Yes dear Mr. Dow-ster, you are right, it is worth investigating to learn every trick!
I can't say that I am very good at relaxing. Muscle tightness became a norm for me, that natural reaction of bracing against pain, tensing up, happens long before I hit a 7 and is a protective instinct that can sometimes help and other times be very detrimental. I don't reach any concious fear until well past 7, and rarely panic (not until 8+) but by then you're pretty desperate to calm things, but it helps more when you start earlier, like 6. And it depends on the pain. An old pain at 7 is easy but a new area hitting 4 is harder to push out mentally.
Theoretically, I suppose I would have been full of neural superhighways by year 5
since the chronic nature of pain (without periods of relief) would have burned those paths regardless of being at a 4-7-2 or 5. I'm not sure though, because I can tolerate pain, like the kind that stepping on a nail would produce, better than most, with no fear and no physiological reaction outside of the norm. Learning how to prevent pain from escalating is a mental as well as a physical battle and I regret that I didn't have the tools, or KA, back when I was stumbling through it, and had to learn my tricks just by experience. Can we read about it and thus get 'there' any faster? Maybe, yes!
Yep, fear plays a role. Now, whenever I feel in the least bit fearful, (like, ack - is my stupid ribcage fusing now?!) I need only think of, or chat with Alan
and I am reassured that I'll be ok. It doesn't kill us, it only makes us stronger! Cripes, I think that I've gotten off-topic! lol
No, stress is not good and relaxation does help. And, btw, iritis seems directly tied (to me) with that fight-flight adrenaline response. Take extra care when cognisant of being under stress and get extra sleep. All tricks help. If I knew then, what I know now, I would have been more open to taking narcotics and I would have taken the odd day off from work when pain was at the high end of the scale, instead of pushing myself so hard. I am much kinder to me now and I am still learning too.
Hugs!
