Knackered has Chronic Pain with Benzos

   Hey there, Knackered here. Knackered hurts. All day. At night.  It just keeps happening to him.  If you’re reading this, you really don’t need anybody telling you that.  No doubt it’s happening to you as well.  Of course it is. It’s that damn central nervous system.  The Benzos have done a total number on the entire thing.

   When he has a clear moment, he’s spent some time sussing the whole thing out.  Apparently pain signals travel the neural road up to something called the ‘thalamus’ in the brain.  

    They wind up getting dumped into the limbic system and mixing themselves up with feelings. If you’re in a good head space (who is these days?) you at least stand some chance of having a good day.  If not, the outlook does not bode well.  There’s a good chance you’ve just stepped in it.  

   Knackered doesn’t need any more scientific stuff to know that he’s screwed in terms of having much quality of life at this point.  The main thing he wants to know is how to find a way through.  

   This stuff messes with his feelings, his sleep, and his relationships. The people he used to hang out with really aren’t interested any more. They’re not his friends.  Of course they’re not.  All this stuff wears him out.  He doesn’t want to go anywhere or do anything.  

   He’s found lots of advice as to what to do about this crap.  He’s tried most of them.  Some actually work.  

   If you’re downing OTC pain killers, you might as well save your money and your liver.  They hardly make a difference.  

   Sometimes Knackered can get some relief from just taking a shower, losing the sweats, and putting on real clothes.  That’s a good thing, you know.  

   He’s found all kinds of junk about aroma therapy (some of that stuff in the diffusers stinks pretty bad). The old school incense is actually his choice for good and distracting smells.

   He likes his meditation time, but isn’t crazy about some of those apps provided on his phone for this purpose.  He can’t abide with the fluffy affirmations they offer.  He supposes they do help some, but his preference is for the mindful escape that Zen provides. The Lotus position went out when the Benzos did, but he can still sit in a comfortable chair, close his eyes and descend  into nothingness.  No thoughts, no stress, less pain.  He likes some quiet music at times. It helps.  

   One thing he knows he needs in his life is a nonjudgmental confidant who will always have his back.  If family members and old friends are sick of hearing from you, or just don’t care , look elsewhere. We all need somebody to listen to us without laying on a load of  critical advice.  Knackered can’t live without it.  

     And in the end, remember, “The purpose of life, as far as I can tell…is to find a mode of being that’s so meaningful, that the fact that life is suffering is no longer relevant.”  (Jordan Peterson- Maps of Meaning).  Well said.