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More Complementary & Integrative Healthcare Articles
Dealing With Chronic Pain A Yoga Perspective
Pain is a complex phenomenon we unfortunately all experience at some point. The amount we suffer with that pain is, to a perhaps surprising degree, up to us. Ponder for a moment Pain is an inevitable part of human existence; suffering is not.
A complete yoga practice one that includes not just physical postures, breath work, or meditation and mindfulness, but ideally all of these, performed regularly helps many people living with chronic pain transform their experience. (The definition of “chronic pain” varies but is usually considered to have lasted three months or more, long after the original tissue injury, if there was one, has healed.)
A host of factors including biochemistry, psychology, and social support determine an individual's pain experience. Yoga philosophy likewise views the human system as an interwoven whole Tug on one thread say, the physical body and the others (energy, spirit, emotion) are pulled and affected.
Even when a client comes to me with a specific body part bothering them a constantly achy lower back, a “bad” shoulder I assess them as a whole person and work beyond that one area. This multi-level approach is a key reason yoga can get to the root of suffering.
In addition to the physical body, pain affects us on an energetic level in yoga terms the pranic, or breath, body. Breathing dysfunction ranging from mild to severe commonly accompanies chronic pain, often without the sufferer noticing their altered respiratory pattern. Here again viewing the body-mind as an integrated system brings significant benefit Specific breathing exercises are usually part of a therapeutic yoga program and can be another doorway to reduced suffering, even when physical postures aren't possible.
Another common chronic pain companion disrupted sleep, also potentially related to the energetic body and even the emotional body. As with breathing problems, yogic tools can be individually tailored to address imbalances that result in trouble falling or staying asleep.
As these examples hint, a therapeutic yoga practice becomes more effective over time, not less. Contrast this with isolated exercises that target one area, or pain medications with doses you have to increase. A good yoga therapist or experienced instructor can offer practices that reach far beyond the stretching and strengthening you might expect from a general yoga class.
Is yoga the best therapy for chronic pain? Maybe. No single factor controls the experience of chronic pain, so no single approach is likely to resolve it. Because it takes a global view of the human system, though, yoga is potentially a huge help for many, and good-quality research is beginning to support this truth.
