The Integra Blog
Oct
Give me something for the pain!
I recently read an article which suggested taking anti-inflammatory drugs to relieve post-workout soreness. This reminded me of the lyrics of a song by Bon Jovi called “Something for the Pain”:
“I don’t need no Guru to tell me what to do
when you’re feeling like a headline on yesterday’s news,
[….]
Give me something for the pain…”
Why do I quote this beloved 90’s rocker (who’s still going strong by the way)? Both the song and the article are a great example of our general approach to pain: just give me something to make it go away
Being in pain is a massive drag. It’s annoying, it drains your energy and it detracts focus from everything else in your life. It is not an easy place to be. However, pain is more than just a nuisance: it is information and protection.
David Butler describes pain as:
normal and an excellent, although unpleasant, response to situations when your brain thinks you are in danger.
“I wish you could just tell me what’s wrong!”
Our bodies have many ways of giving us feedback. Fatigue, hunger, irritation, pain and all other “negative” (and “positive”) sensations are the language of the physical body, communicating what is happening inside. It’s a language we speak, but have become unaccustomed to hearing. And much can be gained from re-attuning our ear to its tone so we recognise it’s subtle shades of meaning, in the same way a parent’s ear learns to recognise every nuance of their baby’s cry.
In general, persistent or recurrent pain is an indication that something somewhere is not quite right. From a neurological viewpoint, pain is a complex phenomenon which can arise from all sorts of things: indeed, it’s possible to experience physical pain even when there is no apparent physiological cause.
What I’d like to address here is pain that arises in response to specific activities or situations.
Would you drive a car with no brakes?
Have you ever experienced a pain which only manifests itself when you do a certain activity? A twinge in your shoulder when you bench press, a pain in your shin when you run, an ache in your lower back when you vacuum? The immediate meaning of this kind of pain is very simple: stop doing that! In other words, your body is producing a pain signal to discourage you from doing something it knows will harm it. (Disclaimer: this article is not to be used as an excuse not to vacuum).
In these circumstances pain is a protective mechanism: a brake. If your body cannot tolerate a certain activity there’s a reason, and if you find the reason you can potentially solve the problem. But if you numb the pain and carry on in your de-sensitised state you are removing your natural safeguards against injury.
Of personal growth, basket-weaving and granola
The question that springs to my mind is, therefore: why? Why would we want to do away with the body’s natural protective mechanisms? Why would we be willing to ignore its cues? What bearing would it have on our identity if we acknowledged these cues instead?
I’d like to share a quote from an excellent article by Paul Ingram:
“Everything we experience - pain included - is somehow an expression of who we are and who we have been”.
Perhaps acknowledging pain or limitation is so unpalatable because it questions our identity, our choices, our past.
“But I have to run… that’s who I am!”, “What will I do to let off steam and keep my weight in check if I can’t do [insert activity here]?” “Eating [insert food here] every day is my only pleasure, I can’t give it up!”, “But I thought I was doing everything right!”
These objections are often rooted in fear: fear of being wrong, fear of not being good enough, fear of acknowledging an unmet emotional need, fear of relinquishing control, as if life could somehow unfold without your consent leaving you with something you didn’t want and didn’t choose. And if this is the case, it’s worth bearing in mind that feelings and beliefs can have physical manifestations. Therefore, the real problem might not be the pain, but the feeling that created it.
“The important thing is not to stop questioning” (Einstein)
We’ve all heard it said that once you acknowledge a problem you are halfway to finding its solution. But if you numb or disconnect from the sensations that alert you to the problem, that solution might be a long time coming.
We are all subject to sociological pressures, financial concerns and family responsibilities. The world around us is fully capable of shouting loudly enough to drown out our body’s voice. But the body is designed to protect, and it will be heard in one way or another. And there are many ways we can listen: physically, through awareness of our motion and our body’s feedback; emotionally, through awareness of our feelings; mentally, through awareness of our reasoning and thought processes.
And although we might not always like what we hear, it’s useful to bear in mind that we are what we are, and what we do is one of the many manifestations of that identity. It may be challenging to find an alternative way of living that identity, but one thing the universe is not short of is possibilities, guides and examples. The changes we make might not need to be huge, or even permanent. But the knowledge that we were able to make those changes and still remain true to ourselves is a huge step towards physical, mental and emotional freedom.
