Mindfulness meditation for pain — the science
Why meditate?
There are so many reasons and ways to meditate, but today I would like to touch on the profound effect mindfulness meditation may have on our perception of pain.
Mindfulness practice has been shown to improve pain. [1] It is born out of the Buddhist practice of Vipassana, which means “to see things as they really are.” It involves paying attention on purpose to each moment in an effort to create a state of awareness that is accepting, non-judgmental, and non-reactive. [2]
It may be effective for, amongst other things, headaches [3], chronic low back pain [4], diabetes symptoms [5,6], and may help depression, even in the pediatric age group [7,8]. My patients, colleagues, and I have also used mindfulness meditation with great success for menstrual cramps, abdominal pain, and many other kinds of pain as well.
A simple way to start is to sit in a quiet room, close your eyes and focus your attention on the sound and feel of your breath going in and out through your nose or mouth. It can be helpful to take a moment to commit to staying focused during your meditation and acknowledge the thoughts that are most likely to distract you. When those thoughts do come up (and they pretty much always do), try to acknowledge them without getting caught up in an emotional reaction to them or to the fact that you’re having thoughts during meditation practice. Watch your thoughts come up and then fade. Everyone’s mind wanders, so don’t judge yourself when yours does.
At the beginning, it can help to set aside time at the same time each day to meditate, until it becomes a normal part of your daily routine. With practice, you will be able to focus your attention for longer periods of time and notice that you actually respond differently to pain [9].
Meditation can have a profound effect on people’s lives – it certainly has in mine – and I hope you find it to be a valuable resource in your life as well!
References
Hilton L, Hempel S, Ewing BA, et al. (2017) Mindfulness meditation for chronic pain: Systematic review and meta-analysis. Annals of Behavioral Medicine 51: 199–213. doi: 10.1007/s12160-016-9844-2.
Lustyk M. K. B., Gerrish W. G., Douglas H., Bowen S., Marlatt G. A. (2011). Relationships among premenstrual symptom reports, menstrual attitudes, and mindfulness. Mindfulness.2 37–48. doi: 10.1007/s12671-011-0041-x.
Gu Q., Hou J.C., Fang X.M. Mindfulness Meditation for Primary Headache Pain: A Meta-Analysis. Chin. Med. J. (Engl.) 2018;131:829–838. doi: 10.4103/0366-6999.228242.
Patil SG. Effectiveness of mindfulness meditation (Vipassana) in the management of chronic low back pain. Indian J Anaesth. 2009;53:158–63.
Priya G, Kalra S. Mind–Body Interactions and Mindfulness Meditation in Diabetes. Eur Endocrinol. 2018 Apr; 14(1): 35–41. doi: 10.17925/EE.2018.14.1.35.
Loucks EB, Gilman SE, Britton WB, Gutman R, Eaton CB, Buka SL (2016) Associations of mindfulness with glucose regulation and diabetes. Am J Health Behav 40: 258–267. doi: 10.5993/AJHB.40.2.11.
Wahbeh H, Internet Mindfulness Meditation Intervention (IMMI) Improves Depression Symptoms in Older Adults. Medicines.2018, 5(4), 119. doi: 10.3390/medicines5040119.
Chi X., Bo A., Liu T., Zhang P., Chi I. Effects of Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction on Depression in Adolescents and Young Adults: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Front. Psychol. 2018;9:1034. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2018.01034.
Zeidan F., Grant J.A., Brown C.A., McHaffie J.G., Coghill R.C. Mindfulness meditation-related pain relief: Evidence for unique brain mechanisms in the regulation of pain. Neurosci. Lett. 2012;520:165–173. doi: 10.1016/j.neulet.2012.03.082.