Psychological approaches used to manage pain in patients essay

Along with pharmacological and physiological methods of managing pain in nursing, there are numerous psychological approaches. Basing on the gate control theory and on other studies exploring the role of psychological factors in pain treatment, it is possible to outline the following psychological approaches: relaxation, distraction, praying/meditation, music, imagery, psychotherapy – hypnosis, cognitive-behavioural therapy, etc (Shattell & Meerwijk, 2012).

Using relaxation approach, healthcare professionals organize sessions involving systematic relaxation, progressive relaxation of muscles and autogenic training. Such sessions last for some 20-30 minutes, and are appropriate for managing chronic pain; breathing in a rhythmic way or jaw dropping actions can be used to cause relaxation in the cases of acute pain (Shattell & Meerwijk, 2012). Other techniques used in this approach are special respiration techniques and dreaming. One specific form of dreaming which is frequently used to manage pain is imagery: the patient is asked to imagine some pleasant event which is particularly engaging for him or her.

Using the gate control theory, one can assume that distracting the patient’s attention from pain might decrease pain sensitivity. Common methods of distraction are reading books, watching TV or movies, doing multiplication tables, singing songs, dreaming and listening to music. Music therapy can be viewed as a separate form of pain management: it can be used to reduce and manage pain; for this process, instrumental music which has 60-80 beats per minute is recommended; examples of such music are jazz, piano, harp, synthesizer and orchestral music (Devinder & Upton, 2013). Music therapy can be used to cause a short-term reduction in pain intensity and distress. Praying and meditation approaches address anxiety and depression induced by pain and relieve the pain itself (Devinder & Upton, 2013). Focusing on the prayer, or meditating while focusing the attention on the picture, word or own respiration diverts the attention from pain, and helps relieve the pain.

Researchers have also proved the effectiveness of hypnosis approach for managing pain. Hypnosis is a state of deep relaxation in which it is possible to reach the patient’s sub-consciousness (Rosdahl & Kowalski, 2008). Hypnotherapy is primarily used for managing chronic pain; in many cases, hypnotherapy leads to the decrease of pain and related anxiety, and causes certain physiological changes which also reduce the intensity and character of pain (Rosdahl & Kowalski, 2008). Cognitive-behavioural therapy is an efficient psychological approach for treating pain. In this approach, the healthcare professional reinforces the patient’s adaptive behaviours and decreases the maladaptive actions such as describing pain, complaining, etc. The goal of behavioural therapy is to help the patient refocus on the positive aspects of own health, develop new effective behaviours such as physical activity and to stop using drugs/painkillers (Rosdahl & Kowalski, 2008).