Step nine in the Ten Footsteps to Living Well With Pain is 'Relaxation and Mindfulness'.
Step seven in the Ten Footsteps to Living Well With Pain is 'Sleep'.
Step five in the Ten Footsteps to Living Well With Pain is 'Getting Active'.
Mental health and wellbeing
Mental wellbeing describes your mental state - how you are feeling and how well you can cope with day-to-day life.
Looking after your mental wellbeing isn’t something you should only do if you’re struggling, feeling low, anxious or stressed. It's actually something you should think about all the time and really invest in, the same way you look after your physical health.
- Key facts about your brain
- Your mind changes your brain
- Your brain changes your mind
- You can use your mind to change your brain to change your mind for the better.
It can be easy to rush through life without stopping to notice much. Paying more attention to the present moment – to your own thoughts and feelings, and to the world around you – can improve your mental wellbeing.
Knowing what foods we should and shouldn’t be eating can be really confusing, especially when it feels like the advice changes regularly. However, evidence suggests that as well as affecting our physical health, what we eat may also affect the way we feel.
Find out about foods which can improve your mood in this thought for food blog from food and health information.
Chronic pain and psychological stress go hand in hand. Three sources of stress can be identified for chronic pain sufferers.
A wellness module from Canada for coping with stress.
A booklet that will help you understand how stress is affecting you and what you can do about it.
This self-help booklet is divided into eight sections. It is aimed at helping you gain a better understanding of:
• What stress is and how it can affect you
• What causes stress and keeps it going
• Effective ways to control and manage your stress
A patient guide from Plymouth Hopsitals NHS Trust for recovery using the Hyland Model.
Resaerch report from the Mental Health Foundation as part of Mental Health Awareness Week 2018.
A paper from the US National Library of Medicine. An in-depth academic look at the overlaps between Chronic Pain and Chronic Stress.
Learn more about anxiety and skills to cope with it.
Our self help materials cover a range of mental health issues and are mini workbooks, offering information but structured around short exercises to help you recover.
Mindfulness is a key skill for happiness and we can do it wherever we are. So here are some ideas to get started - it'll help you get more from your day!
No-one's perfect! Information on how to generate happier living for yourself.
This is where it all starts! Small things can cause big positive changes, so choose an action and make it happen.
People with Health Anxiety have an obsessive preoccupation with being seriously ill. This paper explains the vicious cycle of Health Anxiety and what you can do to help yourself.
If you are in need of some support, this self-help book can help you cope better with anxiety.
Help yourself with this helpful paper on Anxiety, it's causes and what you can do about it.
From the Mind Charity this explains anxiety and panic attacks, including possible causes and how you can access treatment and support. Includes tips for helping yourself, and guidance for friends and family.
Paper from US National Library of Medicine discussing how:
- Mood disorders, especially depression and anxiety, play an important role in the exacerbation of pain perception in all clinical settings.
- Depression commonly occurs as a result of chronic pain and needs treating to improve outcome measures and quality of life.
- Anxiety negatively affects thoughts and behaviours which hinders rehabilitation.
- Anxiety and depression in acute hospital settings also negatively affect pain experience and should be considered in both adults and children.
- Poor pain control and significant mood disorders perioperatively contribute to the development of chronic postoperative pain.
At its worst, depression can be a frightening, debilitating condition. Millions of people around the world live with depression. Many of these individuals and their families are afraid to talk about their struggles, and don't know where to turn for help. However, depression is largely preventable and treatable. Recognizing depression and seeking help is the first and most critical towards recovery. In collaboration with WHO to mark World Mental Health Day, writer and illustrator Matthew Johnstone tells the story of overcoming the "black dog of depression".
A person living with chronic pain, or long-term pain, may also experience depression. As well as seeking treatment for the cause of pain, medications and psychotherapy can help relieve the depression.
Free meditation techniques from Mindfulness which include sound files.
The Free Mindfulness Project is home to a growing collection of free0to0download mindfulness meditation exercises.
MARC's mission is to foster mindful awareness across the lifespan through education and research to promote wellbeing and a more compassionate society.
Mindfulness gives you your life back; you can live the life you want, with confidence and positivity.
If mindfulness is new to you and you are living with pain, illness or stress that is impacting on your physical and mental health, learn more about mindfulness.
The Mental Health Foundation offers this course so you can see for yourself the life changing benefits that the practice of mindfulness brings.
MoodGym is a tool developed by the Australian National University to teach people Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) skills. These are designed to help with bouts of low mood that can accompany chronic or long-term pain.
This factsheet from the team at Somerset Community Pain Management Service covers:
- So what do we know about stress?
- What causes stress?
- So how do we react to stress?
- Ideas for managing stress
"I am an unemployed single mum of one. I have suffered with back and shoulder problems for nearly 10 years, from a couple of years before becoming pregnant with my daughter". Read on to find out more about how Saira managed to cope with her pain whilst keeping her mood positive.