“My fibromyalgia was diagnosed following an accumulation of stress several years ago. At the time, I was suffering from unbearable pain, I felt disabled, bedridden, I was constantly ruminating, I couldn’t “Beyond the pain, the illness affected me deeply, because I no longer recognized myself” testifies Rosetta.
“My doctor wanted to prescribe me an antidepressant, but that didn’t match the way I wanted to be treated. So I decided to try it. sophrology and I signed up for training in 2011. My first goal was to set up daily sessions of 30 minutes of relaxation and positive visualizations every day, for three months.
After 15 days, I managed to let go, then the attacks gradually became less frequent. Today, by adhering to this hygiene of regular sessions, I no longer have any pain at all.”
Sophrology will reinforce the positive
“Human beings have a very great capacity to somatize the negative,” says Éliane Fradetal-Laffond, sophrologist. Fibromyalgia is an illustration of this. “Before being sick, the people it affects are often stressed, hyperactive, living in a difficult family atmosphere, until the day something changes. So, it’s like pressing a switch: pain flame,” she describes.
What if it was possible to flip this switch? In any case, this is the conviction of the practitioner, who accompanied by fibromyalgia patients who today almost no longer have attacks : “The sophrology aims to reinforce the positive and acts on the way of existing of the person who practices it”, she explains. According to her, the sophrology is thus effective against pain, but it is also a prevention tool.
2 sessions per week for crisis prevention
According to the Ameli website, in cases of fibromyalgia, the most sensitive regions are close to the spine: the neck, the shoulders, the interscapular region (between the two shoulders), the shoulder blades, the lower back, the hips. .
“Pain is a complex neuropsychological reaction which is characterized by the different interpretations of the person who suffers from it. Thanks to the modified state of consciousness (called sophronic) that it induces, the decomposition of pain and dynamic relaxation, the sophrology modifies its perception and allows patients to tame it in the event of crisis », she describes, while recalling that the breathing work carried out in this context also helps with relaxation and the alleviation of stress, thus avoiding the vicious circle of anxiety and suffering.
But the sophrology is also useful as part of a preventive approach. “When we have identified the situation in which the switch was activated, the sophrology can help avoid it, in particular by returning to its present sensations, to its body, to what we are experiencing today.”
His advice: practice sophrology in a group or individual session twice a week, under the guidance of a practitioner aware of chronic illnesses, and act on your state of mind by activating, through exercises, the positive in your daily life.
The exercise of small pleasures
Try, every day, the exercise of small joys. In a calm environment, close your eyes, take two deep breaths and try to visualize a little daily happiness, something that makes you happy: a child’s smile, a landscape that touched you. Contemplate this happiness mentally: what are its colors, its shapes, its decor? Then focus on the scents and tactile sensations that you associate with it. When you have found this little joy, put it away to bring it out again when you need it.
Our expert : Éliane Fradetal-Laffond, sophrologist
Source: www.topsante.com
