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139792 tn?1498585650

Zen meditation to reduce sensitivity to pain

Zen Meditation: Thicker Brains Fend Off Pain
ScienceDaily (Feb. 24, 2010) — People can reduce their sensitivity to pain by thickening their brain, according to a new study published in a special issue of the American Psychological Association journal, Emotion. Researchers from the Université de Montréal made their discovery by comparing the grey matter thickness of Zen meditators and non-meditators. They found evidence that practicing the centuries-old discipline of Zen can reinforce a central brain region (anterior cingulate) that regulates pain.
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"Through training, Zen meditators appear to thicken certain areas of their cortex and this appears to be underlie their lower sensitivity to pain," says lead author Joshua A. Grant, a doctoral student in the Université de Montréal Department of Physiology and Institut universitaire de gériatrie de Montréal. "We found a relationship between cortical thickness and pain sensitivity, which supports our previous study on how Zen meditation regulates pain."
As part of this study, scientists recruited 17 meditators and 18 non-meditators who in addition had never practiced yoga, experienced chronic pain, neurological or psychological illness. Grant and his team, under the direction of Pierre Rainville of the Université de Montréal and the Institut universitaire de gériatrie de Montréal, measured thermal pain sensitivity by applying a heated plate to the calf of participants and followed by scanning the brains of subjects with structural magnetic resonance imaging. According to MRI results, central brain regions that regulate emotion and pain were significantly thicker in meditators compared to non-meditators.
"The often painful posture associated with Zen meditation may lead to thicker cortex and lower pain sensitivity," says Grant, noting that meditative practices could be helpful in general for pain management, for preventing normal age-related grey matter reductions or potentially for any condition where the grey matter is compromised such as stroke.
This study was supported jointly by a Canadian Institutes of Health Research and a Mind and Life Institute Varela Grant.
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Adapted from materials provided by University of Montreal, via EurekAlert!, a service of AAAS.

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139792 tn?1498585650
Every body gets pain. Intensity of pain increases because of our anxiety about the pain. If we remove anxiety we may be able to reduce intensity of pain and live almost normal life. Chronic Pain couch group is trying to enthuse members to become active in participation in group activities. Every one has different stretegy to cope up with pain. If everbody comes out with their cope-up stretegy, we can have a bible of tips on relief of pain.In addition we have more friends to communicate with. More learning, more friends and more active, unselfish  activity.
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139792 tn?1498585650
Thank you for sharing. I am doing meditaion intermitantly since my childhood. I have done many types of meditations. Purpose of meditaion is much wider than pain mamagement.
Just few days back i came accrros a breathing exercise where you conentrat on exhalation and let inhalation happen automatically. while exhalation visualize that your pain is leaving you. This is one of the advantage or theis breathing technique. It is called Kapal Bhati. Kapal mens forehead and bhati is shining. It shines your forehed.If you are interested in yoga you may visit www.anmolmehta.com. this web site gives e-books, vieos, blog, News paper aoo free. Pease not I am not an expert. This is my hobby. Sometimes we hear miraculous results. If we consider results as bye products, we can continue yoga and mditation regularly. Thanks for your response.
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1348302 tn?1286575703
THIS WORKS!

Only recently in the field of Western Science have we been able to see the medical evidence of the brain changing as a result of self imposed stimuli. (Meditation)

The ancients have been prescribing this for ages, and MBSR programs have helped me tremendously.  :)

They don't make the pain "go away".  I don't feel magically all better after doing meditative work, but it seems to facilitate me getting to the point of being able to shift some of my mental focus away from the pain.
As if the pain were a call for my attention, and meditation gives me the calmness of mind to let the cries just rise and fall, without as much of an effect on me.

Plus its much cheaper than any one of my Rx!
:)

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