Patient was instructed today regarding practicing distraction technique for pain management as follows:
- Distraction is an alternative pain management technique of shifting the attention away.
- Distraction can help with masking and reducing the experience of pain, by consciously training the mind to focus on an activity, but does not completely terminate the pain.
- Practice distraction technique by training the mind to focus on how the surroundings feel like, such as, the quality of air, the feel of breeze touching the skin, the aroma in the air, or the sound of draining tap, and so on.
- You can also train the mind to focus on physical aspects, such as, appreciating the heartbeat, breathing patterns, rise and fall of chest wall and abdomen with each deep breathing, and so on. Focusing on physical aspects that become profoundly obvious in times of distress, such as fast heartbeat and increased respiratory rates, can help shift your focus from the pain and distress.
- Since shifting the attention from pain could be difficult when the pain level is high, start practicing distraction when the pain level is manageable and gradually move on to practicing it with high pain levels, as you gain more control on practicing the technique.
