Relaxation For Pain Patients

Exercise that involves relaxing the muscles and sections of the body, one by one, to produce full body relaxation. All while using deep, diaphragmatic breathing skills to turn off the sympathetic nervous system, and fight or flight response.

This practice avoids the muscle tensing portion of similar exercises, in hopes of avoiding exacerbation of pain symptoms.

Transcript

This is a relaxation exercise for pain patients with Dr. Todd Giardina. This exercise should not exacerbate your pain as we avoid muscle tension. Begin by sitting comfortably in a chair. Sit up straight, Allow the armrest to support your arms. Ideally you'd be in a room with soft lighting and little distraction or noise. Remove glasses if you're wearing them, Take off your watch or any jewelry that might be distracting. Now that you're seated comfortably, Begin to notice your breathing. With your eyes closed or focused off in the distance, Place one hand on your stomach and one on your chest and pay attention to which moves more as you breathe in and out. Ideally we want to see the hand on the stomach moving up and down more, Signaling that you're taking breaths deep into the diaphragm, Down into your abdomen. For the next few breaths, Try to willfully move the muscles in your stomach such that when you breathe in, You allow the stomach to expand and stretch out. When you exhale, Pull the stomach in, Pressing all the air out of your diaphragm. Take a few more deep breaths, Trying to exaggerate this motion. Breathing slowly, Deeply, In through the nose, Out through the mouth. Letting your stomach rise and fall as your breaths get longer and deeper. Now I'd like you to rest your arms back on the armrests of the chair. Begin by focusing your attention on your forehead and brow and imagine all tension or unpleasant feelings slipping away, Sliding down off of your face, Leaving behind pure relaxation and calm. Feel the muscles in your cheeks, Your jaw, Your neck going looser, Feeling heavier. Allow this calm wave relaxation to wash down over your neck and shoulders. Feel your arms rest heavier on the armrests of the chair as the muscles in your neck release any tension. Allow the muscles in your arms, Your forearms, Even your fingertips to feel heavy, To feel rested, To feel supported by the chair. As you continue to breathe deeply, Gently into your stomach and diaphragm, Feel this relaxing wave cascading down your back and shoulders, Down into your low back, Feeling the tension slide off. Allow this feeling of relaxation to flow down to your buttocks and thighs, Past your knees, Down to your lower legs and feet and toes, Allowing your legs to feel heavy, Limp, Supported by the chair and the ground. Continue to breathe deeply in through your nose, Out through your mouth, And run your mind across each part of your body, Noticing there's a greater sense of relaxation from head to toe. Anywhere where you might carry pain or tension, Feel or imagine that it is now a bit more dull, A bit in the background. This sensation is still there. It still weighs on you. But it's less so. It's softer. It's more distant. Because now you've been washed over by a warm cascade of relaxation, Removing the tension from the muscles of your head and neck and your shoulders and arms, Feeling a calming feeling down your back and legs and to your toes. As you continue to breathe deeply and gently, I want you to fix this feeling in your mind, This feeling of being supported by the chair, Feeling calm and at ease, A sense that your pain may be present, But it's a distant sound. It's not so loud because you're removing the tension from your body and thus from your mind. Begin to associate this sensation with a particular image or sound, Something you can return to at any point in your day. It might be the image of the sun coming through your curtains as you wake in the morning. It might be the sound of your child's laughter. It might be a pleasant image you conjure up, A memory of a vacation or a loved one's face that you can return to in your mind and instantly have the recall of all this physical relaxation that you've now associated with it. So do that now. Imagine a sight or sound that you will associate with this feeling of calm, This feeling of momentary pain escape. And with your deep breathing, Notice how you've connected the image and the feeling. You can return to this feeling at any time, At any point in the day when you need to feel less pain, Less stress or tension. Just imagine the feeling of relaxation. Now that you've fixed that image with this feeling, I'd like you to become more aware of your body seated in the chair, Becoming more aware of your arms and legs touching the chair, Noticing more the sounds around you or outside, Coming back to a state of wakefulness, Continuing to breathe slowly and gently. I'd like you to count backwards in your mind from five to one. When you reach one, Open your eyes and find yourself feeling more relaxed in both mind and body.