An estimated 20% of American adults (approximately 50 million) suffer from chronic pain. Eight percent (roughly 19.6 million) have high chronic pain, with higher rates associated with older age, as well as rural residency. This costs at least $560 billion annually in the US. Approximately 3-4% of adults with chronic pain rely on opioids as a long-term pain management solution. Because of the high risk of opioid usage, the Center for Disease Control’s top recommendation for prescribing opioids for chronic pain is that non-opioid therapy be the preferred treatment of chronic pain, and opioids only be used with the benefits outweigh the risk.
To help combat the opioid epidemic in New Hampshire, UNH Extension professionals have partnered with the Southern New Hampshire Area Health Education Center to expand the delivery of the Chronic Pain Self-Management Program (CPSMP). Providing this program increases the availability of low-risk pain management opportunities and can prevent opioid misuse. The CPSMP empowers chronic pain sufferers to manage their pain more effectively, reducing or eliminating their need for prescription opioids. Workshops are highly participatory; mutual support and success build the participants’ confidence in their ability to manage their health and maintain active and fulfilling lives. The CPSMP can serve in conjunction with medical opioid use, provide a critical solution to non-opioid pain management, prepare people for pain management following surgery, reduce falls, and reduce depression that leads to opioid use and also that is a result of opioid use.
Watch this video for more information and to hear from real participants!: https://youtu.be/dmQ6TL03CgU
Listen to this podcast to hear more about CPSMP and why it works: https://drugfreenh.org/podcast-episode/changing-the-paradigm-on-pain-chronic-pain-self-management/
What else can you do?
Sign up for one of our courses! Check our website for available offerings: https://extension.unh.edu/health-well-being/youth-family-resiliency/chronic-disease-self-management-program
Help us spread the word by sharing this flyer with someone you know who could benefit from this workshop! https://extension.unh.edu/sites/default/files/media/2021-10/livingwellwithchronicpain_2021promotional_0.pdf
