Living with Persistent Pain? I’ve Made a Workbook for You

I remember asking a client if her pain could speak what would it tell her right now? She said: “I’m winning” and when I asked her what her reply was, she said: “I’m not going to let you.”And that short exercise was a catalyst for her to get outside every day for the next week.

I asked a client; who happened to be an artist, if she could draw her pain what would it look like? She created a very cool image of herself with a spiky, scribbly foot. She also attached strings to the picture, to show that her pain went beyond her body's boundaries. From here I set her an imagery training exercise of visualising the strings shrinking, softening and cooling whenever she applied her TENS to the neuropathic foot. After one week, she felt the pain in her foot a few times a day. After three weeks, it was once a day. After two months she felt a spasm once a week.

I remember taking a long walk with someone and chatting to them exclusively about their stress. We made a huge list of their stress signs. We broke these down into categories. We concluded that some stress was OK but if they ticked four boxes from each group then that was a sign that a pain flare was coming.    

And that is how the pain coaching workbook came about. Over the years I have tried a range of different exercises with a variety of people to help their pain. The ones that helped - I used with other people.

I also have a system. We start with you telling me your pain story and deciding on your functional goals. We move on to assessing the health fundamentals - sleep, stress, nutrition etc. We then investigate your triggers and glimmers. Then we create a flare plan together. Lastly, we create a personalised meditation. This process takes from a month to six weeks - because persistent pain is complex and there are no quick fixes. My workbook takes you through these steps.

It includes some extras too. I love mnemonics and I often remind people of this one as a way to deal with a new diagnosis or health concern. For a more detailed explanation take a look here

Or when someone is catastrophising I’ll talk them through this one 👇🏽 which is explained further here

My coaching is practical and compassionate - so is my workbook. It is available from amazon now and is shaped by the people I’ve worked with over the years. I hope that it can help you too. ❤️