Meditation is good for your soul. Research shows it can also help ease pain caused by all types of arthritis, includingrheumatoid arthritis (RA),psoriatic arthritis (PsA)andosteoarthritis (OA).
For centuries,meditation has been used to help focus the mind and soothe the spirit. But scientific evidence suggests this ancient practice – particularly a modern form known as mindfulness meditation or mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) – offers a variety of health benefits, including relief for chronic joint pain and skin disorders like psoriasis.
The Research
People with psoriasis were involved in some of the earliest research on mindfulness meditation. Jon Kabat-Zinn, PhD, who developed the original MBSR program at the University of Massachusetts Medical Center in Worcester, knew that stress worsens psoriasis. In a small 1988 study, he showed that skin cleared more quickly in patients who listened to mindfulness meditation tapes while undergoing light therapy compared to patients who received the same treatment without listening to the recordings.
Since then, interest has steadily grown in mindfulness meditation’s potential as a therapy for managing arthritis symptoms.
In 2015, research published inAnnals of the Rheumatic Diseaseslooked at the effect of mindfulness meditation on RA. In that study, researchers compared 26 RA patients who took the 8-week MBSR course with RA patients who didn’t enroll in the program. At the end of the study, both groups had the same number of swollen joints, yet people in the MBSR group reported less pain and stiffness.
In another 2015 study, published in theJournal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology在美国，参加正念冥想项目的风湿性关节炎患者比接受其他类型治疗的患者在早上僵硬、疲劳、压力和焦虑方面表现出更大的改善。
With this research in mind, some rheumatologists now recommend mindfulness meditation to patients with arthritis.
“The feedback I get from patients is astonishing,” says Nisha Manek, MD, chief of rheumatology at Kingman Regional Medical Center, in Kingman, Arizona. “One patient recently said meditating allowed her to return to work, while another insists it saved her marriage.”
它是如何工作的?
在正念冥想中，你以一种开放的、不带评判的方式完全意识到并存在于每一刻。卡巴金说，这可以帮助你更清晰、更有洞察力、更有同情心地看待这个世界。
Experts say it can also change how you perceive and respond to pain.
“与疼痛相关的压力往往是造成我们大部分痛苦的原因，”马萨诸塞大学医学中心副教授、医学、卫生保健和社会正念中心医学主任、精神病学家卡尔·富尔威勒医学博士说。他说，冥想能够缓解压力和焦虑，让人们更客观地看待自己的痛苦。
他解释说，一种被称为身体扫描的做法对慢性疼痛特别有帮助。在练习过程中，患者被指导关注他们身体的不同部位，包括疼痛的部位，时间为30到45分钟。
“For people with pain, that may seem counterintuitive,” Dr. Fulwiler says, “yet the process helps people become aware of their whole body, not just the pain. They realize, ‘There is pain in my body, but my pain is not me.’”
Mindfulness meditation likely eases pain in several ways. Some, though not all, studies suggest the practice lowers levels of cytokines and other proteins that promote inflammation. Mindfulness meditation may also alter how the brain responds to pain.
Wake Forest University neurobiologist Fadel Zeidan, PhD, and colleagues conducted a study in which they asked people to rate their pain after a hot probe was applied to their skin. The researchers then trained the participants in mindfulness meditation and tested them with the hot probe again – this time while they were meditating. They rated their pain as 40% less intense than before.
Zeidan’s team also scanned participants’ brains with functional magnetic resonance imaging each time they were touched with the probe. During meditation, brain regions associated with the ability to control thoughts and emotions became more active.
What’s more, meditating reduced activity in the region known as the thalamus, where pain signals from the body enter the brain. Zeidan thinks that may mean mindfulness meditation blocks the brain’s ability to perceive pain.
Best of all, perceived pain levels dipped after participants had been practicing mindfulness meditation for only four days. That’s important, Zeidan says, because people want immediate relief.
Author: Timothy Gower
Related Resources:
- Meditation for Arthritis: How To
- Meditation: Benefits for People with Arthritis
- Guided Imagery for Arthritis
- Progressive Muscle Relaxation