Releasing Chronic Pain, Stress and Blockages
Acute Pain is a normal sensation triggered in the nervous system to alert you to injury or the possibility of injury and the need to take action to protect and care for yourself. Chronic pain, on the other hand, persists for three to six months or more than the normal healing time of an injury. It can be mild, excruciating, recurrent or continuous, annoying and inconvenient or totally debilitating. Chronic pain may originate from an initial trauma or injury, or there may be an ongoing cause of pain. However, some chronic pain may occur in the absence of any past injury or evidence of body damage.
What's Going On With My Chronic Pain?
If pain can occur in the absence of any past injury or evidence of damage, then what is going on? The nerve sensors in the body send signals via the spinal cord to the brain that the brain concludes as danger and creates the sensation of pain. Therefore, pain is an output from the brain as a result of its interpretation of the nerve signals and is not an input to the brain.
As stated by Neil Pearson, a leading chronic pain researcher, “Pain, like all human experience, is a body-mind spirit, or biopsychosocial phenomenon.” In the end, comprehensive alternative treatments, such as yoga, could prove to be crucial to relieving chronic pain and helping to eliminate our dependency on pharmaceuticals treatments.
Recent research seems to indicate that focusing on the sensory experience with mindful non-judgmental and non-emotional attitude on the sensory aspect of pain can be effective in reducing pain and suffering. This research offers compelling support for what neuroscience is beginning to uncover; the body is a powerful tool for overcoming pain. (1)
Working with the Mind and Emotions
Oftentimes, individuals who experience a painful encounter will exhibit various emotional responses such as depression, anxiety, and fear. (2) These experiences are known to increase ones perception of pain. Questions you can ask yourself to access your mental perception of pain include:
What thoughts do I have when i'm in pain?
Does the pain trigger any memories?
What emotions do I feel when I'm in pain?
With this information you can create a program for yourself of relaxation and meditation techniques to induce more positive emotions. You may find that as you develops a greater capacity for hope and interest in life this decreases your sense of pain. (3)
Physical Practices for Chronic Pain
One way pain is caused is by imbalances in the body. If you tend to stand hunched over or leaning to one side your body weight is not aligned in the most safe way. Stacking and lengthening your body will maintain your balance better. Good posture places you in an alignment where stress is properly distributed to the intended muscles and ligaments. As a result, the muscles are allowed to work efficiently and as intended, which in turn decreases wear and tear on your joints. This decreases your risk of joint discomfort and degenerative arthritis.
While Standing
Bring the feet right under your hip joints, not the outer hips, but the center of the hips. Weight the two feet evenly. Press down equally through the four corners of your feet. Stack the hips over the front of the heels and the shoulders over the hips. Draw the ears back, over the shoulders, and up, towards the sky. Feel as if you just gained a couple inches in height. (Try it now and see how you feel. Any better?)
While Seated in a chair
Sit up tall off the back of your chair. Have both feet on the floor. Roll onto the center of your sitting bones. Lengthening your spine and opening your chest. Relax your shoulders down and onto your back. Try it now. Notice if your lung capacity has changed.
This article first appeared at www.yogatoday.com
Bibliography
Pearson, Neil, et al. Yoga and Science in Pain Care: Treating the Person in Pain. Singing Dragon, 2019.
Gatchel RJ. Clinical Essentials of Pain Management. American Psychological Association. Washington, DC. 2005.
https://brainworksrehab.com/contain-your-pain-breaking-the-pain-cycle/