanent nerve damage if you ignore this problem.
2. Unexplained, Persistent Pain in the Chest, Arm, Jaw, Throat, or Abdomen
Although most people know that chest pain, especially with pain that radiates down the left arm, could indicate a heart attack, but most people believe that this pain should be excruciating to be taken seriously. Even minor discomfort in the chest, arm, throat, belly, or jaw could indicate a serious heart problem. Doctors will tell you that many people mistake their first signs of pain as either simple stomach problems, such as indigestion, or intestinal problems, such as trapped gas. Cardiac problems often imitate acid reflux. If you have unexplained but on going pain in any of these areas, see your doctor as soon as possible to rule out heart issues. This is especially important for those in high risk groups such as women over 50, the overweight, or those with a family history of heart trouble.
3. Intense Tooth Pain That Wakes You Up
If you are sound asleep and you wake up suddenly with what feels like a very intense pain in the jaw, near the ear, you could be suffering from cluster headaches. This is an unexplained problem with the blood vessel that runs along the side of the head, next to the ear. There is also a nerve that runs very close to it. This nerve controls the feelings on one side of your face. For unknown reasons, soon after a person falls asleep, the blood vessel will suddenly engorge itself with blood, so much so that it touches that nerve, causing intense pain. Many people describe this pain on the same level, or worse, than childbirth. This tends to affect more men than women and generally strikes those over 40 years of age, but it can happen to anyone. There is no cure and over the counter pain killers are completely ineffective. This type of pain generally runs in cycles of 3 to 6 months. Your doctor can cut the cycle short with a 10 day prescription of the steroid prednisone. You will want to use this steroid as the pain is so intense that it has been known to drive some people to commit suicide rather than deal with it night after night.
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