If I told you to think about anything except an elephant wearing a tutu for the next 10 minutes, chances are that’s all you’d think about.
In the same way, if we try to ignore pain, it screams at us. It’s all consuming and it just doesn’t work.
We can, however, come at it from a slightly different angle. We can increase our focus on something else.
If we can find a stronger stimulus or set of stimuli that take(s) enough of our attention, we can temporarily “drown out” the pain.
While it’s not an ideal tactic in the long-term, anything that can buy us a bit of relief while we work on more permanent and sustainable approaches to pain-management has to be worth a shot.
Mental distraction
Most of us have noticed how the pain seems to ease under some circumstances, or at least appears to fade into the background somewhat.
Something that will ease your experience anytime it gets too much; something to keep you sane on the bad days; finding your distraction can be a huge step towards meaningful chronic pain management.
It may be a single activity like watching a good movie, laughing with a group of close friends, or even having sex; or a matter of sensory overload – my husband knows when my pain’s getting worse because I’ll start multitasking, like watching tv, doing a puzzle or crossword, and rubbing my leg (aiding the reassignment of hijacked receptors: more on this on the next page).
Whatever it is that works for you, distractions are an integral part of chronic pain management. And by experiencing enough of these temporary distractions, we can help permanently rewire the brain by reminding it that pain isn’t the only sensation we can feel.
Physical Distraction
Any sensation can detract from our brain’s capacity for receiving pain signals, but a light touch can be surprisingly effective. The sensors for light touch are especially quick to respond – both when they are activated and when the stimuli stop.
Another consideration is who administers the stimuli. Touch can have a profound influence on us psychologically and emotionally, particularly when it is from someone we love. If a loved one touches us we have a stronger reaction to all aspects of the sensation. As we know our emotions can have a significant impact on our experience of and capacity to cope with pain, so having a partner, parent or other loved one apply sensation can magnify the positive effects.
So it turns out the old wives tale is true – mummy really can rub it better!
A Special Case: The Physiology of Laughter
Laughter is a much more complicated process than most of us may think. When we laugh there are many things going on inside our body, including:
- muscles spasm in the stomach, legs and back
- stress hormones are released
- 15 facial muscles are working together
- the tear ducts are activated
- immune system cells in the mouth become more concentrated
- the diaphragm spasms
- the heart rate, blood pressure, and breath rate increase
Although this all sounds like hard work, laughter actually makes us feel happy and relaxed. One study suggested that just 10 minutes of a “good belly laugh” can have the same effect on us as a full 2 and a half hours pain-free sleep!