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Guided Imagery May Help Chronic Pain

KENT, Ohio, Aug. 28 (UPI) -- People who suffer with chronic pain, which often results in depression, may be helped with "guided imagery", finds a U.S. study.

Researchers at Kent State University and Case Western University, led by Kent State nursing professor Wendy Lewandowski, tracked the experience of 44 patients being treated for chronic pain.

Patients in one group listened to a seven-minute audiotape that helped them to relax, focus on the sensory images their pain evoked, and then guided them to change the sensory images. This technique, known as guided imagery, can be an effective supplement to medication therapy.

Unlike those in the control group, the guided-imagery patients in the study described their pain as ultimately more tolerable or easier to control, according to Lewandowski.

The study's findings are published in the journal Pain Management Nursing.

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