All in your head
Does your mind have the power to ease pain and support immunity?
Last week, I wrote an article in the Sunday Times about how to prevent back pain, for which I sought expert advice from Ruth Newsome, a spinal specialist physiotherapist.
Her tips on not being too sedentary were perhaps predictable; more surprising was her advice on stress and emotional wellbeing. 'Back pain is multifactorial, with psychological factors affecting prognosis and recovery,’ she told me. ‘Many are sceptical about stress management tools such as mindfulness, relaxation and breathing techniques, but they can be powerful.’
In my line of work, I speak with a lot of doctors at the top of their field, and her comments reminded me of when I interviewed world-renowned oncologist, Professor Peter Schmid, for my book Reconstruction: How to Rebuild Your Body, Mind & Life After Breast Cancer. He said that the mind is incredibly powerful in terms of supporting both mental health and immunity during cancer treatment, and specifically recommended visualisation (like this one by Dr David R. Hamilton).
Of course, techniques like visualisation are recommended alongside cancer treatment, not instead of it. I’m sure you know that, but just for the avoidance of doubt!
My point is that I - like many people - used to consider treating the mind to treat the body as snake oil-adjacent nonsense. There is medicine, and everything else is bollocks, right?
But having met many clever, sensible, pragmatic doctors, and hearing them describe techniques like mindfulness and visualisation as ‘powerful’, I’ve had to reconsider.
At the very least, these tools will help you manage stress, and there is plenty of evidence around the impact of stress on everything from skin health and muscle tension to digestion and immunity. So taking time to relax your mind is not some namby-pamby nice-to-have treat, it’s a vital part of your health and wellbeing.
This is partly good news: something that we can all do to improve our health!
And partly bad: so now we’ve got to stress about being too stressed? Great.
So… what to do about it?
I contact Dr Sophie Mort, Clinical Psychologist and Mental Health Expert at Headspace. ‘The mind-body connection is the relationship between our thoughts, emotions, and physiological health,’ she explains. ‘It highlights how mental states like stress, anxiety, or happiness can directly impact physical well-being, and vice versa.’
There are a few ways in which this can happen
Stress & Physical Health
Chronic stress increases levels of the stress hormone cortisol, and can also manifest as headaches, muscle tension, or fatigue.Positive Thinking & Healing
The placebo effect shows how simply believing in a treatment can trigger real physiological improvements. Optimism has been linked to lower inflammation and stronger immune function.Emotions & Pain Perception
Depression and anxiety can intensify pain or create psychosomatic symptoms (physical issues with no clear medical cause).Trauma & the Body
Emotional trauma can become ‘trapped’ in the body, leading to chronic pain, digestive disorders, or autoimmune conditions. Therapy and practices like yoga, deep breathing, or EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing) can help release it.
If you haven’t tried Headspace before, they have guided meditation courses on everything from dealing with anxiety to managing stress, fear or anger. I used it a lot during chemo (and then had to have a break from it, because it reminded me of treatment - now it’s been long enough that I can use it without being triggered!).
Dr Sophie points me in the direction of research showing meditation’s power to alleviate physical symptoms. She says it works ‘by changing the way we relate to unpleasant feelings’. It can also help to stimulate our parasympathetic nervous system, causing the body to stop releasing stress hormones. ‘This reduction in stress helps to lower your blood pressure, heart rate, and oxygen consumption, resulting in higher energy levels and better immunity and sleep,’ she says.
‘Plus, stress reduction is key for diminishing the physical symptoms of many health conditions. For chronic pain, Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) is one of the most common psychological interventions, and a large part of ACT is mindfulness.’
If you have any niggling pains, it might be worth trying the Headspace Pain Management course as starting point - do let me know if you find it effective.
Obviously it goes without saying (but I’ll say it anyway) that the benefits of meditation for your mind - in terms of mood, sleep and anxiety - are worth it alone. On the Miss Me podcast this week, Lily Allen said she’s ‘addicted to meditation’ and wishes she got into it sooner for the ‘clarity’ (although she did also say that she’s got back into selling pictures of her feet on OnlyFans so…).
If you’re anything like me, then maybe you’ve tried meditation over the years but got out of the habit. In light of the evidence for mind and body, I’m definitely going to try and reinstate it.
This week I’m…
Reassured and galvanised by Oliver Burkeman on how to enjoy life when the news is scary
Obsessed with the new series of The White Lotus, which is a full-on wellness resort this time
Booking ahead for Still We Rise. At a time when much International Women’s Day content is corporate gibberish, this properly inclusive event will include live music, art, the chance to shop small women-owned brands and a panel with @jessmally @carmlf @chantelle_lunt and @hausofdarkwah on how health, justice and creativity can transform your life. Book tickets here
Another wonderful read, Rosamund. I really need to get into meditation again. I always fall into and out of the habit.
One thing I found really helpful in the lead-up to surgeries--I think I had six recon surgeries total--was visualisation. I found a CD specifically for visualising a successful outcome. It was so helpful for my anxiety! Now, I recommend it to anyone about to have an operation!
Link below for anyone who's interested:
https://www.amazon.com/Meditations-Promote-Successful-Surgery-Imagery/dp/1881405346
Hi Rosamund, I used TM when the chemo induced menopause nearly drove me mad with sleeplessness and brain fog. After 6 weeks of doing 30 minutes morning and evening I was sleeping like a baby and my brain was sharper than it had ever been and remained like that until I retired about 10 years later.