The Power of Distraction

This is a topic I've been mulling over for sometime. It sounds great on one hand, but deceptive on the other. Is it therapeutic or a mean placebo? Can the answer be both?

In the time I have been practicing, I have seen the effect of distraction and placebo. While I cannot prescribe a placebo pill, I can encourage behaviors that can distract the patient. Perhaps it is not as overt as the placebo effect, but the results are similar.

You may have seen this pain assessment scale we use in clinics to assess pain.

 

 

I like it because when a patient is popping gum and laughing with me and telling me their pain is 10/10, I have a visual tool to help them reassess their pain a little more accurately. When you get to a 6, I often tell patients this is a pain you can no longer ignore. A pain you can no longer distract yourself from. 10/10 is labor without pain medication, pain so intense you cannot talk, pain that requires immediate medical attention. Saying you have 10/10 when you don't, will not expedite your visit.

Distraction has been proven to reduce patient anxiety during conscious operations. No, they're not doing open heart surgery with you watching Braveheart. These were minimally invasive venous procedures conducted in a private office. The results were clear: patients who were talking to the nurse or watching  movie reported decreased anxiety than patients who were listening to music or had no distractions.

Now, how do we transfer that into our everyday, non-surgical setting? Well, anxiety and panic are two issues I see daily. If a patient were to go for a walk, pet the dog, take their kid to the playground, or throw a few hoops, I venture to guess they would feel a little better. Why? Because like we discussed a few weeks ago, changing your scenery or routine helps to release the physical energy being used to stress.

I work alongside some wonderful Behavior Health colleagues and when I feel the stress creeping in, they often remind me of these very things. Take a walk. Take some deep breaths. Color in a coloring book. Listen to music. Do a relaxation yoga video. Practice guided imagery. Anything you can do to take your mind off of what you're going through is going to help.

Think back to losing a tooth or getting a shot, was distraction involved? "How's your dog? Does he like to go for wal......POP! There goes your tooth!" Distraction. Powerful.