Chronic Pain and Trauma

Please note we are not medical doctors, pharmacists, registered dieticians, or clinical therapists. We cannot diagnose or prescribe. Please be sure to consult with your medical providers. We follow HIPAA.

Chronic pain is a multifaceted experience involving your physical, spiritual, social, and emotional aspects of your life. Chronic pain and trauma are often two sides of the same coin. Trauma can lead to chronic pain, and chronic pain can lead to further trauma. (Let’s face it, chronic pain can be traumatic in and of itself.) Then this can lead to isolation, estrangement, or ostracization.

There are often few places to turn for support. Those who care often do not understand the intertwined nature of what you are going through. Many chronic pain sufferers have lost social support. Medical professionals sometimes suggest treatments more appropriate for acute than chronic pain when a different approach is needed.

You need support from someone who has traveled similar paths.

I have a history of overlapping kinds of trauma. I also have a past history of migraines (5 days a week for months on end), fibromyalgia, trigeminal neuralgia, and extremely hypermobile joints. This was exacerbated by frequent military moves. Social support was a frequent struggle as we’d try to meet people in new places. On every move I would have to start all over with new doctors who didn’t know me and would want to start at the beginning. (At one point we had 4 addresses spread across 2 countries in 3 years.)

If any of these struggles sound familiar, I know what it is like!

Through the grace of God, peace is possible.

Slow but deep healing is possible. You can find healing.

But what is healing? Healing is like floating down a river. The flow and journey from a worse to a better place are what matter. This is an example of the classic saying: it is the journey, not the destination!

FAQS

Acute pain and chronic pain are not the same.
In chronic pain, the pattern of brain activity, the “neurotag”, grows much larger and involves many more regions of the brain than for acute pain.
Acute pain and chronic pain require different treatments and approaches.
Pain is multifaceted. The biopsychosocial model for pain is the most widely used model to understand pain today.
The brain can be “rewired” to reduce chronic pain. This is called neuroplasticity.
79% of chronic pain sufferers said they are stigmatized because of their pain. (See here.)
Loss of social support is one of the most significant impacts of chronic pain. And it feeds the cycle.
24% felt they they rarely or never felt validated by their medical care provider.(See here.)
It is estimated that 10% of chronic pain patients misuse prescription opioids. (Pain Coach Academy)
Opioids are not appropriate for chronic pain. (Pain Coach Academy)
19% of chronic pain sufferers use cannabis. (See here.)
50% of chronic pain sufferers smoke tobacco.
The amount of pain does not directly relate to the amount of tissue damage.
A history of abuse is the leading cause of fibromyalgia. (See here.)

Myths