Three simple steps for well-being

Hey there!

I've spent a good amount of time online researching chronic pain over the past year to find better ways to cope and manage it. Quite frankly, I'm pretty disappointed with the material out there. There are books that get technical about what happens in the body, and others that talk about medication management - but I haven't found any good ones on how to maintain a sense of well-being and joy while dealing with the burden of chronic pain. So after awhile, I turned decided to follow the wisdom of my favorite quote:

If you find not what you seek within, you will never find it without.

So, I meditated and tuned in to my inner voice about how best to maintain well-being under the challenging circumstances. I found three specific steps to take each time I feel pain or discomfort.

1. Stop what you're doing
   
2. Listen to your body and heart to find out what is needed
   
3. Respond with a loving act
   

So what does that mean exactly?

The first step is pretty easy. As soon as I notice new discomfort or pain - I pause what I'm doing to give it my attention. I check out what I'm sensing and "listen" to my body and heart for cues as to what I need. Am I hungry? Is it time for medication? Am I stiff? tired? tense? upset? lonely? frustrated? etc... Once I figure out what is going on, I respond to the pain or discomfort message from my body with a loving act.

A loving act could be any of the actions I could take to directly address the message from my body. A loving act might be taking medication or a nap. It might be doing stretching or yoga or listening to a guided meditation CD on visualizing pain away. It might be calling a friend or making a date for coffee because I'm lonely. It might be calling a doctor or pharmacist to address a concern. It might be scheduling a Reiki session or a massage to give my body some positive attention. It might be asking someone for help. The idea is to respond to the messages from my body in a nurturing way, rather than letting myself sink into a cycle of frustration at my body, helplessness and depression about being in pain.

Since I've started following these steps - I've noticed that my quality of life has improved drastically. This is mostly due to my outlook shifting from feeling like a victim of circumstances outside my control to feeling empowered, valued and loved as I do kind, gentle and nurturing things for myself. While I use these steps to deal with chronic pain, I bet they would be useful under many circumstances - perhaps even every day life. Feel free to try them out!