I have my doubts that this is true…
I have had back pain since 2020. It seems related to an old injury that came back with a vengeance during the pandemic. We were all suffering from Covid and Americans were getting angrier and more polarized than ever ! stress! stress! stress!
I am also mother to an almost middle aged guy on the autism spectrum whose personal failures/PTSD and his malfunctioning brain made him mentally ill. He spent 2 pandemic years not leaving our house or yard.
Stress and Auto-immune Disorders
Although not diagnosed, I believe that I developed fibromyalgia over the past 3 years. This is one of many stress-related, auto-immune disorders (like arthritis) that causes pain. Diagnosis is made by ruling out other diagnoses, so I haven’t put effort into getting one.
Since Covid restrictions eased in 2021 I have seen 3 physical therapists, 2 massage therapists, 1 acupuncturist, 1 myofascial release therapist ( MFR) and two chiropractors. Oh… and adding to all the stress – my family sold a house that we lived in for over 25 years, relocated to a new home an hour away. During the pandemic I tried a psychotherapist on zoom who after a month had to leave her practice because her health insurance went up… so I quit that, which was fine because having commitments to show up at appointments also cause stress.
The Pain Clinic….
I went for my first visit at a pain clinic a few weeks ago. I walked away with a medication suggestion (see bottom of post) , prescription for a pelvic floor PT, an appt. to get an injection that is supposed to relax muscles to decrease pain. I think… they didn’t really explain that one well… and a flier telling me to talk to a pain therapist…
This is what the doctor and flier were pushing:
Pain Reprocessing Therapy: a New Path to Relief
What are alternative pain management techniques & how can you access them?
https://www.lin.health/insights/pain-reprocessing-therapy-a-new-path-to-relief
The link above makes many claims…. and it sounds like a miracle cure for the gullible. Its talk therapy by someone, perhaps an occupational therapist who took a course on
1. how to be a non-judgemental listener
2. teach basic relaxation techniques that you can easily google and learn without involving your insurance company… hint: take slow deep breaths…
3. Reduce stress such as leaving a stressful career or taking up yoga. There is no mention on what to do if you are financially insecure, lack health insurance or have a mentally ill son who depends on you for his survival.
I think that talk therapy can be very valuable… but it shouldn’t be branded as
“new” or given a fancy name- like “Pain Reprocessing Therapy”. The convenience of this at home, zoom provided therapy during the pandemic and nation confronting an abundance of people in pain and shortage of therapists…. seems too good to be true…
Maybe it is too good to be true…
I think that its cool that my brain has neuroplasticity. That’s why I was drawn to occupational therapy and in particular treating people with sensory processing disorders. But I don’t understand how talking about my pain will harness this. I don’t buy that pain often occurs in bodies that are 100% healthy. I don’t know what that means exactly because if I have pain, then something in my nervous system is not functioning correctly and therefore, I am not 100% healthy.
I actually spoke to a woman with a very young voice who called to make an appointment. She was unable to answer these questions… “How does this work? What exactly happens during therapy that decreases pain and how can a therapist treat my physical problems without touching my body?
OK, I am a sensory- biased occupation therapist who believe in deep pressure touch and movement in attempts to treat physical and mental disorders…
So that was that….
Here is the medication that the pain clinic doctor recommended. Its over the counter.
So far, it has been helpful…. It’s made of hot peppers and actually creates this hot, burning sensation and at the same time is reducing pain.
…or maybe its all in my head and its a great placebo!!!
