A study was conducted with participants who are experiencing pain.
They were given Naloxone to chemically block their bodies‘ opioid receptors. One of the groups meditated, the other did not. The group that meditated was able to reduce pain by 24% more than the non-meditating group. This shows that meditation works on a different pathway in the brain and not used by traditional pain relievers.
Pain comes in two forms. Primary, electrical signals caused by the injury and secondary, how your brain interprets the pain. Meditation helps differentiate between the two and rewires your brain in a way that turns down the volume of the secondary pain. Essentially, it engages mechanisms supporting the cognitive control of pain. In doing so, you can also relieve stress, anxiety, depression that may be caused by this pain and your body can begin to heal.
Don’t think about the pain. You thought about the pain, didn’t you? The problem for some people practicing meditation is a lot of meditations guide you through how your body’s feeling. And when that feeling is not great, then that reinforcement’s not going to work. Instead, it’s beneficial to practice breathwork meditations that focus more on breathing patterns.
If you’re interested in testing this out or just want to jump in on a quick session, Pain-free living will be hosting a free seminar this Friday, November 20 at 8 am Central. Comment below if you want to join.