Our Relationship with Pain – A focus on Endometriosis

Our sense of pain is a protection, a way to let our bodies know there’s something wrong and to encourage us to make changes. It is vastly more complex than previously thought and there is increasing research being done in an effort to learn more. 

 

Nociceptors (also known as pain receptors) are found in the skin, muscles, joints and other internal tissues. And while they do detect tissue damage, temperature change, chemical disturbances and pressure, the nerves themselves do not detect pain. The pain we experience is processed in our brain and is a result of many additional factors such as previous trauma, a history of pain, attitudes from parents, own beliefs and many more. 

 

This doesn’t mean that the experience isn’t real or that it’s ’just in our heads’. Instead, it provides us with an amazing opportunity to work with our body-brain connection with mindfulness, breathing and purposeful movements. 

 

Whilst yoga won’t ‘cure’ endometriosis of course, a specific, consistent yoga practice can support women with endometriosis by encouraging the nervous system to relax, reduce muscle and tissue tension to prevent the ‘pain-tension-fear’ cycle and to work with the breath to enhance focus on the current sensations instead of the constant fear of pain. 

 

The core practice of yoga is meditation. Maintaining focus on what’s happening to and in the body in this moment, noticing distractions and discomforts that come up and objectively observing them in an effort to release any attachment that may come with them.

 

It’s through this mind, body connection that we can become curious about the ‘sensations’ that arise without labelling them as pain, be interested in all the traits and qualities and use the breath to sit with them with just a little more comfort. We can then add some gentle poses to this to improve blood flow while reducing inflammation.

 

– Listen to your body and avoid poses or practices that cause further discomfort

– Consider slower moving, more gentle practices as opposed to Vinyasa or Ashtanga style

– Pay particular attention to your breath

– Grounding poses (such as seated ones) can be helpful

– Hip openers and poses that create space in the abdominal area can also help

 

1. Sukhasana (Easy Pose)

2. Pranayama (Breathwork) – Diaphragmatic Breathing 

3. Balasana (Wide Child’s Pose)

4. Supta Matsyendrasana (Supine Spinal Twist)

5. Supta Virasana (Reclined Hero Pose)

6. Baddha Konasana (Bound Butterfly Pose)

7. Viparita Karani (Legs Up the Wall)

 

May you be kind to yourself and others (Maitri Yoga Collective Mantra)