Several methods of complementary and integrative medicine bring value and their integration into a headache management plan in the clinical setting empowers patients’ healing process.
Yoga improved health outcomes in military veterans with chronic low back pain, including lowering their pain intensity.
Yoga was deemed noninferior to physical therapy for the treatment of patients with chronic low back pain.
A negative pain mindset – catastrophizing – undermines pain treatment effectiveness and facilitates structural brain changes that serve to maintain pain and distress.
The ACP developed the guideline from randomized, controlled trials and systematic reviews published through April 2015 that focused on noninvasive pharmacologic and nonpharmacologic treatments for low back pain.
Yoga only led to moderate improvements compared with exercise or no exercise interventions in patients with low back pain.
“I believe that the best care is individualized care. And the most effective approach is sometimes whatever the patient will actually do,” concluded Melanie Storrusten, LCSW.
Dr Bushnell suggests practicing yoga, as long-term yogis have higher pain tolerance and increased gray matter—including in pain-modulating brain areas—compared with that of non-practitioners.
