Would you believe me if I told you that 90% of chronic pain cases have a partly, or entirely, neuroplastic origin?
If you’re not familiar with the term, neuroplasticity refers to the brain’s incredible ability to restructure and rewire when it needs to adapt. So, when something has a neuroplastic origin, it means it originates from your own brain’s changes in structure and function instead of external factors.
Neuroplastic pain is one great example. It’s chronic pain that results from the brain misinterpreting some signals for negative and unsafe ones, causing a loop of pain. This pain can manifest in different ways, including migraines, lower back pain, and chronic anxiety.
As awful and persistent as it is, neuroplastic pain is something that you CAN unlearn and free yourself from. No matter how bad some days or pains may get, it’s important to know that there is always hope and that you CAN get better. After all, what gets wired in the brain can also be unwired in the brain.
In this article, I’ll show you four effective ways to unlearn this kind of pain and rewire your brain for good.
The Best Holistic Remedies I've Found to Alleviate Pain
1. The Feldenkrais Method
The Feldenkrais Method is a practice based on slow, gentle movement and enhanced awareness. The goal is to explore the ways you use your body and how some of your current habits might be contributing to the pain you’re experiencing. It can help you diminish the pain by gradually expanding your movement possibilities, improving your movement patterns, and connecting your mind with your body.
The Feldenkrais method includes two techniques: the Awareness Through Movement (ATM), and the Functional Integration, known as FI. While the first technique is practised with voice-guided group lessons, the second one is about using gentle touch to communicate with your nervous system and is used in individual sessions.
In both cases, this somatic practice can help with several things, including chronic pain recovery, reducing anxiety, and even fixing bad posture.
2. Pain Reprocessing Therapy
Pain Reprocessing Therapy (PRT) focuses on retraining and rewiring the brain to accurately interpret body signals while stopping the vicious cycle of chronic pain. It’s one of the most powerful tools used in pain therapy.
In PRT, you might explore the triggers of your pain and begin to view them as signals rather than threats. This shift can incredibly help your brain to break free from the fear-based response that often accompanies chronic pain.
Although this kind of work is more mental than physical, it’s still incredibly effective for the body. As your brain’s perception of pain changes, managing it becomes easier, paving the way for long-term relief and recovery.
3. Emotional Awareness and Expression Therapy
Emotional Awareness and Expression Therapy (EAET) is what you do to dive into your emotions and understand them on a deeper level. During this practice, you might engage in mindful practices to identify your feelings, name them, and work with them.
You might have heard of journaling. Although this is one simple exercise to start reflecting on your emotions, individual sessions with a therapist involve other kinds of more powerful practices. EAET is indeed one of the most effective ways we have to explore our emotions in depth and find safe ways to express them.
Society often influences us not to make space for sadness, anger, guilt, and other emotions commonly labelled as “negative.” Still, the truth is that all emotions are equal and deserve some space in our lives. They all are here to help you, never to mislead you.
4. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), is a therapy that helps you change the way you think or even modify certain behaviours.
During CBT, something you might do is identify the negative thought patterns that feed into your pain cycle. Once you’ve identified these patterns, you can unlearn them and adopt healthier ones. CBT, combined with consistent practice, can eventually help you to restructure your brain for the better.
This surely needs some regular effort and even a certain level of vulnerability, but it’s worth applying, especially in the case of chronic pain and neuroplastic pain.
The Best Synergy of Techniques to Heal from Chronic Pain
At MindfulBody, we work on the cognitive and physical levels simultaneously. This ensures we can smoothly break through any mental and bodily limits previously created to open the path for nervous system recalibration. Through this process, clients can explore and understand their emotions and all their usual responses - both physical and psychological - to rewire their brains, heal, and get back the body they haven’t had in a while. It’s a beautiful journey to witness. 😌
Breaking the Cycle: How I Unlearned My Pain
As I’ve previously shared in my story, I began experiencing chronic back pain when I was in the middle of writing my PhD thesis. It definitely was an inconvenient time for pain and feeling unwell. I immediately started seeking natural remedies, but despite the temporary relief found through regular yoga classes, physiotherapy and osteopathy sessions, the pain seemed to be stuck in a never-ending loop.
I struggled with this chronic back pain for a few years, with little to no breaks. As I kept seeking answers and trying out various therapies, I grew more and more scared of sharp movements and my hyperflexible joints. The growing fear certainly wasn’t helping, as it simply kept feeding the neuroplastic pain cycle I still wasn’t aware of.
Luckily, everything changed when I discovered somatic education through a book by Bessel van der Kolk titled “The Body Keeps the Score.” I’m thankful this reading triggered a butterfly effect in my life that led me to explore the world of somatic education and attend the closest Feldenkrais workshop I could find.
That workshop was life-changing. After years of pain, I found myself wanting to move as much as I could. Shortly after this experience, I embarked on a 4-year practitioner training of around 800 hours. That’s when I began to truly understand just how much the body and mind are intertwined and how important it is for them to have a trusting relationship.
Ready to Take Action toward a Pain-Free Life?
At MindfulBody, our goal is to help you unlearn your pain, reconnect with your body, and discover - or rediscover - the freedom of pain-free movement. We do this by combining mind-body re-education, somatic bodywork (the Feldenkrais Method), and a range of pain therapy techniques (including Paint Reprocessing Therapy and Emotional Awareness and Expression Therapy).
It’s important to note that healing chronic or neuroplastic pain is a journey and one that needs to be travelled patiently. Individual times of healing can vary, as each person has a unique history and circumstances. We strive to offer you a compassionate, integrative path to healing, putting together the best techniques found in alternative therapies to help the body get back to balance.
If you want to reconnect with yourself, break your pain cycle, and find ease and freedom in your movement, I’m here to help you. To explore how I could support you on your healing journey, feel free to drop me a message at iryna@mindfulbody.lu
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