Managing Chronic Pain
If you suffer from chronic pain in your shoulder, you may be trying to find the best ways to manage your discomfort. Since pain is interpreted by the brain, chronic pain can range widely in its severity and is highly individualized.
Still, chronic pain can be debilitating, making it difficult for you to enjoy life or participate in group activities. Here are a few ways to manage chronic pain.
Meditation and Relaxation
Meditation and relaxation techniques can help in the management of chronic pain by relaxing the muscles that may be contributing to the pain. Tense muscles can cause headaches and other types of discomfort.
Still, training yourself to relax takes time. Relaxation techniques usually involve learning to breathe slowly and deeply. This helps to change the brain's focus. Instead of focusing on the pain, the brain focuses on the control of your breaths.
Distraction
Sometimes, pain can be so intense that it is difficult to think about anything else. If the brain is distracted from the discomfort, the sensations of pain may subside.
Multiple meditative techniques, such as focusing on repeating several positive affirmations or concentrating on a peaceful scene in your mind, can help distract your brain from the pain. Playing gentle instrumental music may also help to distract your mind from the chronic pain.
For some people, any distracting activity can help to alleviate the pain. Thus they may try to enjoy a funny television show or read an engaging book. They may even choose to call a close friend for a lengthy, distracting conversation.
Hypnosis
If you are unable to relax or redirect your focus on your own, hypnosis may help. Hypnosis can introduce suggestions that lessen the pain that you feel.
Some people can be taught self-hypnosis to induce a hypnotic state without the aid of a therapist. This can be helpful since chronic pain can be quite intense, even when a therapist may be unavailable.
Biological Response Feedback
Specialized machines can be used to help you control your heart rate and relax your muscles by offering instant feedback. The machines can indicate muscle tension, relaxation, and an elevated heart rate. As your heart rate slows, the machine can offer the feedback needed for you to recognize when and how you are controlling your body's responses. As you master the controlling techniques, you can help alleviate the pain and your body's responses to it, even when there is no machine present.
If you suffer from chronic pain in your shoulder and would like to learn more ways to control it, schedule a consultation with a shoulder pain treatment provider in your local area.