Did you know that 35-45% of people who are suffering from chronic pain undergo depression? This is how much toll physical pain can take on your mental health, and the severity of this situation demands your attention. What if we told you that by incorporating some simple things in your daily life, you could improve not only your mental health but also your physical health?
These techniques are known as meditation and mindfulness, and they have been playing a role in your pain management without you even noticing. Still confused as to how mental health is related to your physical health? Let us to explain.
Your Mind and Your Body Are Not Separated
Have you ever gone through a tough phase where you were mentally exhausted, and soon, your physical health started deteriorating, too? Maybe you lost your appetite, you had no energy left, you had headaches, bad gut health, or even insomnia.
Similarly, it is also possible that you had a severe illness and that slowly started affecting your mental peace too. It started with a physical illness, but soon, you had extreme mood swings, social anxiety, and an overall state of depression, just like in COVID.
This is because your mind and body are connected. If one is in pain, so is the other. Similarly, if you improve one of these aspects, the other flourishes, too. Has it started to make sense yet?
What Is Meditation and Mindfulness?
Let’s move a step further and talk about meditation and mindfulness. We’re sure you often hear these terms on social media, but what do they actually mean?
Meditation: Meditation is a term that has been in practice for thousands of years, and this involves a variety of poses that help you calm your mind and improve overall well-being. Meditation is basically cutting yourself off from the entire world for a while and focusing only on yourself.
Mindfulness: Mindfulness is a technique you use in meditation, and it means being aware of what is going on inside your body. Without any interpretation or judgement, you look inside yourself and observe your thoughts and emotions.
How Meditation and Mindfulness Complement Pain Management?
Did you know that over 100 million people in the United States face chronic pain annually? You don’t want to be one of them, and meditation can help you. When you meditate, your body produces endorphins, which are natural painkillers of your body so your pain sensations decrease.
Meditation and mindfulness are no magic pills, but they do work like magic on stress, fatigue, and anxiety that tag along with physical pain. So, these not only target pain directly but also the different parameters associated with pain, helping you manage your pain better than ever.
What Is the Science Behind Meditation and Pain Relief?
Even though meditation and mindfulness go back thousands of years, modern science has only started studying it recently. However, it has now been scientifically proven that meditation and mindfulness help in pain management.
Okay, so this is what happens.
1. Your brain has areas called Anterior Cingulate Cortex and Orbitofrontal Cortex (OFC).
2. These areas are responsible for self-control of pain sensations.
3. When you practice meditation and mindfulness, these areas of your brain get activated, and your pain decreases.
This Is What Studies Reveal
Modern diagnostic techniques like Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI) and Electroencephalography (EEG) have shown that these techniques positively affect your brain. According to a study conducted by Grant et al., MRI scans of meditation experts revealed a decreased sensitivity to pain as compared to non-meditators.
In 2016, a study was conducted by The American Journal of Medicine. which revealed that meditation induces the body’s opioid system. This system basically controls pain, and the study revealed how meditators experienced less pain than the control group.
How Do You Incorporate Meditation and Mindfulness into Your Daily Routine?
Ready to start your healing journey with meditation and mindfulness? Here are a few practical tips that will help you add meditation and mindfulness into your daily routine:
● Start with breathing exercises, which are the most basic form of meditation. Start slowly by devoting at least 5-10 minutes of your daily routine to breathing exercises.
● Meditate as soon as you wake up. This is one of the best times to meditate before you get distracted by your hectic routine tasks.
● If you cannot meditate in the morning, set out 5-10 minutes before you go to bed for meditation. Increase your timing slowly and give yourself at least 20-30 minutes to unwind before you go to bed.
● Don’t skip your meditation. No matter how busy you are, you should make time for meditation and show up every day to get better results.
Our Recommended Type of Meditation for Pain Management
According to stress reduction experts, the best type of meditation for pain management is the Body Scan Mindfulness Exercise. This is a mindfulness practice in which you scan all of your body for pain, stress, etc.
This mindfulness exercise will not only help you in pain management but also in reducing stress, syncing your mind and body, and becoming more self-compassionate. Here’s how you can perform a Body Scan Mindfulness Exercise:
● Sit comfortably in a silent place.
● Close your eyes and start scanning your body gradually, from head to toe.
● Notice where you feel pain or discomfort.
● One by one, scan every part of your body. How does that area feel? Comfortable or uncomfortable?
● Repeat the process for all your body parts for at least 20-30 seconds each.
● Breathe throughout and visualize that pain leaving your body.
Meditation And Mindfulness Are the Way to Go
We all know that oral medicines, no matter how good they are, have some side effects. So, if you come across a technique that aids you in pain management without interfering with your body systems, go for it!
There are countless real-life examples of people who curbed their pains using meditation and mindfulness. But the process takes time and patience. However, if your pain is unbearable, you can use SINSINPAS pain relief patches for instant pain relief.