Chronic pain affects millions of American adults and is the second most common reason people seek out a doctor. Pain is considered chronic if it persists for 6 months or longer. Chronic pain often continues in spite of conventional treatment. Now research reports that a yoga and meditation program is effective for pain management.
The study examined the effect of a combined program of yoga and meditation on individuals with chronic pain. Researchers in the Pain Center at Texas Tech Health Sciences Center, followed 67 chronic pain patients participating in the yoga and meditation program in addition to medical and psychological intervention. The participants were taught Theravada Buddhism, an Eastern meditative practice that teaches suffering and stress can be relieved through awareness and releasing expectations.
The researchers found that over 80 percent of the participants reported improved stress and pain management. Findings revealed that 78 percent of participants had an improvement in mood, 80 percent reported improved stress management and 86 percent experienced a higher awareness of thought and feeling states.
"What we know about the definition of pain is that it is a complex interaction between sensations, thoughts, and feelings or emotions," says researcher Pat Randolph, PhD, director of Psychology Services in the Pain Center at Texas Tech Health Sciences Center, in a news release. "So when we treat pain, we need to utilize both medical and psychological methods."
REFERENCES:
1. Yoga and Meditation Help Relieve Chronic Pain, scienceagogo.com, February 16, 1999:
http://www.scienceagogo.com/news/19990116205705data_trunc_sys.shtml
Posted by Elaine Gavalas on December 11, 2006 03:23 PM
