Friday, November 21, 2008

Dissolve Physical or Emotional Pain

There is a balance in dealing with pain. It's crucial to acknowledge and care for physical or emotional pain, but don't get enveloped by it. Listen to your pain, address it in the ways you need to or know how to, and learn from it. If you suppress the pain or ignore it, it could possibly increase. After you have listened to the pain (emotional or physical) and tended to it, and it chronically persists, then it's time to redirect your focus to what isn't hurting and to what is working. Once you've done this, you've found the balance in pain. And you've practiced an important life lesson.

Chronic pain patients are often given the advice to focus away from the pain and channel that focus towards the parts of their body that aren't in pain. This technique is very effective. Try it... If a part of you is in physical pain try to think about the parts of you that aren't in pain. Focus in on those parts, let yourself feel gratitude for the lack of pain in these parts. And if your pain is emotional rather than physical, focus on the things in your life that cause you no emotional pain but rather lift your spirits.

At first I was scared of the pain, so I ignored it. I crowded my mind and life with busy, productive distractions from the pain. After a while, the internal physical pain started to scream at me so I would listen. I stubbornly fought against it, but eventually I listened and worked hard to calm it. There is a certain amount of pain that still persists no matter what I do, so I'm learning to focus away from the pain.

1 comment:

Ricki said...

I totally agree. The more you ignore, the bigger the issue becomes until it's more than you can handle. Thanks for the insight.