5 Pain Relieving Tips for People in Their 40s & 50s By Renowned Pharmacist

Meet Gene Gresh. Gene founded one of Connecticut's first compounding pharmacies. There, he researches, formulates and creates customized medications and therapies to solve unique health needs for patients at an individual level. Gene is a fellow of the International Academy of Compounding Pharmacy and certified in Functional Medicine from the Institute of Functional Medicine and a member of the Professional Compounding Centers of America and Connecticut Pharmacists Association. He is also the lead pharmacist at The Feel Good Lab.

We asked Gene for some of his most common advice when it comes to pain relief in your 40s or 50s. Here's what he had to say:

1. It’s not all about pills.A lot of patients I meet have this notion that taking pills is the thing cures pain. Thank you big pharma commercials. But the truth is, more research proving the power of natural transdermal medicine is coming out every day. And think about this: there are substances that are great for pain relief, but not so good to ingest. Magnesium, for instance, is a great anti-inflammatory, but also a wonderful natural laxative when ingested. Thanks, but no thanks.
2. Motion is lotion. Exercise, when done with professional supervision, is one of the most powerful weapons against chronic pain. The mental, chemical, and physical benefits are simply endless. If you’re in pain and not already exercising, force yourself to talk to your doctor about getting into some kind of routine that’s right for you. Bonus, it’s a great way to make new friends in today’s busy, social media rampant world.
3. This one is easier said than done, but you are what you eat. I’m not going to plug the latest diet here, but look, we all have a basic idea of what’s good and what’s bad for us. When it comes to pain, diet is one of the biggest contributors to unnecessary inflammation in the body. And unnecessary inflammation causes unnecessary pain. Here’s a good rule of thumb: 95% of what you’ll find in the middle aisles of the grocery store is processed and more likely to contribute to inflammation. Stick to the outside parameter of the store where the meats, fruits, and vegetables are and you’ll be on a path to a diet better to fight pain. Need more advice on anti-inflammatory diets? Google is your friend.
4. Clean skin equals absorbent skin.I’m going to go back to transdermal medicine here. The most common tip I give people is to take a nice shower before applying any pain relief cream. First, it clears away all the stuff you don’t want seeping into your skin. And second, warm, moist skin is quick to suck up what you put on it.
5. Don’t expect instant results. The biggest mistake I see patients make comes down to expectations. Recovering from pain requires a plan, time, and a solid routine. Work with your doctor, physical therapist, or whatever professional, and stick to the plan. Put in the work. If you stay diligent, you’ll see results. If you’re really putting in the work and you don’t see results, the professional helping you will adjust the program until you do. This is what I do in my pharmacy practice all the time.

Renowned pharmacist and transdermal medicine expert Gene Gresh says, “when the appropriate medicines are delivered through the skin in the correct proportions the results can be remarkable.” His new pain relief cream uses a patented blend of 30 natural ingredients.

Is there a person in pain who hasn’t gone on an ibuprofen binge?

“The problem with any oral medication is that it will have a systemic effect. That means that even if your pain is only in your back, medicine will need to be processed by your gut and travel through your body before it arrives at the problem area,” said Gene Gresh, a compounding pharmacist who has dedicated the majority of his 25+ year career to perfecting how to deliver medication through the skin.

 “That’s partly why I’ve been so focused on transdermal therapy. Applying something to the skin near the pain not only helps quickly deliver medicine directly to the source of pain, it also leaves out parts of the body that don’t need to be involved, like the gut,” Gresh added. “When it comes to treating really anything, I’ve always believed in choosing the right tool for the job. That’s why I became a compounding pharmacist in the first place.”

Gresh’s new pain relief cream is called You Plus Relief. It’s a 100% natural pain relief cream designed to provide quick relief while helping the body heal from many types of muscle and joint pain.

The product isn’t just for people in severe chronic pain either. “You Plus Relief was originally designed almost as a last resort for several of my chronic pain patients. It incorporates the best thinking from the herbal world and combines it with what’s working in transdermal therapy today. But because it’s completely natural, it’s gentle enough to use for routine bodily maintenance like post workout, massage therapy, or even to soothe your neck after a long flight,” Gresh continues.

 

The 3.4-ounce product comes beautifully packaged. It would be right at home beside a pile of birthday presents. It’s a nice size—small enough to legally bring with you on a plane in your carry on and large enough to last well over 100 applications. It sells for $29.95 on his company’s website.

Its first listed ingredient, menthol, provides quick relief, but unlike other pain creams, it only contains a small amount. “We saw a lot of brands were simply packing their products with a ton of menthol to temporarily shock peoples’ systems. The problem with that technique is that you’re not really doing much to help that person heal. Plus, lots of menthol has quite the smell and we wanted something that no one around you would ever detect,” says Gresh.

Gresh’s You Plus Relief product contains 30 natural ingredients, each with its own unique contribution to pain relief. “Pain is typically rooted in several different pathways—to treat it, you need to treat those different pathways,” he commented.

Judging by the 200+ positive reviews received on Amazon, the product is working.

“I’ve spent so many years creating medication a patient-by-patient basis. So, when bringing a product like this to this many people at once it’s incredibly important and encouraging to see the positive feedback,” commented Gresh. 

“The biggest mistake I see patients make is not sticking to a routine,” he said. “A lot of pills take effect rather quickly. With natural or transdermal treatments you can get some results quickly, but the often the real benefits occur after several days of disciplined use. The people that stick with it are the ones that see the best results.”

After seeing the amount of people in pain and not getting better, Gresh changed his specialty from pharmacist to compounding pharmacist, started Connecticut’s first compounding pharmacy.

“I was refilling opioid prescriptions for people every month and they weren’t getting better. In fact, they were getting worse. I knew I needed to do something different. That’s why I got into compounding pharmacy, so I could start creating medications specifically for each patient. Ultimately, I wanted to help people get better rather than refill prescriptions.”

 If you have muscle, joint, or nerve pain, try You Plus Relief.