For those willing to try a psychological approach to pain mgmt

Cicerogirl, The PhD
Version

on 11/18/14 12:25 pm - OH

This will undoubtedly sound completely ridiculous to some people, but since there are so many RNYers who struggle to deal with pain without NSAIDs or narcotics I wanted to share it.

This is something that I use personally and have used with clients who have pain issues.  It isn't going to help everyone, of course, and I certainly wouldn't expect it to help at all with severe pain. It may, however, make moderate pain more tolerable. It works more consistently for some types of pain than others (headaches  seem to be at the top of the list), but regardless of the type or level of pain, it can't hurt to try.

1) Find a completely quiet place and get into a comfortable position, sitting or reclining, where you can totally relax your body (some people prefer to have quiet, soothing music in the background, which is fine... Just do not try to do this with the television on, people talking, neighbors using a snowblower, kids playing/yelling, etc.)

2) Close your eyes and take about 6 deep, full, slow breaths; focus on how it feels to inhale and exhale; keep your eyes closed for the remainder of the steps

3) Starting from one end of your body (head or toes), work your way up your body, noting any muscle tension or pain, and relax all of your muscles; most people find it easier to start with their toes and work up (pain tends to make people tense their necks, so that can be a more difficult place to start)

4) Try to focus on the exact point where the pain is the greatest; imagine that if you could pinpoint the exact spot, you could eliminate the pain

5) If you can find that spot, focus solely on that spot for about a minute; at this point you may notice a lessening of the pain

6) If you cannot find (or imagine) the exact spot, or you notice no decrease in the pain, you can try imagining sending a healing/soothing light (yellow or blue light seems to work best) or energy to the area, or applying a mental "wrap" of coolness or warmth (whichever seems most soothing for the type of pain you have) to the area.  You can imagine, for example, a cool, soothing, pain absorbing wrap around a painful knee or shoulder; imagine the wrap absorbing your pain

It may do absolutely nothing for you, and it may seem counter-intuitive to focus ON the pain, but it does help some people with some kinds of pain.

I rarely get headaches, but when I do get them they are from tension, eye strain, or sinus issues, and this almost always helps significantly and sometimes completely eliminates the headache. Sometimes it helped with the a bit with the pain in my knees from the arthritis, and sometimes (most times, unfortunately) it didn't (but the pain was pretty bad most days).

Lora

14 years out; 190 pounds lost, 165 pound loss maintained

You don't drown by falling in the water. You drown by staying there.

HLen
on 11/18/14 12:56 pm
RNY on 07/11/14

This is great advice, I do this to also relax to fall asleep.  And the deep breaths, I imagine me breathing out the pain and breathing in the relief and calm.   

Mind over matter can do a lot! 

_____________________________________________________________

It does not do to dwell on dreams and forget to live.

   

      

karenp8
on 11/18/14 10:35 pm - Brighton, IL

Thanks for sharing this Lora!

   

       

(deactivated member)
on 11/19/14 1:30 am

Great help with pain. I do get headaches once in a while so I try to take the hottest shower I can. With barometric pressure can reek havoc on our sinuses. But I do like the no pain meds. These are minor headaches not major ones. 

SkinnyScientist
on 11/19/14 1:43 am

David Ison has a CD set which uses breathing and relaxation as a mechanism to reduce pain.

I use it often. And I like the music. You breath in time with the music

RNY Surgery: 12/31/2013; 

Current weight (2/27/2015) 139lbs, ~14% body fat

Three pounds below Goal!!! Yay !  

Cicerogirl, The PhD
Version

on 11/19/14 6:06 am - OH

I have several such CDs, and have one that I like to use occasionally for muscle tightness that I cannot seem to relax (as well as PTSD body memories), but have had several clients say the music (and vocal instructions, where applicable) are distracting.

Lora

14 years out; 190 pounds lost, 165 pound loss maintained

You don't drown by falling in the water. You drown by staying there.

SkinnyScientist
on 11/19/14 8:23 am

Hmmm. different strokes for different folks. I act5ually now use his in teh car.He is really good at killing road rage...

RNY Surgery: 12/31/2013; 

Current weight (2/27/2015) 139lbs, ~14% body fat

Three pounds below Goal!!! Yay !  

Racewalker48
on 11/19/14 1:46 am
RNY on 02/17/14

Thank you Lora!  I really need this as I am struggling with low back pain and have few options for pharmaceutical pain relief.  

        

life_mirrors_art
on 11/20/14 3:27 am - Canada

I've used biofeedback and progressive relaxation techniques for years to help with frequent severe migraines. Normally, I try to imagine the pain flowing out of my body through my fingertips, but steps 4-6 in your description sound interesting and definitely worth a try. Thanks for the post!

 

RNY on June 23, 2014  -  HW: 280, SW: 230, CW: 166, GW: 140

   
  

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