Welcome,
And I hope that each one of you will come to find peace within yourself.
Today I want to talk a little bit about using your breath to deal with pain.
And this is a meditation based on a live session I did recently.
Focusing on the breath is one of the most accessible and scientifically supported tools we have for managing pain.
And it isn't about making the pain magically vanish.
Rather,
It's about changing how your nervous system and your brain react to that pain.
When we experience sudden or even chronic pain,
Our body's natural instinct is to tense up.
Think about it.
Picture yourself in a dentist chair.
For many of you.
Even before they touch you,
Your body starts to tense up.
First your arms,
Gripping the armrest if there is one.
And then your legs.
And then your chest.
They haven't done anything yet,
But you've already tensed up.
And that tension,
That anticipation,
Makes any discomfort you might feel 10 times worse.
We tend to hold our breath or take shallow rapid breaths.
And all this.
Triggers our sympathetic nervous system the fight-or-flight response and that actually amplifies pain signals and increases muscle tension and that creates a vicious cycle.
You're tense because you think it's going to hurt.
And it hurts more because you're tense.
So by intentionally slowing down and shifting your focus to the breath,
You flip the switch.
Deep,
Slow breathing stimulates your vagus nerve,
Which activates the parasympathetic nervous system,
The rest and digest response.
And that lowers your heart rate,
Relaxes tight muscles,
And dampens the emotional intensity of the pain.
There was a theory established by two doctors in 1965 called the Gate Control Theory.
And what they decided is that your brain has a limited capacity for processing incoming signals like pain.
So when you flood your awareness with the physical sensations of slow,
Steady breaths,
And the rise and fall of your chest and the cool air in their nostrils,
You essentially crowd the phone lines,
And that leaves less bandwidth per pain signals to break through.
A lot of the suffering from pain comes from our mental resistance to it.
Having thoughts like,
I can't handle this,
Or when will this pain stop?
Breath anchoring techniques help you to notice the sensation without immediately layering panic or frustration on top of it.
I've used my breath to deal with pain for nearly 50 years,
With surgeries and tests,
Trips to the dentist and lots more.
And I'll share one story,
In 1989,
I had to have my gallbladder out.
And it's a big surgery,
My incision is a foot long.
They've gotten better at that.
But the doctors convinced me that I needed to have narcotics afterwards.
So afterwards,
They gave me morphine to the extent that I don't remember most of the next three days after the surgery,
Except for little segments.
I do know that at one point I must have got out of bed,
Even though there were side rails up on the bed,
And I have no idea how I did that.
I just know that the nurses caught me in the bathroom.
My family came to visit two days later,
Which was my birthday,
And I only have a passing memory of them being there.
So,
I haven't used anything for pain stronger than ibuprofen since that time,
And my doctors know that I don't want any narcotics.
I use my breath and my mind,
And so can you.
Close your eyes now,
And let's get in touch with our breath.
It doesn't matter if you're sitting,
Standing,
Lying down,
Or kicked back in your favorite recliner.
The only thing that truly matters when you meditate is that you're comfortable and alert.
So as we start to settle in,
We're just breathing,
Breathing in and breathing out one breath at a time,
And then the next,
And then the next.
And that is the present moment that everyone strives for.
One breath,
One inhale,
One exhale.
So settle in and let's scan our body.
Your face is too tense.
Unfurl your brow and unclench your jaw.
Relax your neck.
It's a common place of tension in today's world because we're hunched over phones and tablets.
Relax your shoulders.
I shrugged mine,
And let them bawl fall.
Relax your arms and your hands.
Look for any tension in your chest and belly.
Relax your legs and your feet.
And as you begin to relax,
Let's focus even more on our breath.
Our breath is like a river as it flows in and flows out.
Our breath is our anchor.
It's there for us in all moments,
When we're happy,
When we're sad,
When we're excited,
And when we're in pain.
If you have thoughts,
Just let them go.
They're like clouds in the sky or leaves going downstream on a river.
Just allow your breath to arrive exactly as it is.
No need to change it.
We're just noticing.
Like greeting an old friend.
And if you may have pain,
Physical or emotional or something harder to name,
You don't have to push it away.
And you don't have to pull it closer.
Just let it be part of the landscape of this moment.
Now feel your inhale.
Is a softening.
A coolness entering the body.
And then feel the exhale as a small release.
And let your breath be simple.
Let it be honest.
And if pain is present,
Imagine the breath moving around it.
Not fixing,
Not fighting.
Just creating space like mist drifting around a stone.
So each inhale is a widening and each exhale is a loosening.
You're not trying to change the pain.
You're trying to change your relationship with it.
Now here I'm going to pause for a minute,
Just let you breathe and think,
And I'll be back.
Imagine you're sitting beside a wide,
Slow river.
The kind that doesn't rush.
The kind that knows how to carry things without strength.
This river is your breath.
And inhale as the river rising gently.
And the exhale is the river settling back into itself.
The pain may feel heavy,
Like a heavy stone in the water.
Something dropped into the current.
But notice.
Even stones belong in rivers.
And even weight can be carried.
You don't have to lift the stone.
You don't have to solve it.
Just let the river move around it.
And now bring your attention to the area of pain.
Gently,
Without force.
And just notice its edges.
Notice its temperature.
Notice whether it pulses or stays still.
Now imagine the breath flowing toward that place,
Like the river touching the stone.
Not to wash it away.
Not to erase it.
Just to remind it that it is not alone.
So with each inhale the river rises around the stone and with each exhale the river settles smooth in the edges.
Pain often tightens the body.
Let the breath loosen.
What the pain has clenched.
If the pain grows stronger,
Soften your attention.
Let the river widen.
Let the breath become broader than the pain.
You are not inside the pain.
The pain is inside you,
And you are vast.
Imagine now that the stone begins to shift.
Not disappearing.
Just finding a more natural place in the riverbed.
Pain moves when we stop gripping it.
Pain softens when we stop bracing against it.
Let the breath carry it.
Let the river hold it.
You don't have to do anything.
Just breathe.
Just breathe.
And just allow.
We're just sitting here breathing.
Breathing in and breathing out one breath at a time and then the next Pain is something that we all experience,
But getting in touch with your breath can make it easier.
One thing I do.
When I have pain as I imagine myself gradually sinking into the surface I'm on.
So I imagine that.
I sink a little bit further each time I exhale.
And making my muscles relax even more with time and with each breath.
You have to focus on your breath.
And this is something I suggest that you practice.
Don't wait until you're having pain.
Take some time to sit and do a little pain drill and practice getting in touch with your breath.
Relax in your body.
.
.
.
Sinking down into the surface you're on,
Making yourself heavier.
I know you can do it.
And how do I know?
Because I've done it.
And I continue to do it.
You know how I like quotes,
And I have one today from Helen Keller who said,
Although the world is full of suffering,
It is also full of overcoming it.
Wise words.
So now.
Take in one more slow breath through your nose and let it out through your mouth,
Letting out a sigh.
Feel your whole body again,
The weight,
The warmth,
The presence.
And notice how the breath continues its river-like movement,
Even now.
Notice how pain feels,
Maybe different,
Maybe the same,
But now held in a wider space.
When you're ready,
Open your eyes or lift your gaze and come back into the room.
You are the river.
You are the breath.
You are the space that pain moves through.
And I hope this has been a beneficial and calming session for each and every one of you.
We all experience pain,
But we can all get past it with our breath.
Till next time.
Till next time.
