Changing the conversation about pain

I read an interesting article about pain recently: Can reframing pain make it go away?
​​Quite possibly - is the short answer. 

When we feel pain, it is the result of a complex interplay of emotional and physical factors. A stubbed toe when you are trying to save a falling baby, versus the same mechanical injury after you've had some bad news over the phone, could feel very different. 

The story we tell ourselves about injury and pain can also make a difference in how we recover. As medical science improves, we expect that we can fix everything with the right pill or treatment and can become despondent when it doesn't happen.

"As we adjust our lives around avoidance and suppression, we internalise the message that we cannot handle pain. And when we limit our chances to get hurt, we fail to learn that we can get back up again. This has serious, demonstrable consequences for our ability to deal with both the physical and emotional pain that life will inevitably throw at us, and fuels a paradigm in which we don’t believe we have control over pain without the aid of drugs, surgery or medical intervention."

Studies have shown that when people are able to reframe and find meaning in a painful experience (this could be a physical like a toothache or an emotional one like heartbreak), their brains activate the body's natural painkillers and the person then becomes more tolerant to pain. 

Often, the fear of being in pain can be worse than the pain itself. Sometimes, stopping that anticipation loop can help you discover micro-movements in which you are pain-free. With all osteopathic treatment plans, we aim to rebuild your confidence with a gradual return to activity and will support you through the whole process of healing.​