A psychiatrist reveals how simple mindset changes can significantly reduce chronic pain
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Chronic pain can be debilitating and frustrating, especially among older adults.
While physical remedies and treatments can provide some relief, experts have found that changing the way you think (or the way the brain approaches pain) can actually alleviate discomfort.
Dr. Daniel Amen, a California-based psychiatrist and founder of Amen Clinics, has studied how changing the brain can help overcome chronic pain, as he shares in his new book, “Change Your Brain, Change Your Pain.”
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In an on-camera interview with News Digital, Amen noted that many people don’t know that chronic pain doesn’t just live in the joints, knees or back.
“If it’s been around for more than three weeks, it now lives in the brain,” he said. “There are actually circuits in the brain that feel pain. They feel both physical pain and emotional pain.”
According to the doctor, pain that persists for more than three weeks also lives in the brain. (iStock)
According to Amen, some medications that treat depression are FDA-approved for chronic pain and treat both emotional and physical imbalances.
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“It’s because they work on the same circuits in the brain,” he said. “The healthier your brain is, the less physical and emotional pain you will feel.”
However, this does not mean that someone is “making up” the discomfort in their head, the psychiatrist emphasized.
“It’s going to be much more effective if you get your back and your brain to work together.” (iStock)
If the brain, which is an organ like any other, begins to work too much in certain areas, or not enough, finding ways to balance it can relieve pain and calm the entire body, Amen said.
In his book, he presents the “fatal loop”: chronic pain activates the suffering circuit in the brain, which then triggers negativity and muscle tension, followed by bad habits.
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“It sends you into a spiral… Your brain is out of control,” Amen said. “Which means that if you have back pain, all the muscles around that inflamed area contract and make it hurt even more.”
“That doesn’t mean you won’t need surgery; it just means it will be much more effective if your back and brain work together.”
“The healthier your brain is, the less physical and emotional pain you will feel.”
For people suffering from chronic pain, Amen recommends checking brain health first.
“Ask yourself, ‘What does pain mean to you?'” he suggested, adding that the biggest concern around pain is often the fear of losing freedom.
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Pain is often a symptom of repressed anger, Amen said, citing rehabilitation physician and chronic pain author John Sarno.
“Repressed emotions have to go somewhere, and in fact, they go to the pain circuits in the brain that can then activate back pain, knee pain, and neck pain,” he shared.
Amen warned about falling into the “fatal loop,” which leads from physical pain to negativity, muscle tension and bad habits. (iStock)
The doctor suggested a practice he calls “emotional freedom,” which involves keeping a journal every five years of your life, writing down what happened during those blocks of time. This can include positive experiences or moments of sadness and distress.
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“You really get a sense of where these repressed emotions might be,” he said.
Maintaining a positive attitude and optimistic outlook can also suppress anger and therefore relieve pain, the doctor added.
Angelica Stabile is a lifestyle reporter for News Digital.