Yoga and Chronic Pain

  • By Alison Kavanaugh, PT Student
  • •
  • 09 Jan, 2019
  • •

What is chronic pain?

By definition chronic pain is pain that lasts 3 months or longer. It affects ∼15% of adolescents and 20% of adults in Canada (1). Chronic pain can result from a known cause, such as surgery or inflammed joints, or as a consequence of a disease such as rheumatoid arthritis. However, often the cause is unknown. Because chronic pain is complex and multi-dimensional it can be difficult to treat.

Neuropathic pain is often associated with chronic pain, meaning that the pain they experience is not in proportion to actual tissue damage or injury. Instead, the pain results from changes in how the nervous system processes sensation. For example, nerves in a muscle may send messages to the brain that exaggerate a sensation, making it feel very painful when there is no actual tissue damage.

Taken From http://www.yogastudio.ns.ca/blog-entry/tays/yoga-and-chronic-pain
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