瑜伽和冥想可以帮助缓解慢性疼痛

瑜伽和冥想可以帮助缓解慢性疼痛

People with chronic pain found significant relief from their pain and depression after eight weeks in a program that centered around yoga and meditation, according to new research.

根据一项新的研究，在一个以瑜伽和冥想为核心的项目进行八周后，患有慢性疼痛的人发现他们的疼痛和抑郁得到了显著缓解。

For the small study, 28 participants in semi-rural Oregon were enrolled in a mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) course. Ranging from 34 to 77 years old, each person reported having chronic pain for at least a year. The group spent 2 1/2 hours each week practicing mindfulness meditation and hatha yoga. Between sessions, they were encouraged to meditate and do yoga on their own for 30 minutes a day on the other six days of the week.

在这项小型研究中，28名来自半乡村的俄勒冈州的参与者参加了一项正念减压(MBSR)课程。年龄从34岁到77岁不等，每个人都有至少一年的慢性疼痛经历。这个小组每周花两个半小时练习正念冥想和哈他瑜伽。在休息期间，他们被鼓励在一周的另外六天里每天冥想并做30分钟瑜伽。

At the end of the course, 89% of the participants reported that the program helped them find ways to better cope with their pain. The other 11% reported no difference.

课程结束时，89%的参与者表示，该项目帮助他们找到了更好地应对疼痛的方法。另外11%的人没有差异。

The results were published in a study in The Journal of the American Osteopathic Association.

研究结果发表在《美国骨科协会杂志》上。

An estimated one in five Americans has chronic pain, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Unlike acute pain, which comes on suddenly and is caused by something specific like surgery or dental work, chronic pain is ongoing and can continue often after an injury or illness that caused it is gone.

根据疾病控制和预防中心(CDC)的数据，估计每五个美国人中就有一个患有慢性疼痛。急性疼痛是由手术或牙科手术等特殊原因引起的，而慢性疼痛不同于急性疼痛，它是持续的，通常在受伤或疾病消失后还会继续。

Chronic pain can be linked to conditions like cancer, arthritis, headache, and nerve, back and fibromyalgia pain, reports the Cleveland Clinic. It is often treated with drugs, including opioids, non-narcotic pain relievers, and antidepressants.

克利夫兰诊所报告说，慢性疼痛可能与癌症、关节炎、头痛、神经、背部和纤维肌痛等疾病有关。通常用药物治疗，包括阿片类药物、非麻醉性镇痛药和抗抑郁药。

“Chronic pain can lead to loss of ability to work, provide care for the family.” Cynthia Marske, DO, an osteopathic physician and lead author of the study, tells Treehugger. “Research provides help for those who want multidisciplinary care so people can get back their lives. Medications don’t work for everyone.”

“慢性疼痛会导致工作能力的丧失，对家庭的照顾能力的丧失。”该研究的第一作者、骨科医生辛西娅·马斯科告诉Treehugger。研究为那些想要多学科护理的人提供了帮助，这样他们就可以重新开始自己的生活。药物并不是对每个人都有效。”

Study finds that practicing mindful yoga and meditation and help the body heal from chronic pain. Goodboy Picture Company / Getty Images

Marske says mindful yoga and meditation can help improve the body’s structure and function, which can help with healing. It doesn’t cure the illness, but healing means learning to live with a manageable level of pain.

马斯科说，正念瑜伽和冥想可以帮助改善身体的结构和功能，这有助于缓解疼痛。它不能治愈疾病，但治愈意味着学会在可控的痛苦中生活。

“Once someone’s brain starts working better and functioning at a high level with MBSR (mindfulness based stress reduction), often pain, antidepressants and anti-anxiety medications are not necessary and the body’s own inherent ability to heal will kick in,” she says.

她说:“一旦一个人的大脑开始更好地工作，并通过MBSR(基于念力的减压疗法)达到高水平，通常疼痛、抗抑郁药和抗焦虑药物就不需要了，身体自身固有的治愈能力就会发挥作用。”

How It Made a Difference

它是如何产生影响的

For the study, participants filled out online surveys to report their levels of pain, depression, and ability to function before and after taking part in the program. The results showed significant improvements in all three areas.

在这项研究中，参与者在网上填写调查问卷，报告他们在参加项目前后的疼痛程度、抑郁程度和身体机能状况。结果显示，这三个方面都有显著改善。

“Results showed an overall downward shift in the distribution of depression, disability, and pain scores after the course,” the researchers wrote.

研究人员写道:“结果显示，在课程结束后，抑郁、残疾和疼痛得分的分布总体呈下降趋势。”

Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9) scores, used to measure depression, dropped by 3.7 points on a 27-point scale. Marske says the results were similar for some patients after using an antidepressant.

用于测量抑郁的患者健康问卷(PHQ-9)得分在27分制中下降了3.7分。马斯科说，对一些服用抗抑郁药的病人来说，结果是相似的。

Pain Catastrophizing Scale (PCS) scores, developed to quantify an individual’s pain experience, dropped by 4.6 points on a 52-point scale. And scores on a shortened version of the Modified Oswestry Disability Index (MO) which assesses disability, decreased by 9.4%

疼痛小题大做量表(PCS)得分是为了量化个体的疼痛体验，在52分的量表中下降了4.6分。评估残疾的Oswestry残疾指数(MO)的缩短版，其得分下降了9.4%

“Mindfulness, meditation, and movement help people make their own neurotransmitters (chemicals of well-being), modulating the way pain is received, handled and processed in the brain,” Marske says.

“正念、冥想和运动帮助人们制造自己的神经递质(健康的化学物质)，调节大脑接收、处理和处理疼痛的方式，”马斯科说。

“Much of the way we respond to pain is emotional. Getting people suffering from pain, depression, and anxiety to function better mentally and physically will help our society recover from any illness including COVID-19 or other illnesses.”

“我们对疼痛的反应大多是情感上的。让遭受痛苦、抑郁和焦虑的人在精神和身体上更好地发挥作用，将有助于我们的社会从包括COVID-19或其他疾病在内的任何疾病中康复。”