Understanding Chronic Pain: Reducing Suffering and Regaining Control

Everyone experiences pain now and then. This discomfort is supposed to be a protective experience to make sure you stop doing things that may be dangerous. However, chronic pain (persisting for more than 3 months) is no longer protective nor informative.

The Reality of Chronic Pain

Chronic pain is the second-most common reason people see a doctor and miss work. More than one-third of people with this discomfort become disabled by their pain to some degree. It can be mild or excruciating, episodic or continuous, merely inconvenient or totally incapacitating. The pain can be from headaches or related to the joints, neck, back, or injury.

The common thing with all these types is that the actual feeling of pain is always created in your brain 100% of the time.

Neuroscience Research

Did you know that imagining a movement influences the brain similarly to actually doing the movement? This mental practice can help retrain your brain to recognise that most day-to-day movements are not dangerous, as imagining it won’t cause pain. Essentially, you can train your brain to restore more pain-free movement.

Unlocking Movement and Function

The movement of your spine is also very important. Alignment-based yoga or low-impact exercise like Tai Chi can be great for this, and chiropractic care may be really important to help you move, too. The main focus of Activator Methods chiropractic care is to improve the movement and function of your spine.

This is so important because proper spine movement helps the brain to know more accurately what is happening, not just in the spine but elsewhere in your body. Activator Methods chiropractic care is already well known in the research literature to help people who suffer with back or neck pain and some types of headaches.

This is most likely because chiropractic care helps the brain know more accurately what is going on in the spine and body and may help the brain switch off the feelings of pain when they are no longer needed.

Maintain a Positive Outlook

If you suffer from chronic discomfort, do your best to stay positive. Focus on eating well, getting good sleep, drinking fresh water, breathing clean air, and moving regularly. Consider seeking our holistic care to help retrain your brain and manage your discomfort.