Pain pain go away, don’t come back on any other day!
Packing up last Thursday to take the caravan to Riversdale for a couple of days, I became aware of an increasing pain under my left shoulder, radiating around to the front. Thinking I must have pulled a muscle, I prayed that the pain, and its cause, leave, and got on with getting ready to depart.
History has shown that my body has responded, mostly immediately, to prayer for any kind of sickness or pain. However, in this instance, my body was not responding.
As the pain continued to escalate on the drive towards Masterton, with nausea and brow sweat adding to the mix, we stopped at Masterton Hospital’s Emergency Department for me to be checked out.
Thankfully, the waiting room was empty, and I was seen straight away. A few hours, a couple of blood tests and an ECG later, with the pain having subsided somewhat, we were on our way again. Reassured it was not a heart issue and advised to manage with over-the-counter pain relief, anti-inflammatories and to return if the pain became worse.
While the pain had its moments of spiking over those couple of days, it was manageable enough to enjoy our time. However, on the return trip home, that was no longer the case.
I will spare you all the details, but needless to say, over the past few days I have come to deeply empathise with those who live with debilitating pain due to a health condition, injury or surgery. For some it is temporary, and, as with childbirth, there is a positive outcome, making the endurance manageable.
For others it is a day in, day out, never subsiding reality. Pain is so debilitating. It affects our ability to think clearly and to function normally.
To quote my brother “If I had a chain saw, I’d cut the damn thing off!” This was after months, if not years, of pain following a serious car accident which smashed up his ankle and lower leg. His pain levels were unbearable. Thankfully, he found a surgeon who removed the metal rods and screws and finally, he could live without pain, mostly.
After a couple of days spent horizontal, I was determined that I had to function upright, I could not stay in bed all the time. With the edge taken off by pain relief, I started doing a few normal, routine tasks, like making the main dish for the evening meal.
It was chaotic! The kitchen was like a weather event had hit it! Half started tasks everywhere as my brain just could not function normally. I was so distracted by the discomfort and constant pain.
Thank God for prayerful friends, praying for pain to leave and for the cause to be healed. Thank God for pain relief tablets that helped while the healing manifested and for the opportunity to lie down when it all got too much!
Thank God for people who are trained to help us recover, such as physiotherapists, chiropractors, nurses and doctors.
Pain, however, is not always physical. Sometimes it is a wound of the heart, hidden from the eyes of others, yet just as painful to the one carrying it. Grief, rejection, disappointment and the hurts of life can leave us struggling to function, even when no one else can see what we are going through.
Today, more than ever, my heartfelt prayer goes out to all those whose daily reality is living with pain, whether inside or outside. May their condition be healed, their pain depart, and life in abundance is the outcome.
If that is you, receive that for yourself today.
