Open Yourself to Pain
 
  Vijai P. Sharma, Ph.D

 The moment we sense the pain coming, we tense up.  Our muscles contract.  We close the body lid tight, determined that we won't let the pain in.  But pain is like the gushing water.  Water can break the strongest damn.  The more we tense up and fight with the pain, the more power pain gets to hurt us.  Therefore, open yourself to pain.  Don't create resistance.  On the contrary, relax.  Let the pain flow freely through you and the pain will begin to lose its momentum.     

 People ask me, "Do you think my pain is in my head?:  I tell them, "Pain is not in your head, it is in your body.  But, your mind is the one that feels the pain."  Since mind feels the pain, you can control body pain with a trained mind.  Pain control, in part, is "mind over matter."   

 Learning relaxation skills is none of the most effective tools for pain control.  Chronic tension in muscle(s) plays a big part in pain problem.  Relaxation techniques help in relaxing muscles.  Workshops, training courses, and self-help tapes are available on relaxation techniques.
 Spend less and less time on the "big three friends of pain,"  Fear, Anger, and Sadness.  These three impair pain tolerance and increase the suffering from pain.  Emotions have a very direct impact on the feeling of pain.  The more you entertain positive emotions such as, love, compassion and joy, the less your mind feels the pain.  

 Laughter is an effective pain medicine, it costs very little, and it has no side effects.  Schedule funny videos, joke books, TV sitcoms, and other funny items in your daily routine.  15 minutes of belly laughter reduced pain for the next two hours.
 Invent a noble meaning and purpose for your pain such as, "I have been given pain so I can purify my heart."   
 

 


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