Pain Is Temporary
I recently finished reading Be Useful by Arnold Schwarzenegger. It is a self-help book with examples from his life to back up the wisdom he attained over a successful career.
One central theme is “pain is temporary,” meaning that while achieving your goal, there will be hardship. Yet Arnold is more direct. His fundamental wisdom comes from years of bodybuilding. While “pumping iron,” his muscles got sore, and he pushed through the pain. As a result, he won bodybuilding contests.
Arnold applied this wisdom to other parts of his life. Working hard to be an actor, getting elected, and suffering through personal trauma. “Tough it out!” And the results were exceptional. Pain is indeed temporary.
Arnold’s book impressed me, but the idea that pain is temporary has rattled around in my mind. Something was off, and it took a while to get my thoughts lined up. I can summarize my feelings by examining a recent and old issue.
I have allergies and have been going to get allergy shots once a week for the last four months. The logic behind an allergy shot is that the nurse injects a patient with material their bodies are allergic to. Over a year, the shots increase in strength, which forces the patient’s body to react. When successful, the immune system no longer responds to low doses of the material that is present in daily life. This means that if a patient is allergic to a dog, they can pet it without a reaction.
I have been going once a week to get my shot for six months (I still have eight to go). After each shot, I must wait 30 minutes to make sure my body does not get anaphylactic shock. The experience takes time, but I have already seen a positive result. Yay! But…
The nurse injected me six weeks ago, and a day later, my arm muscles, elbow, and shoulder were in severe pain. Unfortunately, the pain did not subside. My arm hurt for weeks, and it took hours to go to sleep.
Today, the symptoms have faded, but sleep is still challenging. I estimate it will take another three weeks to return to normal.
Was it worth it? Umm. Not sure. Well, how do we answer this question? Let’s take a high-level view. I began the treatments because allergies had taken over my life. I was always coughing, had significant issues with my parent’s dog, and had to run out of stores with a perfume department.
Now, I can walk out of stores (do not need to run), no longer have coughing spasms, and my parent’s dog only makes me sneeze. So, the answer is that I am better off than before. The shots worked. If I had known about my intense arm pain, would I have had the procedure? Yes. So, pain is indeed temporary, but there is a flip side.
When I was about 25, I purchased a 10,000 RPM hard drive for my computer. Why? To improve my productivity. Wow, it was fast, and the result was worth the price.
The problem was that the noise was at a specific tone. Soon, my ears started ringing. Did I get rid of my drive? No, I pushed through the pain. This is called Tinnitus, and I now suffer every day, which means that sometimes pain is not temporary. It can have long-term, unforeseen, undiscovered consequences. Also, it has been my experience that pain exists to tell us something important.
I have read many self-help books, and they all do their best to distill the concepts into simple statements. Trying new things, pushing through difficulties, and recovering from mistakes are good. These books also teach us to recognize long-term consequences.
We are not as powerful as we imagine. The Covid pandemic proved that a simple virus could destroy health, life, jobs, families, economies, the truth, and people’s trust and faith in the medical system.
Pain is direct feedback. In fact, it is the definition of negative feedback. Yet we must remember that “Life is pain. Anyone telling you differently is selling something.” -The Dread Pirate Roberts.
Perhaps Arnold could have worded his philosophy. “Be prepared to make sacrifices and push through difficult times. The pain you receive will usually be temporary, but sometimes it can last a lifetime. Plan carefully.”
You’re the best -Bill
July 31, 2024
One central theme is “pain is temporary,” meaning that while achieving your goal, there will be hardship. Yet Arnold is more direct. His fundamental wisdom comes from years of bodybuilding. While “pumping iron,” his muscles got sore, and he pushed through the pain. As a result, he won bodybuilding contests.
Arnold applied this wisdom to other parts of his life. Working hard to be an actor, getting elected, and suffering through personal trauma. “Tough it out!” And the results were exceptional. Pain is indeed temporary.
Arnold’s book impressed me, but the idea that pain is temporary has rattled around in my mind. Something was off, and it took a while to get my thoughts lined up. I can summarize my feelings by examining a recent and old issue.
I have allergies and have been going to get allergy shots once a week for the last four months. The logic behind an allergy shot is that the nurse injects a patient with material their bodies are allergic to. Over a year, the shots increase in strength, which forces the patient’s body to react. When successful, the immune system no longer responds to low doses of the material that is present in daily life. This means that if a patient is allergic to a dog, they can pet it without a reaction.
I have been going once a week to get my shot for six months (I still have eight to go). After each shot, I must wait 30 minutes to make sure my body does not get anaphylactic shock. The experience takes time, but I have already seen a positive result. Yay! But…
The nurse injected me six weeks ago, and a day later, my arm muscles, elbow, and shoulder were in severe pain. Unfortunately, the pain did not subside. My arm hurt for weeks, and it took hours to go to sleep.
Today, the symptoms have faded, but sleep is still challenging. I estimate it will take another three weeks to return to normal.
Was it worth it? Umm. Not sure. Well, how do we answer this question? Let’s take a high-level view. I began the treatments because allergies had taken over my life. I was always coughing, had significant issues with my parent’s dog, and had to run out of stores with a perfume department.
Now, I can walk out of stores (do not need to run), no longer have coughing spasms, and my parent’s dog only makes me sneeze. So, the answer is that I am better off than before. The shots worked. If I had known about my intense arm pain, would I have had the procedure? Yes. So, pain is indeed temporary, but there is a flip side.
When I was about 25, I purchased a 10,000 RPM hard drive for my computer. Why? To improve my productivity. Wow, it was fast, and the result was worth the price.
The problem was that the noise was at a specific tone. Soon, my ears started ringing. Did I get rid of my drive? No, I pushed through the pain. This is called Tinnitus, and I now suffer every day, which means that sometimes pain is not temporary. It can have long-term, unforeseen, undiscovered consequences. Also, it has been my experience that pain exists to tell us something important.
I have read many self-help books, and they all do their best to distill the concepts into simple statements. Trying new things, pushing through difficulties, and recovering from mistakes are good. These books also teach us to recognize long-term consequences.
We are not as powerful as we imagine. The Covid pandemic proved that a simple virus could destroy health, life, jobs, families, economies, the truth, and people’s trust and faith in the medical system.
Pain is direct feedback. In fact, it is the definition of negative feedback. Yet we must remember that “Life is pain. Anyone telling you differently is selling something.” -The Dread Pirate Roberts.
Perhaps Arnold could have worded his philosophy. “Be prepared to make sacrifices and push through difficult times. The pain you receive will usually be temporary, but sometimes it can last a lifetime. Plan carefully.”
You’re the best -Bill
July 31, 2024
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