Yoga for Pain Management

I spend the entire Saturday at Niroga’s TT on pain management module. The visiting faculty was Neil Pearson, MSc, BScPT, BA-BPHE, CYT, RYT 500. Neil is a wealth of knowledge and comes with some shocking first hand experience having been on the front line as a clinician and a scientist, never short of insightful stories to share with great sense of humor. Here’s Neil’s bio from Niroga’s workshop:

Neil Pearson is a Clinical Assistant Professor at University of British Columbia, a physiotherapist and yoga therapist. He works exclusively with people with complex pain problems, and provides therapeutic yoga for people in pain. Neil is a faculty member in yoga therapy training programs throughout North America, integrating knowledge of anatomy, physiology, pain and pathophysiology with yoga therapy. He teaches health care professionals and the public about pain management and about yoga as therapy. Neil has created many resources including an extensive educational website, audio CDs and a yoga DVD for people with chronic pain. See more at www.lifeisnow.ca.

It’s a sequence in itself, this training program – very methodically, we take a journey within this precious body, its functional and mysterious makeup. What I love so much is I always wanted to know the WHYS. Now I get the real answers – Why is it that “hip opener” is good and what exactly does that mean? Why is this pranayama good specifically for anxieties and not for depression, etc. Why? And last month, why do we think fasting is good for you; why? What scientific basis is there? Why ? Why? Why? Last month’s module being Yoga for Digestion taught by Baxter Bell, MD who is well versed and a practitioner of both Western and Eastern medicine. And now this…which was in invitation to join the Year Two training weekend for us Year One students. (normally you’d have to wait another year for this module but got to join:) So much to “digest” going into Thanksgiving week.
In Gratitude for this body and mind that allows this embodied experience of what’s eternal inside, this spirit.

Something to think about as Neil cited Prince and the typical treatment used in Western medicine, usually a quick fix with drugs like Opioid, which is effective for “acute” pain relief. Yet long term use for treating “chronic” pain is oftentimes accompanied by unwanted side effects and risks …So many of us, then tend wonder, is intake of such drugs the only answer? Before going into alternatives, he then shared some startling “pain” plain truths. Per Neil Pearson,

Persistent pain is more common than we think – 20% of adults live with moderate to severe chronic pain.

Only 42% of people in pain believe their doctor understands how they feel.

The cost of pain is more than the cost of cardiac disease and diabetes combined.

The rate of suicides in people with chronic pain is 8 times that of depression (although I suspect both are intertwined).

This is dark yes, but here’s the light. According to Neil,

A person in pain has the power to

– decrease pain.
– to increase movement.
– and to improve quality of life.

It’s a process that we as trained yoga therapists can teach. Interesting to learn that Neil likened it to a method similar to training Navy Seals !!! It’s such a discipline but hey, he says, do you prefer living with chronic pain or would you rather transcend it and get your life back? Most would pay anything to restore that quality of life… There’s hope if you have faith and will to change. Having just suffered a migraine headache, and such minor? aches to completely change my personality from joyful to miserable, I feel lucky to have found some answers. One of which is: (well designed & customized) Yoga works.