The problem of pain
Pain is a message from our body to our brain that something is going wrong inside of us. Unfortunately, the discomfort can not always be eliminated. The source of the problem may not be clear, treatment may be unavailable for the condition, or the side effects of corrective surgery/procedures may be too great.
A new goal for the treatment of pain
Pain Reduction Therapy is concerned with helping patients not just manage their pain, but actually reduce it. In the past, treatment for both chronic (i.e. back pain, headaches, cancer, etc.) and short term (i.e. the birthing experience, hormonal imbalance) pain often focused on how to accept, manage, and live with it. I don’t accept that as a goal. I believe that with new discoveries we can go beyond pain management into pain reduction.
As we have made advances in our computer and telecommunication technology, there have also been new developments in treating pain. In addition to traditional therapeutic methods, there are two innovative non-invasive, non-medication based treatments that are extremely effective: Focused Self-Hypnosis and Energy Therapy. Since patients using these techniques do not experience negative side effects, these methods can effectively be used independently or along with medication, physical therapy, or even surgery. Below is a brief description of these therapies and how I have combined them into what I call Pain Reduction Therapy.
Emotions and pain
Patients suffering from pain often have the added burden of tremendous emotional pressures such as depression, anxiety, marital difficulties and other personal tragedies. As the physical and emotional problems inevitably interact, they often have a negative effect on each other. The question arises, "Did the physical pain make the emotional issues worse or did the physical issues come about as a result of the emotional issues?" Regardless of that answer, it is clear that there is a strong interaction between the body and the mind. As patients learn how to use Energy Therapy and Focused Self-Hypnosis for themselves, they experience some wonderful results. Many report a significant reduction in their pain and a substantial number have experienced total relief.
I want to emphasize that although this intervention has been effective, it is intended to complement traditional medical treatment. This approach has been used when for one reason or another, medical interventions were unable to significantly reduce the sufferer's degree of pain. One of the most positive aspects of this approach is that the sufferers themselves, with the guidance of a pain reduction specialist, can be taught how to use these techniques on an as-needed basis to deal with the recurrence of the pain. This in turn, reinforces the effectiveness of the treatment.
Uses for Pain Reduction Therapy / Contra indications for use of pain medication
Often times pain medication for the sufferer may be contra indicated. The following situations may suggest that medication is not the best choice of treatment for the pain sufferer:
- Pain medication has not been effective for the patient.
- The patient has developed a tolerance to the medication.
- The patient or others in the household are abusing the medication.
- Extraparamatal effects are too great for the patient to tolerate.
- The non-compliant patient, who accidentally or purposefully doesn’t take prescribed medication, takes partial dosage or ends the medication protocol prematurely.
- The patient who is reluctant to take any medication.
- The patient who wants to limit their intake of medication for medical reasons (eg. pregnancy, hypersensitivity to medication.)
Under any of these circumstances the patient would be a good candidate for non-medication intervention for pain reduction.
Focused Self-Hypnosis
Focused Self-Hypnosis is the first element in Pain Reduction Therapy. It is a process that I have developed over the past 15 years. It uses principles of hypnosis, biofeedback, and relaxation/yoga breathing. Focused Self-Hypnosis also draws from concepts developed by noted physician, Dr. John Sarno, professor of Clinical Rehabilitative Medicine at NYU Medical Center. Over his 25 years as a physician, Dr. Sarno has found that pain is caused by what he calls Tension Myositis Syndrome (TMS). According to Dr. Sarno, emotions such as anger, sadness, and avoidance significantly impact pain. For some people, the notion that pain can be caused by emotional issues might seem far-fetched. I would like to share a personal anecdote:
I was working with a patient on non-pain-related issues and he saw a copy of Dr. Sarno’s book on my desk. The patient proceeded to tell me how he had been in a car accident and read Dr. Sarno’s book discussing pain. The patient went on to say that at the time of the accident, he was unhappy with his job and could have used the accident as an excuse to avoid work. Based on the concepts and techniques discussed in the book, he decided to go to work and see what happened to the pain. He promised himself that he would not use “the pain” as an excuse. Initially, he experienced his pain at about the level of a “6” on a scale of 1 to 10 (patient’s self rating). However, he continued to go to work and his experience of the pain dropped to somewhere between a “1” and a “2”. Two weeks later the pain had disappeared.
His account is echoed by some of Dr Sarno’s more famous clients, such as TV journalist, John Stosal of 20/20 fame, and radio personality, Howard Stern. Both men had physical ailments that caused severe pain and after following Dr. Sarno’s treatment procedures went on record as having experienced a complete cure.
Focused Self-Hypnosis enables patients to relate to their emotions on a deeper level. It helps them to recall and resolve repressed or forgotten issues. Focused Self-Hypnosis takes Dr. Sarno’s discoveries one step further in the treatment of pain. As sufferers become aware of previously unknown underlying issues, they are able to relate to those factors and handle them in a constructive way.
Focused Self-Hypnosis helps pain sufferers tap into their unconscious and re-focus themselves in a positive direction. Patients are taught how to put themselves easily, quickly and deeply into a calm state. As they learn this process they reduce their stress and other deep emotional factors that are negatively impacting on their pain.
Examples of how Focused Self-Hypnosis has worked with patients
Linda (identifying factors have been changed for purposes of confidentiality) was feeling overwhelmed by her angry husband and having a child with ADHD. Linda was not aware of how upset and desperate she was feeling and that it caused her body to react. Linda’s body shutdown and she began to suffer from migraines. Using Focused Self-Hypnosis, Linda was able to realize just how upset she was with her marriage and her son’s condition. This awareness opened the door to working on the issues that were literally causing her head to hurt.
Risa had trouble sleeping. By using Focused Self-Hypnosis she was able to let go of enough of the tension and anticipatory anxiety to allow her to get more sleep than she had in months.
Richard suffered from constant migraine headaches. By accessing his unconscious using Focused Self-Hypnosis, he was able to relax and let go of his pent-up tension and reduce his discomfort when he felt his on-coming headache.
Mary, a young mother whose life was very physically demanding, was suffering from constant back pains. She had tried a number of different types of treatment with no success. Within a short period of time after learning Focused Self-Hypnosis Mary was able to minimize her physical discomfort and reduce her back tension. She was also able to respond more calmly when she was upset and feeling overwhelmed by her parental responsibilities.
There are many situations when Focused Self-Hypnosis can be effectively used to help people who are suffering from pain. However, since not all pain has the same origin and not all people are alike, it is essential to have a variety of approaches to help the sufferer. To increase positive responses to these differences, I have also successfully employed a totally different approach known as Energy Therapy. In the next section I will give you a brief overview of how this treatment works.
Brief history of Energy Therapy
Energy Therapy is the second element of Pain Reduction Therapy. It is a newly developed process that has been dubbed “Psychological Acupressure” (for purposes of this article, acupressure and acupuncture are used interchangeably.) About 20 years ago, Dr. Roger Callahan, a licensed clinical psychologist, accidentally discovered that by combining elements of Acupressure and Cognitive Psychology in a unique way, patients experienced a dramatic reduction in the pain that they were experiencing. That process has since been expanded and refined by many other therapists into an area called Energy Therapy, which has been found to be extremely effective in pain reduction.
A description of Energy Therapy treatment
By actually tapping on specific areas of the body considered to be “energy locations” (acupuncture has labeled these areas meridians) and combining it with the use of psychological principles, patients can experience relief from pain. Similar to acupuncture without the needles, Energy Therapy identifies "energy locations" in the face and torso. Simply applying a gentle pressure on these spots and reciting appropriate and individualized verbalizations (known as affirmations) can quickly ease pain.
Examples of how Energy Therapy has worked with patients
Richard was going through a difficult divorce. During our session he commented on how he had been experiencing constant headaches that were so painful he had to lie down. We used a simple energy pattern and set of verbal affirmation phrases and in a just a few minutes, much to his surprise, the headache he had been experiencing during the session had stopped.
Roanda was upset about new work responsibilities. As we were discussing different strategies for dealing with work, she talked about the severe lower back pains she had been experiencing. We experimented with a few different energy patterns and specific affirmations and she reported a lessening of her back pain. A few weeks later, Roanda repeated the patterns she had learned during our sessions and she reported that the pains had significantly decreased.
I have also seen the success in reducing the pain associated with stomach problems when patients implement the "tapping and affirmation" patterns learned in our work together.
Clinical examples that discuss the success of Energy Therapy with a variety of physical problems can be found at www.tftrx.com
and
www.emofree.com.
Applications for childbirth and hormonal changes
While these non-medication techniques have been successful in reducing long-term pain caused by physical and psychological ailments, they have also been effective in dealing with short-term pain associated specific conditions or illnesses. I have found both Focused Self-Hypnosis and Energy Therapy to be particularly successful with the discomforts related to pregnancy, childbirth, and postpartum.
Melissa, pregnant, was referred to me for anxiety. After using a combined approach, Melissa reported that the Focused Self-Hypnosis was able to reduce her anxiety and the Energy Therapy reduced her pain during labor. An added benefit is that I was able to teach her husband how to use both approaches to assist and support his wife during labor.
Pain Reduction Therapy which combined Focused Self-Hypnosis and Energy Therapy was also extremely powerful with Mary Ann who was referred to me for postpartum depression. In this situation there was an emotional and hormonal factor. To be honest, I was unsure as to how Energy Therapy would impact on a hormonal imbalance and if this approach would be effective. It proved however, to be successful in this capacity as well, as Mary Ann reported she started feeling better after the initial session. Particularly significant, was that Mary Ann continued to use the energy patterns and verbalizations that I had taught her during therapy whenever she felt her depression increase. It appeared as though her continued applications had a cumulative effect. Three months later, Mary Ann reported to me that her depression had lifted.
Conclusion
Pain can significantly impact our lives and those around us, both emotionally and physically. To enable sufferers to move beyond just accepting, managing, or living with their pain, I work with patients using the non-invasive treatment of Pain Reduction Therapy. These can be successfully used for both short term and pain. While these techniques are not intended to be a substitute for specified medical treatments, they are powerfully effective when used in conjunction with them. These techniques can be effectively used to reduce and eliminate pain, as well as assist in dealing with the numerous emotional issues associated with pain.
Bibliography
- Gallo, F., Energy Therapy
- Sarno, J. The Mindbody Prescription: Healing the Body, Healing the Pain, Warner Books, 1999.
Dr. Tashman’s Background
Dr Tashman holds a doctorate in clinical psychology, a master's degree in social work, and a master's degree in education. He holds licenses as a clinical social worker and as a marriage and family counselor. He has been trained in clinical Hypnosis and Energy Therapy. Dr. Tashman has been in full time private practice for over 30 years. He has been on the graduate faculties of Rutgers University and Long Island University and has been a full time counselor at Brooklyn College.
Contact Information
For more information and to experience the effectiveness of these approaches contact
Dr. Tashman at 732 246-8484 or
drmarty@bellatlantic.net. Feel free to visit his web page at www.DrMartyTashman.com.
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