|
Yoga and chronic pain may have opposite effects on the brain, according to research conducted by NCCIH’s Dr. Catherine Bushnell and her colleagues. Because of this, practicing yoga might be helpful for chronic pain patients.
“The research we’ve done shows that an individual, through his or her own means, can learn to engage the same networks in the brain that are engaged when taking a pain medication,” Dr. Bushnell says.
“Yoga is one of the ways a person can do this because it engages the parts of the brain that are important in dampening pain. This is done through the physical exercise, meditation, and breath control that yoga requires, which lead to the activation of areas of the brain which dampen pain, all without taking drugs.”
|
