Meditation For Chronic Pain:
Recent Scientific Discoveries

Chronic pain is reported to affect 20-30% of adult populations in Western countries (Turk et al, 2008). The most potent drugs only alleviate pain by 30-40% in less than half of patients, and one in three become addicted to these drugs.

Furthermore, over 40% of patients who are surgically implanted with pain-alleviating devices experience severe side-effects. (Taylor et al, 2005)

So how can meditation for chronic pain work?

Stress and back pain – stress and pain in general - go hand in hand. Meditation significantly reduces stress, and thus indirectly reduces pain.

Meditation's effect on alpha and gamma wave activity in the brain has proven beneficial effects on health and well-being, as well as helping to regulate the autonomic nervous system.

But there's another effect that I would like to draw your attention to: Attention itself.

There's increasing evidence that accepting pain is more beneficial than trying to control it.

A recent study shows that mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) is significantly more effective than traditional cognitive-behavioral stress reduction (CBSR) on several variables, among them mindfulness, well-being, binge eating, perceived stress, and pain (Smith et al, 2008).

The authors suggest that CBSR's focus on judging and changing thoughts and feelings leads to a decrease in mindfulness and an accurate perception of pain.

Pain is a subjective experience.

The accepting and observant attitude emphasized in MBSR facilitates mindful awareness and acceptance toward one's inner experience. A more accepting, moment-to-moment awareness is vital for monitoring and responding to internal cues related to pain and energy regulation, such as when to rest and when to exert oneself.

The authors further suggest that enhanced self-monitoring and self-regulation may also help explain the reductions in binge eating.

As a physical therapist and an experienced meditator I am not surprised by these next findings in a study comparing breath therapy (breathing, meditation, body awareness) to physical therapy on patients with chronic low back pain.

The researchers discovered that the patients improved significantly with breath therapy and meditation for chronic pain. Changes in standard low back pain measures of pain and disability were as good as, but not better than, high-quality, extended physical therapy (Mehling et al, 2005).

We have already reviewed the main reasons for the positive effects of awareness/meditation for chronic pain from a scientific point of view.

Now let's shift perspective and see what 4 of the 18 human beings randomly selected for breath therapy had to say about their experience:

"With this chronic low back pain, my goal has been to isolate the pain, to separate it from the rest of my body and life... through breath therapy I am trying to incorporate the painful part into the rest of my body. It feels opposite of what I've been doing."

"I look at my body a little more friendly and understanding."

"I think I have to change my attitude toward my body and the pain. I feel angry at my body to give me such trouble and pain. Maybe instead I should be grateful and have compassion for it... my body seems to be very cooperative and not this troublemaker."

"Breath therapy has taught me how to relax and be in touch with my own being."

References:

• Turk DC, Swanson KS, Tunks ER: Psychological approaches in the treatment of chronic pain patients – when pills, scalpels, and needles are not enough. Can J Psychiatry 2008;53(4):213-23.
• Taylor RS, Van Buyten JP, Buchser E: Spinal cord stimulation for chronic back and leg pain and failed back surgery syndrome: a systematic review and analysis of prognostic factors. Spine. 2005;30:152–160.
• Smith BW, Shelley BM, Dalen J, Wiggins, K, Tooley, E, Bernard, J: A pilot study comparing the effects of mindfulness-based and cognitive-behavioral stress reduction. Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine. 2008;14(3):251-58
• Mehling WE, Hamel KA, Acree M, Byl N, Hecht FM: Randomized, controlled trial of breath therapy for patients with chronic low-back pain. Alter Ther Health Medicine. 2005;11(4):44-52.