Reduce Chronic Pain in 5 Min
by Amanda Jane Snyder
Most everyone I know these days suffers from some sort of debilitating chronic pain. Whether it's from an injury that keeps persisting, or it's due to chronic inflammation, pain seems to have become a part of our everyday lives. In this day and age, we've grown used to suffering. Especially in NYC, hustling, stress, rip-your-hair-out type of anxiety is almost a badge of honor that we wear proudly. If we're not grinding the pavement and too busy to breathe, are we even relevant?
Take It From Me.
But take it from me, as someone who suffered from lower back pain so bad that I was truly in capable of daily functional movement such as moving from a sitting to a standing position, this type of pain is not sustainable. On top of that, the majority of the clients I work with are artists, actors, and entrepreneurs who need their body to function well in order to maintain a sustainable career. Not only was I suffering myself from lower back pain and chronic inflammation, but after I cured myself I discovered that almost everyone else is too, at least in some capacity.
Are You a Bitter Person?
Regardless of what you do for work, showing up each day riddled with anxiety, chronic pain, and inflammation is not a fun way to live. One of my clients said to me that her pain was so bad it was making her a bitter person! Can you imagine feeling bitter and pessimistic each day that you show up for your creative pursuits. As artists, how can we create at the highest capacity if we feel like crap?
Your Mind Creates Your Reality
That's exactly how I felt back in 2014 with my back pain. I hated the world and I had no hopes in my career as a musical theatre actor because I was simply in a bad mood all the time and thought the world was out to get me. Your mind creates your reality. The more I gave in to the pain, the more power the pain had over me. The more I settled into this all or nothing, give up attitude.
Because I was already suffering so much, I said F it, and continued to make choices that didn't serve my body or my mind. I was addicted to sugar, gluten and seed oil rich foods like pastries and pastas. I was afraid to exercise because I didn't want to further my injuries. I drank to oblivion and slept in to avoid the pain.
So what does this have to do with 5 min a day? How on earth could 5 minutes impact the extreme pain and suffering I was enduring on a daily basis?
In those moments of dispair, when our life feels completely out of control, and there's almost TOO much we know we need to change so we don't change anything... 5 minutes a day can have a huge impact.
The Impact of 5 Minutes A Day
I started my transformation by carving out 5 minutes a day to practice my corrective exercises that support reducing back pain. Notice how I said practice corrective exercise. I became dedicated to showing up for the exercises rather than dedicated to eliminating the pain. 5 minutes eventually turned into full hour workouts. But it started with just 5. Once I saw the mental and physical benefits of movement for my body I started to strength train. I started to strengthen my core and my gluteus medius. I started to lift heavy with barbells and dumbbells in the gym. But it all started with just 5 minutes.
I was then able to make some other profound changes to my life through 5 minutes. I started with 5 minutes of meditation. 5 minutes of meditation turned into meditation along with journaling and affirmations. Setting aside 5 minutes in the morning allowed me to make my bed so that I am set up for success with a clean environment. It allowed me to drink a full 20 oz of water in the morning. Slowly I adapted these habits and slowly I reaped the mental, emotional, and physical benefits. I am in a clear state of mind so now I am better able to make healthy choices. I no longer am addicted to sugar. I have natural energy from choosing healthy meals. I am able to choose nutrient rich meals because I am in a healthy and happy state of mind. I don't live in scarcity anymore. I live in abundance knowing that each of these choices are compounding. My sciatic nerve pain disappeared overtime, my anxiety has reduced, my energy is high, I have lower chronic inflammation which shows up in my clear skin with little psoriasis flare ups.
And it's not just me. I'm not the only one who has benefitted from starting with 5 minutes a day. Misaki was feeling anxious. I gave her some breathing techniques to work on each morning. Each day she follows along with the breath/ab work on my app. "The breathing through the belly saved me from having an anxiety/panic attack yesterday... it's actually a natural remedy of anxiety and just to come back to the present. I can see how this can be used for people who perform or need to go to a big high stakes callback or before going on set utilizing this breathing to prepare/engage their body and mind too. I'll be using this if I get anxious before auditions or get to go on set" says Misaki, a film/tv actor in NYC.
My client of over 2 years now, Tess said, "I was afraid of my body. I was so afraid of hurting myself irreparably that I didn't want to do anything. I was angry with my body. I just wanted it to work... You challenged me to reimagine my potential and possibilities. I have genuinely never felt that in tune with my body." Tess had suffered from many injuries in the past including knee and ankle injuries. She and I started with 5 minutes of daily exercises a day that are geared towards her personal injury history. I'm so proud of how far she's come on this journey! She's an AEA actor who has been working consistently in the field and even producing her own work.
Cass was suffering from lower back and shoulder pain for awhile. Everything she tried hurt so she pretty much gave up on lifting heavy or attempting movement. In the process she fell out of tune with her body. She didn't feel like herself anymore. She started working with me after having tried other trainers before. It was a slow process of building up corrective exercise and mobility routines, assessing her body imbalances and starting with light weights. "Yesterday I finally hit 80lbs on my front squats... It may not seem like much but after years of re-injury in my lower back, (Amanda) finally helped me figure out the cause".
It's truly amazing what 5 minutes can do. Do you have 5 minutes a day to spare for YOU time. If you've read this far my advice is that you probably can't afford NOT to take 5 minutes a day to create life changes. Whether that's drinking water upon waking, making your bed everyday or doing corrective exercise to improve your mobility, just do SOMETHING.
Amanda Jane Snyder is a Certified Nutrition Coach, Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist, Corrective Exercise Specialist, Certified Personal Trainer, and Mindset Coach living in Brooklyn, NY. She has been vegan since 2016. She specializes in Strength and Conditioning for Actors, Singers, and Dancers.
Comments / 0