Reprogram your Brain to Overcome Chronic Pain!

Do you suffer from chronic pain?

If you don’t know what chronic pain is, the Cleveland Clinic describes it as “pain that lasts for over three months. The pain can be there all the time, or it may come and go. It can happen anywhere in your body. Chronic pain can interfere with your daily activities, such as working, having a social life and taking care of yourself or others. It can lead to depression, anxiety and trouble sleeping, which can make your pain worse. This response creates a cycle that’s difficult to break”.

Chronic pain isn’t always caused by a physical injury that it can be quickly fixed with medication.

It can actually persist even after an injury has healed and often involves persistent discomfort.

Your Brain can Misinterpret Signals as Pain!

There’s also neuroplastic pain that arises from changes in the brain and nervous system and can be deeply connected to our thoughts and emotions.

Neuroplastic pain can be a mind-body misinterpretation where your brain misinterprets signals as pain.

According to PainProcessingTherapy.com “Neuroplastic pain results from the brain misinterpreting safe messages from the body as if they were dangerous. In other words, neuroplastic pain is a false alarm”.

Neuroplastic pain can result from stress, trauma, or prolonged pain.

This requires treatments that focus on retraining the brain and nervous system to stop these pain signals.

Valerie Beaulieu, mind-body coach specializing in Neuroplastic pain, says that “fear is an emotion that will perpetuate chronic pain. Anxiety, stress, worry, frustration, anger are all emotions that have an underlying tone of fear. Your brain will perceive that as danger, and communicate that with you by sending you physical pain. It’s as simple as that”.

Every pain in your body, head, knee, back, hips, skin, jaw, teeth, or eyes, is all real physical pain which is produced in the brain.

Neuroplastic Pain can Produce Physical Symptoms!

Personality traits such as perfectionism, people pleasing, or conscientiousness, that dominate your day can put your nervous system and brain into a “danger” state creating neuroplastic pain. Unresolved early childhood trauma can also lead to neuroplastic pain.

Neuroplastic pain can produce physical symptoms and manifest as fibromyalgia, migraines, and irritable bowel syndrome.

“Neuroplastic pain is a mind-body misinterpretation problem, not a physical problem. The brain is capable of generating any physical sensation in any part of the body: pain in your back, your neck, your eyes, your teeth, muscle pain, nerve pain, sharp pain, dull pain, tightness, tingling, burning, numbness. If you’re experiencing an unpleasant sensation anywhere in your body, it is absolutely possible that it’s neuroplastic” according to Mindbodylivingrx.com.

If you’re still experiencing pain, even though there’s no physical evidence showing up externally or on an X-ray or MRI, you might want to try a holistic approach and seek a mind-body coach who can help you understand and manage your pain.

Mind-body coaches, specializing in neuroplastic pain, have helpful strategies, to meet each individual’s unique needs.

Yes you can, reprogram your brain to overcome chronic pain!

Regular exercise, a healthy diet, and practicing mindfulness which helps calm the nervous system, are all part of a helpful treatment plan.

Reframe Your Relationship with Pain!

One thing you can try If you notice yourself having pain, is journaling which is a great way to create self awareness.

Something to consider writing about is how you normally react to different situations. Are your actions motivated more by fear or love?

Fear and love are dominant emotions that we feel regularly.

If you notice you lean towards fear, consider somatic tracking, a form of meditation you can practice when experiencing pain.

The purpose is to reframe your relationship with pain so that when you feel pain, you’re just curiously observing it, instead of fixing or judging it. Just allow it to be there.

For example, observe whether you’re feeling pressure, tightness, sharpness, or something else, and then breathe through it.

In this process, your brain starts sensing that you’re calm and safe instead of danger.

Since pain is a sensation, your brain will start to lessen the sensation and pain.

Somatic tracking helps you reprogram your thoughts and emotions so the brain stops perceiving the pain as dangerous.

Again, it may be helpful to work with a mind-body coach who offers this type of modality along with other helpful tools to help you feel better.

Once you work with a coach, your progress is measured by pain reduction, improved function, and enhanced quality of life.

Many see improvement in a few weeks.

Self-Care!

In addition to journaling and somatic breathing, it’s also important to practice self-care each day by doing things that create peace and joy.

Here are a few tips to get you started:
💆 Create deep and balanced connections with people you truly enjoy
💆🏻‍♀️ Prevent injuries by being mindful, and focusing on the task at hand
💆 Take 5 minute walks in nature and enjoy beautiful surroundings
💆🏻‍♀️ Stay out of your past and future and learn how to live in the present
💆 Tap into creativity or take time to read a book
💆🏻‍♀️ Meditate daily
💆 Clear the clutter in your home and create a peaceful sanctuary
💆🏻‍♀️ Live within intention and say no to things you have no desire to do

Incorporating daily self-care habits and making positive lifestyle changes can help with chronic pain by calming the nervous system.

By committing to these practices, you may reduce or overcome chronic pain, and enjoy a more fulfilling life!

TOPIC: Reprogram your Brain to Overcome Chronic Pain!