Quick Pain Relief Tricks

Wen you're in pain, it's hard to think of anything else. But redirecting your thoughts is can be helpful. Following are some other techniques to try...

Instruct yourself to think and behave in a functional way. I will take a walk to increase the circulation of blood in my legs, bring oxygen to my tissues and lift my mood.

Decatastrophize. Reframe your pain as less terrible than it feels. I've been here before. I'm in charge. I can handle it.

Distort your perception of pain. Use your imagination to transform how the pain feels. Shift your attention to sensations, thoughts or feelings that are easier to cope with. Let these new thoughts generate sensations that oppose the pain.

Example: Wren pain strikes, imagine that one of your hands is immersed in ice water. Concentrate on telling your hand to become totally numb. Then place your hand on the part of your body that hurts most. Imagine the numbness flowing into the part of your body that needs pain relief. If you can't reach that place, such as your back, put your hand on your stomach and let the cold flow through your body to your back.

Distract yourself. Refuse to pay attention to the pain. Ignore it like an annoying car alarm. Shift your attention somewhere else. Tell yourself, I will concentrate on the sensation of rubbing my fingers together...focus my attention on my breathing...squeeze my tension into a fist, then relax my band and let the tension fly out.

Study the sensations as if they were separate from you. Tell yourself, "No pain lasts forever."