but it HURTS!

Yes, I really do know. Those with the conditions I share like lipedema, lymphedema, and hypermobility or Ehlers Danlos, need the therapies that help us. We need activity and movement. We need things that move lymph and break down fibrotic tissue and restore our fascia and support overall health. However, and it's an elephant-sized however, those things hurt. If a cat stepping on your leg can be excruciating, how much more does it hurt if you're intentionally putting pressure on your sensitive tissues? Often, it hurts more than we can explain and in ways that words just can't express. When we live in pain every moment of every day, the fear of more pain is real and prevents us from trying therapies that might be beneficial. So, what do we do?

Here are some ways I've found that helped me with the pain sensation and they've helped my clients, too!

• Work on warm tissue! Warmth softens the tissue, brings circulation, relaxes the nerves in the area, and all of that means decreased pain. This is especially important because most of us have areas of frozen tissue that feels cold to the touch all the time. Warm tissue responds better to whatever therapy, exercise, or activity you're doing. Wearing warm clothes, taking a warm bath, walking around your house, swinging the arms or some calf raises, a session on your vibration plate, a sauna blanket session...these are all ways to warm up that tissue that is cold to the touch so it doesn't hurt as much.

• Do the active things before the pressure things. What does that mean? If you're going to use a massage gun or gua sha or do lymphatic drainage, or (my fave) fascia decompression therapy, do it AFTER you've done something active if you can. I realize that often you can tire yourself out if you are engaged in activity, but if you're able to do a small amount of activity or even a household chore prior to a session that causes pain, you might find that the increase in circulation and getting the lymph flowing will help your pain levels, not to mention warming the tissue, as discussed above.

• Address lymph first. Sometimes even the tiniest decrease in inflamed tissue can give enough relief that it makes the usually painful therapy easier to bear. If you can go through those popular Big 6 lymph spots or do some dry brushing or maybe gentle rebounding session before you dig into your painful spots, it could make all the difference.

• Stay hydrated! Hydration matters so much when it comes to flushing out excess inflammation and also keeping your body's nervous system calm. Pay attention to electrolytes and a good source of water throughout your day. If you're dehydrated or electrolyte-deficient it will only add to your pain as you go through therapies and will also make you feel worse afterward, with a slower recovery time.

• Focus on your breathing. Can proper diaphragmatic breathing really matter? Yes, it truly can. Shallow, improper breathing signals your brain to be in fight or flight mode, ramping up anxiety and increasing overall pain levels. Optimally, you want to start every type of therapy session with some very calming breaths that come from deep in the belly, filling not just the top of the lungs, but all the way to the bottom where most of the oxygen receptors are. You will stimulate your vagus nerve, your brain will respond by relaxing your body, and pain will decrease. More oxygen will also make your therapy session more effective and you'll be breathing out more toxins as you go. It's also a great tip that if you or your therapist hit a painful spot and you catch and hold your breath that you remain in that painful spot and slow the breath down for a minute or so.

• Magesium to the rescue. It's true that magnesium can be your best friend when it comes to pain. There are magnesium sprays and creams you can apply topically before and after any type of therapy that will then go straight to the area of tension or pain and relax it somewhat. Taking handfuls of magnesium supplements will not do the same thing, especially since most of us with these types of connective tissue disorders have trouble absorbing much through our digestive tract. If you want an oral magnesium I recommend a nano-particle one like ReMag (I'm not associated with them, just use their product), because it bypasses digestion so you get more. I can truly tell a difference when I skip my 1/4 teaspoon per day.

• Start slowly. I don't mean "normal" slowly. I mean, turn yourself into some sort of snail/sloth/tortoise creature and be fine with that for possibly weeks. You have conditions that need to be addressed with a completely different approach. Make these modalities work for YOU and where your body is. There is not one "right" protocol and you are not in a race. When doing fascia therapies, remember that fascia is in layers and the superficial fascia right below the skin can be extremely painful even with feather light touches, but it WILL get better if you go slowly and allow yourself some grace and patience.

So, there you have it. My top tips for reducing pain that we all fear when we think about trying a new therapy. All of these suggestions are borne from my own journey and my experience helping others find ways of addressing these chronic conditions. It can, and does, get better. You can, and will, be able to live a life with less pain. You deserve some gentlesness. Extend that to yourself and learn to listen to your body.