Pain Management
Change your relationship with pain by observing it from a new perspective.
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Hi, and welcome to the Pain Management pack and to day one of part one. Now this pack is a 30-day pack, and we're gonna use three different techniques 10 days at a time. Starting off at a very high level, looking at the pain sort of almost from a distance and slowly getting closer towards it so that we can investigate it and over time develop a different kind of relationship with pain. So it's really important to say, right at the beginning, we're not looking to get rid of the pain, and there's certainly no guarantee here that the pain will disappear. Equally, we can't discount the possibility that that might happen, but we're talking about how we can change the relationship. So this is more about understanding our habits, our tendencies, the way we relate to pain right now and understanding how we might at times even exacerbate that, how we might increase the intensity, and through learning this technique understanding how we can step back from that and perhaps begin to unwind that feeling of pain, no matter whether it's something chronic that's been around for a long time or something that's just occurred quite recently. As always, I'm gonna talk you through each technique, I'll lead you through the exercise today. All you need to do is to find yourself a place where you're not gonna be disturbed for the next 10 minutes or so or however long you're choosing to sit for today. Arms and legs uncrossed, sitting upright with the eyes open, a nice soft focus where you're not staring at one thing but just aware of the space around you. And when you're ready, just starting with some nice, big deep breaths, breathing in through the nose and out through the mouth. And as you breathe out now, just gently closing the eyes, allowing the breath to return to its natural rhythm, in and out through the nose. As you just begin to feel the weight of the body pressing down, that contact, the feet on the floor and the arms on the legs. And just taking a few moments just to settle back into the space around you, just starting to notice the different sounds. And as you just start to bring the attention back to the body now, starting to notice how the body feels, and not only that area of discomfort or pain, but at this stage, the entire body. So remembering to notice as you scan down the areas that also feel quite comfortable, quite relaxed, and not spending any more time on one particular area, just scanning down through the body now. And as you become more aware of those different feelings, just starting to notice the movement of the breath in the body, a rising and falling sensation. So at this stage, noticing where in the body you feel that movement, whether it's the stomach, the chest, diaphragm, remember you can place your hand gently on...
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A former Buddhist monk, Andy has guided people in meditation and mindfulness for 20 years. In his mission to make these practices accessible to all, he co-created the Headspace app in 2010.
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Eve is a mindfulness teacher, overseeing Headspace’s meditation curriculum. She is passionate about sharing meditation to help others feel less stressed and experience more compassion in their lives.
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As a meditation teacher, Dora encourages others to live, breathe, and be with the fullness of their experiences. She loves meditation’s power to create community and bring clarity to people’s minds.
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Kessonga has been an acupuncturists, therapist, and meditation teacher, working to bring mindfulness to the diverse populations of the world.
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Rosie Acosta has studied yoga and mindfulness for more than 20 years and taught for over a decade. Rosie’s mission is to help others overcome adversity and experience radical love.
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