How to Use Meditation to Deal with Pain
Pain from an injury can seem defeating in many ways. The injury may have been caused by carelessness or improper form in your activity which can make you feel guilty and responsible. The pain can also prevent you from performing upcoming activities. The impact that pain can have is more than just the injury itself. So what can you do?
It is most important to acknowledge that injuries happen to everyone. Even the most athletic or most responsible people will occasionally have pain or soreness. While the pain can temporarily slow you down, it should not completely stop you.
Learning how to use meditation to deal with pain can remove the thoughts and emotional burdens from the injury while also helping the overall healing process. Some of the benefits of learning how to use meditation to deal with pain include:
- Reduced stress
- Relaxation of muscles around the injury
- Improved circulation that allows the injury to heal faster
- Increased pain tolerance
- Reduced dependency on pain medication
- Time to rest and allow the area to heal
Consider these techniques for using meditation to deal with pain:
Mindfulness Meditation
One method commonly used for meditation is to focus on a particular sensation, feeling or thought. Some of the options for mindfulness meditation can be –
- Listening to breathing in and out or the rise and fall of the chest/diaphragm
- Focusing on the heartbeat and the rhythm as it decreases or increases
- Picturing a peaceful scene in your mind such as a meadow, mountain or beach and tuning into the details and sounds
- Paying attention to the injured area and how it is healing
- Stretching slowly and focusing on the stretch and the form of the movement
Transcendental Meditation
This technique is very helpful for those who find the mindfulness meditation difficult. This process involves repeating a particular mantra in a rhythmic way to place yourself into a meditative state. Some helpful mantras could be –
- Positive phrases such as “I am strong” or “I will succeed”
- Lyrics from a favorite song
- Focused phrases specific to the injury such as “my spine is healing” or “my muscles relax for me”
- Imagery where you picture yourself performing a particular workout or activity successfully, using as much detail as possible
It is very easy to succumb to pain. With the use of meditation techniques, you can rise above and control pain while helping your body heal. In some cases, additional assistance could be needed to help with meditation. The Marc Pro electronic muscle stimulation device is ideal to help with meditation and relaxation in general. The device can be used during either of the meditation techniques and can be used as a focus point to help you meditate. Marc Pro uses electrical stimuli to help relax muscles without any stress or strain.
Some types of pain are simply related to new movements or exercises that may not have been performed before. Your muscles may not be used to the new movements and feel pain. Other types of pain could be more severe or from a more serious injury. Pay attention to your pain and select a treatment that will relieve the pain and help your body heal.