When you are in pain, life can feel more challenging at every level. Even the little things like shopping and cooking can feel like too much, with effects on your emotional and mental health. That’s when it’s time to reach out for help and support. Working with a therapist to address your pain and discomfort supports you to remain resilient, with a positive mental attitude. This in turn will ease your pain – studies show that people who maintain a more optimistic view of their pain experience it less intensely.
Pain perception
Thoughts can powerfully affect your emotional, behavioural and physical reactions to pain.
Over three decades of scientific research have shown that a negative pain mindset – expecting pain, feeling powerless to ease it and worrying about it – is correlated with more intense feelings of pain and slower recovery from injury or surgery. That’s because a negative pain mindset entrains neural networks and brain connectivity in a way that primes the nervous system to perceive pain.
It can feel difficult to change your mindset to think positively and optimistically. But there’s plenty of help out there, and our team of osteopaths can really support you if you are feeling overwhelmed with your pain or other symptoms.
Positive thinking for wellbeing
OF course, life brings challenges for everyone. Unpleasant encounters with others, stress at work, family dynamics – it all adds up. And it’s not always possible to avoid these challenges.
But you are not completely powerless. You can choose how to respond to stress and anxiety. This is where positive thinking comes in. An attitude of optimism, and creatively finding ways to manage ups and downs in life can really help. Practices such as breathwork, visualisation and gratitude are helpful. They provide us with a pause between stimulus and response, in which we can choose if, and how to act.
It’s no different with chronic pain. Your perception of pain will be more intense if you are stressed and anxious because your nervous system will already be primed to react to worst-case scenarios. Although a positive attitude in itself won’t cure your pain, it will give you space to consider what options are available, to seek help and to identify patterns and causes of your pain flare-ups. Whether you are struggling with back pain, aches in your joints, arthritis or injury to tendons and ligaments, finding a way to remain mentally resilient will support your body to heal and recover.
Osteopathy can help!
Our osteopaths are on hand to assess your pain and give you an accurate diagnosis. Each practitioner will offer a prognosis and a detailed treatment plan with realistic goals for pain management and alleviation of your symptoms. Our therapists will always work with you, taking your lifestyle and physical capacities into account.
Even simply making that call can help to ease your pain. That’s because you’re sending a signal to your nervous system that things are set to improve, that you are no longer helpless in the face of your pain. It allows you a break from worrying and fearing the worst.
Book your appointment now
It couldn’t be easier to book your appointment with Osteo & Physio! Book a session via our app, website or call our friendly reception team on 0345 5577788.
