Managing Emotional and Physical Pain (before it manages you)

A few years ago I slipped on the last patch of ice from winter and fractured my wrist. I was surprised at how emotionally upsetting that experience was, as well as observing how my whole body reacted to that one limb being injured. It was not a bad break, no surgery needed, but my mood was pretty low for at least a week. Ironically, almost a year later I fractured my other wrist falling off a sled with my grandson. I was not happy with myself! It made me remember those folks who have ongoing chronic pain or depression, and how these conditions can wear people down.

It’s no coincidence that the nerve endings which register pain are also closely associated with those registering sadness. Have you ever noticed how if you are a bit down in mood and then you hurt yourself physically, you get more upset? Or your body feels even more painful?

So many of the skills that we use for managing either of these are the same- like focusing on less stress in our lives, avoiding indulging in ‘pity parties’, distracting ourselves, or learning how to tolerate anxiety.  It is possible to have your pain level, in general, go down several points ( where 10 would be the worst possible pain, emotional or physical) simply by managing your stress level better. I can help you do this.

Now some folks have been told that their body pain is “all in your head” which is an unfortunate cliché, as it’s not as if you can separate your head and body nerve endings- in fact, everything is SO connected that it is hard to work out. There has been research that shows that certain conditions like fibromyalgia often occur in individuals that have had abuse or trauma in their lives. It’s almost as if the body is expressing that distress in its own way. But we do know that trauma and chronic pain have a similar “feedback loop” where our nervous system has forgotten how to turn off the alarm button and it keeps on sounding, like that car alarm in the parking lot which is so annoying and goes on and on…that provokes anxiety and depression.

Learning how to manage life” coming at me” (as one client put it) includes accepting that life definitely has its painful moments. We can choose how to deal with this more effectively and focus on a more joyous life! Contact me at jilba@lifemovescounseling.com for an appointment.