The Limitations of Mindfulness
I recently suffered through a kidney stone episode — surviving only by the grace of opioid pain killers.
It’s a rollercoaster between doses — trying to reach the magic 6-hour mark and not cheating by taking it every 4 hours (or 3 or 2).
I didn’t want to go back to the pharmacy for a refill when the bottle should have lasted another two days — getting my refill denied — and being treated like a guy hooked on pain killers.
For some reason, I thought some mindfulness meditation might be able to stem the pain between doses. I’ve been meditating every morning for the past two years.
It does NOT help.
And — why would it?
The purpose of mindfulness is to bring us more fully into our present moment awareness and experience.
If anything, I felt the pain more acutely.
I know there are studies citing meditation as being useful.
Just focus on the breath — right?
Sure.
How do you focus on your breath when it feels like your internal organs are being ripped apart.
Mindfulness meditation may be useful for a slight headache.
For severe pain levels, it’s useless.
