I have a patient who is a muscular 43 y/o welder. He injured his back on the job about four years ago. After undergoing a laminectomy for low back pain, his pain actually increased. When I first saw him a couple of years ago, his complaint was unrelenting low back … Read More
The culture of medicine is immersed in high standards, ideals, and perfections. Society demands perfection from physicians. It is manifested in many ways. The legal system, hospital staff privileging, no mercy for personal mental health issues, harsh criticism from our mentors. Consequently, as others judge us, we are idealistic regarding … Read More
In the beginning of the DOC Project, the only resource that I had for my patients to deal with the stress of pain was the Feeling Good book. I discovered that patients would often notice significant improvements in their pain and mood within a few weeks. Historically, I could not … Read More
I love golf. I love the social aspect of it. I love to hit a great golf shot. There is nothing quite like hitting the “sweet spot” and feeling the ball take off like a rocket. The problem is that I don’t get to experience that sensation very often. I … Read More
Debbie was a 45 y/o woman who I had been working with for about four years. She was diagnosed with a severe bipolar disorder at age twelve. Unsuccessful Surgeries About 10 years ago, she had a lifting injury at work and developed chronic low back pain. Over a series of … Read More
When a basic human need such as air, food, or water is not met, we experience a deep feeling of anxiety. We then take directed action to meet the need, which allays our anxiety. When the ability to meet our basic needs is taken from us, our anxiety escalates to … Read More
There are over 2200 research papers that document that expressive writing in some form is effective for improving both your mental and physical health. I have been adamant for a long time that you should write down just negative thoughts – not positive ones. That has also been … Read More
It is critical to understand how deeply negative anxiety-producing thoughts are etched into your nervous system. A 1987 Harvard experiment (1) documented that when you suppress unpleasant thoughts, they become more powerful. Unfortunately, they documented a trampoline effect in that they become much stronger. Thought suppression Disturbing thoughts are universal. When … Read More
It’s important for you to understand how powerfully and quickly pain circuits are embedded into the nervous system. It’s accomplished in the same way one learns anything—by repetition. Pain impulses flood your brain much faster than and athlete, artist or muscian a learned skill of an athlese more numerous than … Read More
The danger of falling into the “abyss” is that it makes chronic pain patients more vulnerable to the suggestion of surgery, which is often unnecessary. Along with the possibility of surgery comes the risk of catastrophe. Here are a few examples. The cases of these patients are not unusual. A … Read More