Studies show that being happy with the amount and quality of social support in your life translates to less pain and depression and better coping skills. So don’t go it alone or suffer in groups that don’t appeal to you. The right social networking site is just a click away. Search online for a group dedicated to your specific type of pain, or give these support-group sites a try and find comfort in community.
- Chronic Pain Connection (healthcentral.com/chronic-pain): A team of experts, including doctors and medical professionals, authors, journalists and heads of advocacy organizations, lead discussions on all types of pain.
- Facebook’s Chronic Pain Groups (facebook.com; search under chronic pain group or chronic pain groups): A place to vent, lend support and up your friend count.
- Pain Resource’s Online Community (painresource.com/discuss): Real people with real pain share their experiences and knowledge so others can better manage their pain.
- Beliefnet’s Chronic Pain Support (community.beliefnet.com) support for people of any faith.
Have an online pain-related support group you like? Tell us about it!