Hi friends,

Pain is something that nearly everyone, at some point in their life, experiences. It’s “an unpleasant sensory and emotional experience associated with, or resembling that associated with actual or potential tissue damage.”

When the body is in chronic pain, the nervous system responds by becoming more alert and heightens all sensory input to the brain. This can make things that used to not hurt, now hurt. And things that used to hurt, now hurt more.

If you have been experiencing pain for months on end, odds are that your nervous system is more sensitive than usual.

When this is the case, there are many ways to help calm down the nervous system to return it to its normal resting level.

Here is a list of activities and exercises that I recommend to my patients when they experience chronic pain:

• Journaling

• Mediation

• Reading

• Listening to calming music

• Talking to a friend

• Enjoying a cup of coffee or tea

• Breathwork

• Humor

• Spending time in nature without electronics

Many different activities can help calm down the nervous system. The important thing is that you pick one and try it.

Even though pain is a complex process, we know that solely addressing the mechanical issues with the body won’t lead to the best results. Addressing the psychological system in conjunction with physical therapy and exercise is typically the best course of action for treating chronic pain.

As always, if you have been struggling with chronic pain, reach out to your local healthcare provider for help.

Until next week,

Kevin

✍️ Quote I’m reflecting upon

“The most important decision you make is to be in a good mood.”

— Voltaire

❤️ Things I’m enjoying

1. Book - The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald. I abhorred reading in high school and never truly read this classic. Now that I enjoy reading, I’m glad I picked this book up as it lives up to its stellar reputation as one of the greatest works of literature of all time.

2. App blocker - ScreenZen. This has saved me from hours of mindless scrolling on Instagram. I highly recommend you try this app if you find yourself habitually pulling out your phone to go on social media. The 5-second pause the app provides before you open an app can be enough to remind you that you don’t need to scroll.

3. Podcast - “Ramit Sethi: Never Split The Bill, It’s A Red Flag & Renting Isn’t Wasting Money!” on the Diary Of A CEO podcast. Ramit is a great resource for all things personal finance and provides valuable insights in this episode on investing, managing finances with a partner, and whether it is better to rent or buy a home.