How the words we use can limit our ability to heal
We are the story we tell ourselves. I’m not sure where I heard that but it really rung true for me. We are the story we tell ourselves, we are the words we use to describe ourselves, our lives. So why...
View ArticleThe power of language in chronic pain; “it’s all in your head”
Forgive me if this post is pretty similar to the last one (and a bit of a rant) but I’m all fired up right now after seeing another headline on social media that read “Pain: It’s all in your head”....
View ArticleThe power of language in body image
I’ve been talking about language a lot lately, mostly in regards to pain and wellness and such, but it’s important in all aspects of our lives. One such area that I’ve been thinking about and talking...
View ArticlePain doesn’t always equal injury: Thoughts on acute and chronic pain
There are a number of things I’ve been wanting to write about but I always have trouble knowing where to start (I have a tendency to want to give you guys EVERYTHING ALL AT ONCE). So I’m going to start...
View ArticleIt’s ok to talk about chronic pain
After my flare at the end of last year (which I talk about a bit here), and the months of getting through it, I started reading a book on pain called Pain: The Science of Suffering, by Patrick Wall,...
View ArticleFocusing on the whole of us, not just our pain: initial thoughts from the San...
This past weekend I attended the first annual San Diego Pain Summit and I can’t even begin to put into a cohesive string of words all that I am thinking, nor can I come close to formulating into a...
View ArticleFear of movement and persistent pain
I recently wrote about how my thoughts on movement have changed over the past couple of years (part 1 and 2), and I thought I’d delve a bit more into the evolution of those thoughts and why I posted...
View ArticleAcceptance: It doesn’t mean giving up or giving in
At some point along the way in writing this blog and trying to figure out this whole chronic pain thing, I went from learning about and understanding more about the science of pain to actually living...
View ArticleMovement Variability and Changing Pain
This post is both stand-alone as well as a part 3 from my ‘Expanding Our World, Expanding Our Movement’ series (Interested? Here’s part 1 and part 2). It revisits and reinforces some of what has been...
View ArticleNudging Pain: Movement Variability and Expanding our World
In my last post I talked about movement variability and how important it is for folks trying to change their pain, or just live more healthfully and resiliently in general, and in this post, I want to...
View ArticleSuccessful living: redefining living with chronic pain
I would like to make a plea. A plea to stop framing pain as the enemy, a thing to be battled, defeated, beat, eradicated. A thing not to be tolerated, to be vilified and stamped out. Perhaps our...
View ArticleTrying to get better while having to prove we’re in pain
How do we get better if we have to constantly prove we’re in pain? And does that constant need to prove we’re in pain prevent us from getting better? In recent posts I wrote about the shame I felt...
View ArticleRelax! Running, pain and my CFT experience
In the last week I’ve gone on 2 runs. This is a big deal for me! I love running. Running has been one of the things I’ve missed most these last 7 years. I’ve given it a go a few times, and was quite...
View ArticleTell me your story: the power of dialogue
I’ve been thinking about this a lot in the last few weeks. Thinking about it ever since Peter O’Sullivan asked me to tell him my story when I was a patient demo during his Cognitive Functional Therapy...
View ArticleOur shared humanity, grief, why I’ve been away, and some musings on pain,...
I promised a post on the major turning points in my pain experience at the beginning of the year. Then life, and death, happened and it was put on hold. Those posts (there are two, reflecting two major...
View ArticleHealing and curing ~ reflecting on the words of Rachel Naomi Remen
Some recent discussions have led me to ponder the differences between healing and curing. My dear friend Amy Thompson shared this interview with Rachel Naomi Remen that talks about just that. "...we...
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