Chronic pain refers to pain that has lasted for a number of months or years. It can be ongoing, continuous, or it can come and go and can be mild or excruciating. Chronic pain may persist as a result of an initial injury, or it may be connected with an ongoing illness or condition. Sometimes there is no clear cause of the pain. Chronic pain can be debilitating, limiting and restrictive, affecting all areas of life. When we feel pain, our body responds in the same way as it does to stress: our muscles tense, our heart rate increases, our blood pressure rises, and so on.
There is often an emotional element to our pain, especially if we have been suffering for a long time. This can cause us to feel stressed and depressed. The key is relaxation. When we relax, our heart rate and blood pressure come down, our muscles relax and we stop producing stress hormones. Our sense of well-being and happiness is elevated, and we effectively feel pain less.
Hypnotherapy is very helpful at managing pain. Hypnotherapy has been shown to have a positive effect on post-operative recovery times and pain management and it can help manage chronic pain. Hypnotherapy will help you to relax and to switch off the stress response, produce the neurotransmitter serotonin which has a very beneficial effect on pain relief.