Improve Pain Through Mindful Yoga with Neil Pearson
This episode of the podcast is a conversation with Neil Pearson about how yoga and mindfulness can help you improve pain, understand your body’s signals better, and find relief. Neil is a physical therapist, yoga therapist, and author known for his work integrating yoga and pain science.
Episode Details:
If you are someone who lives with pain, and you’re wondering how yoga or mindfulness could help, this interview will offer plenty of concrete information. I think you will really appreciate Neil’s hopeful and empowering message that, yes – we CAN improve pain and change our pain experience.
It’s also a great listen if you teach movement or meditation, and you want to better serve students who may be coming to class to cope with pain. This episode is a great introduction to some of the science that can help you communicate with your students about pain, and confidently handle those moments when someone experiences pain during class.
You’ll hear more about Neil’s background, and why he’s taken this approach of integrating yoga and mindfulness with pain science.
We discuss how to improve pain through mindful yoga:
- ways that movement changes pain by re-training the nervous system and influencing inflammation
- why it’s beneficial to “turn towards” pain with awareness, rather than trying to downplay or ignore it
- autonomic synchrony and how practicing yoga or mindfulness in a group may be beneficial for pain reduction
- and why improving pain takes more than just finding the physical cause and fixing the tissues
Neil also explains some of the counter-intuitive aspects of how pain works, so we can move away from outdated concepts that may limit our potential recovery. We discuss the impact of dramatic, negative language (like “this joint is bone on bone” or “this disc is shredded).” And, he also talks about how yoga can provide a direct experience of being able to change your pain, which can be a powerful counterpoint to some of our common misconceptions.
Listen and learn the basics of pain care, and how helpful yoga and mindfulness can be!
Guest Bio:
Neil Pearson (PT, MSc(RHBS), BA-BPHE, C-IAYT, E-RYT 500) is a physical therapist, yoga therapist, author, researcher, Clinical Associate Professor at the University of British Columbia, faculty in three yoga therapy schools, board member for International Association of Yoga Therapists and pain care advocate. He is the founding chair of CPA’s Pain Science Division, and the recipient of awards honouring his work in pain care, patient education and physiotherapy by Queen’s University, the Canadian Pain Society, and Physiotherapy Associations of BC and Canada, including the Canadian 2021 Medal of Distinction.
Neil conducts research into the effects of yoga on veterans with chronic pain and people with osteoarthritis. He is a consultant to Partners in Canadian Veterans Rehabilitation Services, and to Lifemark’s 300+ clinics in Canada. Neil is a past board member for Pain BC, Canada’s premier non-profit transforming the way pain is understood and treated. He co-authored Yoga and Science in Pain Care 2019, and authored the patient education ebook, Understand Pain Live Well Again in 2008 (translated to French and written Mandarin), and is lead contributor to many free patient resources offered by Pain BC.
Resources and Links from this episode:
You can learn more about Neil Pearson’s work on his website Paincareaware.com or connect with @paincareaware on Instagram.
- The Pain Care Aware website includes a great list of free resources, including articles and videos by Neil and others in the field
- Find the Gentle Movement @ Home classes Neil mentioned on PainBC’s YouTube channel for a great example of a pain care-informed approach to yoga
If you liked this podcast conversation, you might also enjoy Episode 61 on Chronic Pain and Yin Yoga with Mandy Ryle, or Episode 27 on working with pain in meditation practice.
P.S. As I mentioned during this episode, there is a Moved To Meditate course coming soon! Ease In To Meditation: A Movement-Based Mindfulness Course will start on January 28th. With 8 weeks of do-able lessons, you’ll explore mindfulness techniques through movement FIRST…then learn how to apply them in meditation.
