Meditation and Pain Relief

July 11, 2010

by Mehmet C. Oz, MD, and Michael F. Roizen, MD |

If you're among the tens of millions of North Americans living with chronic pain, we've got news about a drug-free "om remedy" worth trying: easy meditation. Plenty of research shows that your brain's superpowers can help conquer the most stubborn of miseries, including bad backs, cancer pain, arthritis, tension headaches, and inflammatory bowel disease. (Check out how meditation can help knee pain.) The best part?

You don't have to move to a mountaintop, sit on a rock-hard meditation cushion, or shell out big bucks for a meditation instructor to get results. In a new study from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, people who meditated for just 20 minutes a day saw their pain tolerance rise in 4 days. Volunteers learned an ultra-easy technique called mindfulness meditation that teaches you to focus on your breath and stay in the present moment, not worry about what's ahead. Researchers tested the volunteers' pain thresholds with mild electric shocks and found that shocks considered "high pain" before meditating felt mild afterward.

Volunteers who didn't learn the meditation had unchanged responses to the shocks. (No, we can't imagine why anyone volunteered for this, though we're grateful that they did.) Please don't try this at home! But once you've finished reading this column, take a few minutes to test-drive our simple instructions (see below) for mindfulness meditation and two other pain-soothing techniques. You'll feel calm, centered, and Zen-fully refreshed, fast.

But first, let's get something straight: Meditation doesn't work because your pain is "all in your head." Chronic pain is all too real, and too many people live with it every day. When pain won't quit, stress and worry kick in, boosting levels of stress hormones, which tricks your brain into thinking the pain is worse than it is. Destressing with meditation or similar mind-body techniques (progressive muscle relaxation, guided imagery) dials back stress hormones, which so diminishes pain. The difference may be enough for you to reduce your pain meds or to get relief when drugs alone fall short.

There's more. In other new research, this time from England's University of Manchester, meditation eased pain by helping your brain stop anticipating it -- another stress trigger. Less stress and less pain can also mean better sleep, more motivation to exercise, and even less depression, all of which make you relax more and hurt less. Ready to get started? Find a quiet place where you can sit or lie down comfortably for 10 to 15 minutes. Tape a "Do Not Disturb" sign on the door. Then, give these brain-powered pain busters a whirl: Mindfulness meditation: Close your eyes; it will help you stay focused. Breathe in and out, slowly and naturally (no need to hyperventilate), paying attention to how each inhale and exhale feels. Acknowledge your thoughts, feelings, and physical sensations in your body, but don't get wrapped up in them. Keep gently returning your focus to your rhythmic breathing. After 10 minutes or so, begin to notice your surroundings as you breathe calmly. Then, plan to go about your day with this feeling of calm awareness.

results have been amazing.

Meditation techniques effective for pain relief

This article is courtesy of the American Pain Society.

Meditation has analgesic benefits associated with creating a relaxed state of mind and enhancing the ability to moderate reactions to pain, according to new research published in The Journal of Pain, the peer review publication of the American Pain Society.

Researchers from the University of North Carolina measured pain ratings in students interested in learning meditation who recruited for the study. Subjects were trained in meditation for three consecutive days and were given experimental pain stimuli.

Results of the trial showed that relaxed states promoted by the brief mindfulness meditation sessions reduced the reported pain ratings. Participants had less pain to both low and high pain intensities and showed significant reductions in anxiety after each meditation stimulation. The authors concluded that decreases in anxiety and increases in the ability to sustain personal focus can attenuate the feeling of pain.

In assessing their findings, the authors noted that the analgesic effects of meditation can be realized even after a short period of time learning the technique. Also, the results provide additional validation of the benefits of cognitive techniques for controlling pain. [via The American Pain Society]