My Favorites: Pain Management Edition

Not as fun as your average gift guide...but more essential?

I don’t really do gift guides anymore. In fact, I don’t buy or receive many gifts anymore. We just buy for the kids and otherwise, plan experiences. Trips, family outings, a spa day with the girls. I love giving recommendations but I hate feeling salesy — so instead of gift guides, I’m just going to do a round up of my personal favorite things. I’m talking only things I actually have and love. The first request was what I use for chronic pain. And no, it’s not technically a gift guide. But if I didn’t have these things and someone got them for me, knowing I deal with pain on the daily? I’d feel incredibly seen.

Although I have not yet tried a cefaly device, I have tried a lot when it comes to headache relief in particular. Ear seeds, Zok, Acupressure mats and pillows, botox (for TMJ in particular), migraine hats, chiropractic care, physical therapy, acupuncture, supplements, restriction diets, otc medication, prescriptions, special teas. I have yet to find a magical solution or else I would not need any of this. But I do have my favorites. Below, I highlighted my tried-and-true favorites for managing chronic pain — both for my headaches and for period-related relief.

1. Renpho Eyeris massaging eye mask: It’s been over a year since I started using my massaging eye mask and I am a little unsure how I survived without one for this long. While on our Australia trip, Marcel told me to get one — I was influenced by an influencer! — and I ordered it the second I got back. I have used it every day since then. As someone with chronic headaches and insomnia, it is an invaluable product in my arsenal. This mask massages around your orbital region and near your temples with adjustable air pressure, heating, and vibration. I prefer it without vibration — I like the strongest pressure and highest heat.

   I have both the Eyeris 1 and the Eyeris 3 and I cannot stress this enough: BOTH ARE GOOD! So if you have an earlier version and someone is trying to convince you that you need to update…they’re just trying to make some money from their affiliate link. Note: I am also using an affiliate link and will get a small commission if you purchase from this list, but I promise that I will only recommend things I swear by.

   So, why do I have both? 1. I use it so much, I like to have one fully charged at all times (for very bad headache days, it’s nice to have nonstop relief). 2. I did like the idea of version 3 having bluetooth capabilities so I can play my own music and 3. I wanted to try it with the cooling pad. They’re otherwise very similar and I love both. I do like that v.3 defaults to bluetooth mode, so I can keep it on silent. When I have a migraine, I cannot handle music — I can barely even handle the sound of the air pressure from the mask, depending on my sound sensitivity. But the pressure and heat are so nice (especially paired with Tiger Balm) that I can usually withstand the minimal sound long enough to get some relief from the massage. It’s nice not having to fumble around to shut off the music each time it restarts. But if that doesn’t matter to you, just get the least expensive option and give it a go. And if you find that it’s pressing on your actual eyeballs instead of around them, adjust the mask so it’s massaging the right area.

2. Heated Shiatsu Neck Massager: I have bought this neck massager as a gift for several people (same goes for the eye massager!) because everyone loves mine so much. I like that it has straps for your arms, which allows you to pull down and adjust the pressure manually. My headaches come with chronic neck pain and working on a computer and sewing machine doesn’t help. This helps relax and soothe my stiff muscles. It’s also really inexpensive in comparison to comparable ones I’ve seen in stores.

3. Tiger Balm: I might keep this company in business, because I have a jar of Tiger Balm in every drawer, cabinet, and purse. That’s how essential it is for me when I have a headache. I prefer the clear version because the red one tends to stain, and I don’t find there to be a significant enough difference to merit the orange tint it leaves behind. When I have a really bad headache or migraine, I take a hot shower in the dark, scrub my scalp, put Tiger Balm on my temples, above my brows, along my masseters, on the back of my ears and the back of my neck. I put on an eye mask (massager or cloth) and try to sleep it off in a cold, dark, quiet room. I drink a ton of water and unfortunately, Advil is the only medication that works for me — and it only works sometimes. But Tiger Balm gives enough noticeable comfort and relief for me to make sure it is always on hand.

4. Theragun Massager: Before I say anything else, I want to clarify that this is not for headaches. I promise I don’t use this on my head! Muscle tension is just a side-effect of chronic pain; I even sleep with my hands clenched like I’m ready to fight someone. I’m just very tense all the time and have to remind myself to relax my muscles because it makes the pain worse. I use this on my back, shoulders, legs, even on my arms when they’re tense. I get pretty bad leg cramps and weakness during my before and during period and this brings me a lot of relief.

5. Ice roller and gua sha: You might not think of these as pain relievers, since they’re used as part of a skin care routine. But cold and pressure help my headaches a lot, and the gua sha stone is also really nice for TMJ pain relief. Any will do — I just linked to a duo for convenience!

6. Wearable heating pad: I have endometriosis and multiple fibroids, and my ovarian cysts always seem to be in a state of hemorrhage whenever I have my ultrasounds. In short, my periods are very long and painful. The week before my periods are painful. Nothing gives me more relief than a good old fashioned heating pad. I prefer the kind that plugs in, and I like it with the elastic and velcro. I bought mine at CVS, but I linked to a similar option. It makes such a difference in my pain level that when it turns off automatically, I’ll wake up to turn it back on.

7. Cervical support pillow: This pillow is so ugly it hurts me to recommend it, but I have too much neck pain for a normal pillow. Bobby swears by the Pillow Cube —he’s a side sleeper — but as a back sleeper with chronic neck pain, I need a divot for my head. This one cradles my head and gives me the neck support I need. I keep it in a silk pillowcase to try and hide its hideousness but it fools no one. So I hide it with a giant pillow when the bed is made.

Honorable mention: I didn’t include my Headache Hat because I haven’t been reaching for it as much since I got my eye massaging mask, but I do love it. I prefer it frozen and partially thawed, so it isn’t rock hard.

More of my favorite things are coming soon. Any requests?