Listen to Your Body

April 19, 2021

Pain can become so pervasive, we might not realize how much it can prevent us from being fully present.

Whether you’ve been living with chronic pain or you’re working from home in a less-than-ideal ergonomic setting, you may be carrying some physical pain. If you take a step to acknowledge it and then work to decrease it, you can start to help heal your body — and improve your emotional health, too.

According to SWORD Health, our new virtual pain therapy provider for ELCA-Primary health plan members, pain often isn’t just physical. It can be a combination of our emotional and physical reaction to the way the specific movements or the loss of function impact you. SWORD Health suggests these tips for tackling this mind-body connection:

Add some gentle activity to your day. Being sedentary to avoid the painful movement can actually make your pain worse. Just a small amount of activity can result in improvements in your mood, stress and energy levels.
Try mindfulness and meditative practices. Did you know that when you’re in pain, your brain controls where and how much it hurts? Your brain and body are inseparable, so focusing on both body and mind can help.

To help you focus on pain relief, consider this small step.

Small Step: Quiet Your Body

A 10-minute guided meditation from Deacon Tammy Devine invites you to take an intentional pause in your day to scan your body and listen to what it’s telling you, breathing out tension and inviting peace and relief in its place.

Please note: This Small Step is not intended for the treatment or prevention of disease, nor as a substitute for medical treatment or an alternative to medical advice.

Try Meditation

We would love to hear your feedback on our Live Well Small Steps! We invite you to complete a brief survey to share your opinions. Your answers will be kept confidential. Take the survey now.

Sources:

https://swordhealth.com/blog/understanding-pain-better-recovery/

https://swordhealth.com/blog/explained-phys-mental-health/

Motivated to do more?

If you have ELCA-Primary health benefits with Portico:

See if you qualify to participate in our virtual therapy program from SWORD designed for people living with musculoskeletal and joint pain.
Log in to BurnAlong to find more guided meditations and classes to help you align with your body, such as yoga and stretching. BurnAlong also offers adaptive workout classes.

If you have ELCA Medicare-Primary health benefits with Portico:

Check Humana’s Virtual Wellness class calendar for pain management and emotional health class options.
Find pain relief exercises designed specifically for seniors on the SilverSneakers website.

This information should not be considered or used as a substitute for professional health care advice. By providing this information, Portico Benefit Services is not providing any medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Each individual is responsible for his or her own health and medical treatment decisions. You should talk with your doctor to determine the lifestyle changes and health care treatment options appropriate for you.