What Your Doctor Didn't Know - 7 Pain Traps
Most doctors, physiotherapists and other health specialists simply don't know how to help you get rid of long-term pain, but that's not really their fault. The fault lies partially with the drug companies, and partially with researching scientists who have been slow to understand the real nature of long-term pain. One Australian researcher has "cracked the code" and that's what I'll be sharing here.
I'm going to share just one technique that this research has led to, but before that you really need to know the pain traps that could keep you stuck with the pain. Take action on every one of these so you can increase your chances of success.
We know that every one of these 7 traps can act as a trigger to your nervous system to give you more pain. So please pay close attention, for your own sake.
TRAP 1
Becoming isolated. If you have pain you might not feel like mixing with people, and in the acute stage of pain it can be nice to have some peace and quiet and just rest and get better. But with long-term pain this isolation is incredibly destructive to you, because it damages your nervous system. You absolutely must mix socially with people.
TRAP 2
Not being active enough. Of course you need to rest and recover when an injury is fresh, but that's the last thing you should do with long-term pain. Activity is crucial for mental and physical health - your body needs it! But don't worry if you pain specialist has criticised you for not "pushing" through the pain. That's a dumb statement to make because it can sensitise you instead of helping. You need to have a base amount of activity that is pretty much OK, and then consistently increase how hard and how long you do it.
There's a balance to be found here, and that's what you should be looking for.
TRAP 3
Not being as independent as you possibly can. When you're dependent on others more than you need to be, you suffer (whether you know it or not) from higher stress levels. These stress levels sensitise your nervous system and increase your pain. So take a good look at what you allow others to do for you and think of ways around that. Also take a good look at your conversation with you're with family or friends. Are you saying the same things over and over each time you see them? Don't let them get in a rut either!
TRAP 4
Missing out on interests or hobbies. Not only are these things calming, but they get your mind off your body and onto something else. Even if you don't have an interest or hobby, get one! You're not stuck with it for life - later you can choose something else. You just need something right now, for the sake of your nervous system!
Likewise you need to be very aware of what's going on in the world around you, and to take an interest in that. Read papers and magazines, listen to talk-back radio, ask people their opinions. Involve yourself.
TRAP 5
Tolerating feelings of depression, anger, embarrassment or anxiety. These feelings put a lot of pressure on your nervous system and make it more reactive, leading to more pain. There are some really quite miraculous ways to switch these awful feelings off and give your nervous system a break!
TRAP 6
Lousy sleep. If you're not sleeping between 6 and 10 hours a night, if you're snoring, if your sleep is interrupted, if you're waking up feeling rotten, then these are signs your sleep has been compromised. Do yourself a favour and grab a book on "sleep hygiene" from your local library, and get whatever help you need to make sure your sleep supports your health and wellbeing.
TRAP 7
Inadequate nutrition. If you're overweight, or underweight, or tired a lot, chances are your nutrition needs an overhaul.
When you think about these things, they're quite obvious aren't they? But how many of them has your doctor spoken to you about in detail? I urge you to pay very close attention to the detail of these issues and move right away from those 7 traps as fast as you can!
HERE'S YOUR CHANCE TO TEST A NEW PAIN RELIEVER
This technique might look pretty crazy, but it's designed that way deliberately, to "mess up" the pain signals. If you want the whole theory and detail of the approach, you can't go past the book "The Pain Train - Time to Get Off", but here you get a chance to try it on and see if you get any result at all.
To "mix up" your pain signals, you need to focus on your pain at the same time as you're doing some sensory stimuli that are pretty strong. I'm quite sure you'll think this is a bit silly, but don't be fooled because doctors all over the world are starting to sit up and take notice!
Decide on a single tiny spot on your body where you have pain. Guess how strong that pain is out of 10, with 10 out of 10 being the worst you could imagine, and 0 out of 10 being no pain at all. While you're focussing strongly on that pain, start tapping, flicking, pinching, stroking, all over your head, face, chest, arms, and legs, even the soles of your feet if you like. At the same time, imagine that you're tasing different types of strongly-flavoured food: a lemon, a chocolate, a mint, a nice steak.
After a few minutes, stop and see if anything has happened to the pain in that one spot.
Make sure you check that one spot. A lot of people, even from the start, notice that the pain isn't the same. It might have changed in some way (a different type of pain) or it might have increased, decreased, or moved. Often it comes back, but less and less until it's gone for good.
Article Source: http://www.search-raven.com
About the Author
Christine Sutherland is an Australian researcher who teaches doctors, psychologists and clients to eliminate back pain. If you have back or neck pain that isn't responding to treatment, her treatment program is worth checking out.
This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution - No Derivative Works 3.0 Unported License, which means you may freely reprint it, in its entirety, provided you include the author's resource box along with LIVE links (without "nofollow" tags).
by: ChristineSutherland
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