Living Well with Chronic Pain: A Mindful, Nervous-System Approach
Chronic pain changes the way you live in your body.
Not just physically, but emotionally, cognitively, and relationally too. It affects how you plan your days, how you rest, how you move, and how you relate to yourself. For many people, chronic pain isn’t something that can simply be “fixed” - and yet much of the advice available still focuses on pushing through, overriding symptoms, or doing more.
I know this terrain personally.
I live with axial spondyloarthritis (axSpA) - a chronic, inflammatory condition that affects the spine and joints. It brings pain, stiffness, fatigue, and unpredictability. Living with it has reshaped how I move, work, rest, and care for myself. It has also deeply informed how I support others.
A mindful, nervous-system-informed approach offers something different.
Chronic pain is not just physical
Pain is real. It is not imagined, exaggerated, or “all in the mind”. At the same time, pain is not only a structural or tissue issue. The nervous system plays a central role in how pain is experienced, amplified, soothed, or sustained over time.
When pain has been present for months or years, the nervous system often becomes highly protective. It learns to stay on alert. Muscles may brace, breath can become shallow, sleep may be disrupted, and even gentle movement can feel threatening.
This doesn’t mean the body is broken. It means it is trying to keep you safe.
Understanding this can be profoundly relieving - especially if you’ve spent years feeling frustrated by your body or misunderstood by others.
Why pushing through often backfires
Many people living with chronic pain are highly capable, conscientious, and used to managing. I see this again and again - and I recognise it in myself too.
We rest when symptoms become overwhelming, then push again once things settle slightly. Over time, this boom-and-bust cycle can increase flare-ups, exhaustion, and self-criticism.
From a nervous system perspective, constant pushing reinforces the message that the body is not safe to listen to. The system stays in a heightened state of vigilance, and pain signals can become louder rather than quieter.
Living well with chronic pain is rarely about doing more. It is often about doing differently.
A mindful, nervous-system-led approach
Mindful living with chronic pain does not mean giving up, becoming passive, or “accepting less”. It means learning how to work with the body rather than against it.
This may include:
- recognising early signals of overload, not just crisis points
- supporting the nervous system through breath, rhythm, and rest
- moving in ways that feel safe and respectful, rather than corrective or forceful
- developing pacing skills that honour fluctuating capacity
- cultivating self-compassion, especially on difficult days
Yoga therapy and somatic practices are particularly well suited here because they can be adapted - not just to a diagnosis, but to you. Practices change from day to day, just as your body does.
This flexibility has been essential in my own relationship with axSpA, and it underpins how I work with others.
Living well doesn’t mean being pain-free
Living well with chronic pain doesn’t mean the pain disappears. It means your life is no longer organised entirely around fighting it.
Over time, many people notice:
- fewer severe flare-ups
- improved recovery and rest
- more confidence in their body
- greater trust in their own pacing
- a kinder relationship with themselves
These shifts are often subtle and gradual. There is no forcing, no fixing, and no requirement to be positive about pain.
A gentle invitation
If you live with chronic pain and feel tired of being told to push harder, stretch more, or think differently, you are not alone.
A mindful, nervous-system-informed approach offers a steadier, more compassionate path - one grounded in lived experience as well as therapeutic practice.
At Infinite Harmony, I support people to explore this approach in a way that is personalised, respectful, and sustainable.
You don’t need to do more.
You don’t need to try harder.
You are allowed to work gently.
