Easing Emotional and Physical Pain

by Steve Halsall

A Celebrity Personal Trainer

The question of pain and how to manage it is an interesting one. Whichever way you look at it your body is always seeking to heal itself and regardless of the pain whether is physical, emotional or psychological. The precise mechanics of this will obviously vary from person too person.

Physical pain is the body's way of saying STOP; there is something wrong. Pain is your body telling the brain via nerves along the spinal cord that there is time to do something radical to alleviate the situation. Thousands of receptor nerves below the skin tell you when things are hot or cold or whether there is too much pressure on the body. 

In my view simply taking medicine will only block these messages or reduces their effect on your brain. It may give you a window to mentally become stronger to fight the situation but ultimately the pain will still be there. I do not have a PHD in medicine and not about to create a one-stop opinion of pain and its management but what I would say that having will, strength and determination will always help. Anecdotally, emotional and physical pain are intrinsically linked both on a macro and a micro level. In my view every emotional response has an immediate physical response. You only have to look at someone riddled with grief to see their physical pain. 

I have been unfortunate to experience this first hand. After the death of someone very close to me, I chronically hurt my back during a Nike ply metric demonstration. I received the news and within five minutes I was in agony after a routine jump. For the next eighteen months I went from physio to physio, the last one I saw suggested I have an epidural in Harley Street. He said I will NEVER run again NEVER play football again and would require surgery to sort this out.

  

I then went to see a psycho-synthesis healer who, after an hour of an almost hypnotic meditative process, pulled my pain out of me. I stood up straight for the first time in over a year and actually stamped my foot, hard on the floor.

I have trained hundreds of people and always know when they are emotionally upset; they are sluggish, lethargic and weaker in their session. The good news is once the session is over they always feel better. Which tells us that the physical effect the emotional. 

I honestly think that even if you are super fit and healthy it doesn't mean you will feel pain less. You will however recover faster both physically and emotionally.

Pain is subjective and often people expect situations to be painful and often pre make up their mind before the actual incident in question. A tattoo is a good illustration of a pain that millions have experienced willingly and all probably thought it actually wasn't too bad. Attitude and belief that you are going to get better is crucial. Being disciplined and kind to yourself will go a long way to being able to handle any type of pain. Crucially, remembering a time when you are at your peak and feeling fantastic is an important memory to keep in mind whenever you are hurting. Your mind and body over time will always heal. 

The up shot is, being positive and glass half full will simply reduce the emotional pain that may come along. Being strong physically and eating well will always help your body restore balance more efficiently.

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