Tension and Pain:
Which Comes First?
Pain can cause tension. Tension can cause pain.
Have you ever hurt yourself and found yourself limiting your movement for fear of aggravating the pain? Sometimes tightening our muscles in the painful area makes the discomfort manageable.
Bracing ourselves against pain tenses muscles and interferes with natural movement and breath. This can be useful as a short term strategy, but when it becomes a habit, it is no longer serving us.
Simultaneously, tension can create pain. Tension creates havoc in the body. It can lead to headaches, stomachaches, and back pain, as well as other discomforts. Many of us have shoulders that creep up toward our ears by the end of the day, leaving us with tight neck and back muscles.
The thing about tension is that it is stealthy. It often moves in slowly and takes root without our awareness.
When was the first time today that you tensed your body? Chances are pretty good that you don't know.
Habits of tension are ingrained.
Part of what makes a habit a habit is that we don't need to think about it. A habit is something we've done often enough that we can do it on auto-pilot. We are chronically tensing our muscles without being aware of it.
One of the things I frequently hear from clients is that they don't know how to relax. They understand the concept of relaxation, but they simply can't do it.
For others, we can get the idea of relaxing, but we don't know how much tension we actually have. Revealing our habits just takes a little attention.
There is good news in all of this. Reducing tension may be easier than you think.
Here is something you can do to notice tension and to soften tight muscles. You can do this in any comfortable position, and it only takes a few minutes.
We hold a great deal of the body's tension around the eyes. Softening the eyes can have a profound impact on the entire body.
With eyes open or closed invite the area around the eyeball to soften. And I do mean invite. Instead, simply ask yourself, "What would it feel like if the muscles around my eyes, and maybe even my whole face, were to soften?"
Invite that area to soften even more.
Even more.
As this area softens you may notice your breathing changing. Keep asking for more softness. When you get to the point when you feel you can't soften anymore, ask again.
You may even have a sense that your eyeballs are sinking into your sockets.
Nearby areas like the jaw and forehead can also begin to soften. Do you notice changes in your breathing from simply relaxing? You may feel your entire body letting go - shift your body position to whatever is most comfortable for you.
By doing this exercise just a few times a day we can become more aware of the tension we hold and learn how to moderate it.
Pain and tension are intertwined. By reducing our tension, we reduce our pain.
Sending you the best for your well-being.
Kaiopa Stage
Or drop me a line with a question or thought.
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This article is copyrighted ©2007 Kaiopa Stage, Pain Free First, all rights reserved.
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