Chronic pain disrupts almost every aspect of your life. Most become socially isolated, which leaves more time to think about the pain and reinforce the pathways. Many patients report that re-connecting with friends and family is an important facet of their healing. Reassembling your life can be challenging. Creating a structure and developing organizational skills are necessary.
Step 1 – Commit to a Daily Practice
The strategies outlined in this web site will stimulate structural changes in your brain. The term for this process is “neuroplasticity”. That is why repetition is key and you will develop behavioral patterns, which will enable you to live a more enjoyable life – regardless of the stresses.
Step 2 – Create a Safe Haven – Family
Your family is the most important source of support. Yet when you are in pain your frustration levels frequently boil over and you are no longer a picture of peace and joy. It is easy to direct your anger towards them. You cannot do that regardless of the circumstances. Treating your family well is your highest priority.
Step 3—Get Organized
You cannot move foward with a plan without organizational skills. No one is inherently organized. It is a learned skill that improves with practice. Dealing with the added problems of pain makes this step even more important.
Step 4 – Connect with the Life You Want
The stages of the DOC process are intended to create a major shift in your central nervous system to pathways that are more functional and enjoyable. The disruptive circuits are permanent and can always be triggered. With time and practice the triggers will be set off less often. More importantly when your brain is occupied living a full rich life you won’t be thinking about your pain and feeling sorry for yourself. Play
A major step is to reconnect with the best part of your past life. Those memories are also permanently imbedded. Using a combination of meditation and visualization those pathways can be “reawakened.”
Step 5 – Create Your Vision
Look living your life in terms of running a business. Any successful enterprise has a vision and a specific plan to implement it. There is little mercy in life regarding taking care of yourself. Make your plan and execute it.
RESOURCES
- Getting Things Done by David Allen
- Parent Effectiveness Training by Thomas Gordon, M.D.
- The Pain Antidote by Mel Pohl
- Personal growth organizations emphasizing somatic work.