(MENAFNEditorial)
‘I would be very sceptical if someone had told me that something so simple could take away my pain so easily.’ That was the initial reaction of Julie a chronic pain sufferer to the idea that a mobile app could be so useful. Thankfully Julie is now able to control her pain using the “Anxiety Release Based On EMDR” mobile app according to the “OA Behavioural Medicine” journal which has just published the first scientific report of a mobile app being used to successfully control chronic pain.
The report titled ‘the use of an app to manage carpal tunnel syndrome’ latest issue of “OA Behavioral Medicine” discusses the case of Julie a female business executive who had been diagnosed with Carpal Tunnel Syndrome six months earlier as a result of work-related computer use. Prior to using the mobile app she had been managing with a combination of medication and rest. Both strategies only afforded temporary relief and Julie was dreading the possibility that she would eventually have to undergo surgery.
Following three months of more or less daily use of the app (although she hardly needed to use it by the end of the three months) Julie had experienced a significant reduction in both pain and depressive symptoms and avoided the need to have surgery. Julie reported ‘I have tried everything in an attempt to stop the pain and nothing has worked until I tried the “Anxiety Release Based On EMDR” mobile app. It was simple almost too simple I thought to actually work. But it did. It does!’
Julie also stopped needing pain medication. These improvements were maintained at six months and she no longer even needs to use the app..
Mobile technology is an increasingly popular adjunct to medical and psychological treatment with over 40000 health apps on the market. Sufferers of mental or physical health problems also prefer the greater degree of control and convenience that apps offer over scheduled appointments side-effects associated with prescription medication and similar impediments to successful treatment. However users and health professionals alike are faced with a bewildering number of choices often with only user reviews to guide them.
Health professionals in particular prefer to rely on clinical research as a basis for making recommendations. This report on ‘the use of the Anxiety Release app to manage carpal tunnel syndrome’ is the first scientific report of an app being used to successfully control chronic pain.
The ‘Anxiety Release based on EMDR’ mobile app has been developed by Mark Grant a respected clinical psychologist researcher and author based in Melbourne Australia. The app uses a combination of focused attention and bilateral stimulation to reduce physical and emotional stress. Bilateral stimulation is a treatment element of EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization & Reprocessing) one of the most efficacious treatments of PTSD and a growing range of other problems including chronic pain.
This kind of stimuli appeals directly to the areas of the brain responsible for sensory-emotional processing resulting in relaxation and decreased arousal. These changes are often associated with permanent changes in the way the problem is experienced. With carpal tunnel syndrome a chronic pain condition with a high anxiety component the reduction in anxiety stimulated by the app is thought to help reduce physical pain.
The ‘Anxiety Release based on EMDR’ mobile app helps reduce physical and emotional stress through a combination of visual and sound cues helping users to feel calmer and better able to cope with tension panic or distress. The app offers a powerful anxiety reducing experience wherein the user not only gains control over their present anxiety but also learns how to feel differently in the face of anxiety-provoking situations.
As app creator and clinical psychologist Mark Grant notes ‘if using an app can help people feel less pain it gives individuals the tools to manage their own suffering.’ With its innovative blend of neuroscience computing and psychology the ‘Anxiety Release based on EMDR’ app has through this first clinical study been established as promises to be a highly effective “brain-smart” tool for managing anxiety.
The app is available on both iTunes and Google Play and via http://AnxietyReleaseApp.com
About the App Creator:
Mark Grant is a clinical psychologist researcher and author based in Melbourne Australia and is a regular speaker at conferences in the US and Europe. His published works include the book ‘Change Your Brain Change Your Pain’ (2010) and several self-help CD’s based on EMDR. His work has been cited in the New York Times. Mark has over 20 years’ experience in the treatment of stress trauma and pain.
Media Contact:
Mark Grant
markgra@ozemail.com.au
+61 0402 122 173
SUMMARY
According to the first published scientific report of a mobile app being used to successfully control chronic pain a sufferer diagnosed with Carpal Tunnel Syndrome was able to use the “Anxiety Release Based On EMDR” mobile app to control her pain and avoid surgery.
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