I don’t recall much about learning how to ride a bicycle. I remember the training wheels and taking a few nasty falls. I do know that my father wasn’t there to help me or witness it. He was a small town family doctor who routinely worked over a hundred hours … Read More
Mental Health Every injured worker should have access to some level of mental health support. I work with a veteran pain psychologist who is wonderful. 90% of her practice is caring for my patients. If she feels it is necessary, she will refer a patient to one of several psychiatrists … Read More
A few weeks ago, I sent the roundtable a short article I put together called “Ability and Motivation.” These are the two key ingredients necessary to create true change. My point was that the current state of the worker’s comp system destroys both of these attributes. The only logical choice … Read More
“It is not true that people stop pursuing dreams because they grow old. They grow old because they stop pursuing dreams.” Gabriel Garcia Marquez “It is not true that people stop pursuing dreams because they grow old. They stop pursing dreams when they are crushed by relentless anxiety… Gabriel Garcia Marquez … Read More
I was raised in a chaotic household. My mother was physically and emotionally abusive. It was confusing for me to feel like I had a mother who would do anything for her family and then, within seconds, watch her unpredictably fly into a rage lasting several days. From a young child’s … Read More
I was in clinic today and a new patient cancelled. I had the chance to spend some extra time with Lisa, a patient that I am just beginning to get to know. We had a long discussion about the DOCC Project. Although she was initially resistant to the DOCC Project, … Read More
Much, if not most, of what the DOC project presents about creating a central nervous shift is 180 degrees different than how most of us are taught to deal with our conscious mind. One of the most important paradoxes to understand is that you cannot fix your nervous system because … Read More
From my perspective, life in the worker’s comp system for my patients has never been more difficult. The improvement in overall numbers belies the daily struggles of my patients who are admittedly an unusual group. Many of them have been referred to me after “failed surgery” or have been in … Read More
I discuss how the DOCC Project model organizes all of the concepts of one’s pain into an understandable format and identifies certain tools that are variably to help one take back control of their life and overcome chronic pain. BF
Fixing the problems with the worker’s comp system is critical. However, the system is unwieldy and we are not going to change it anytime soon. We know extremely well what needs to happen to enable a worker to move smoothly through the system. One of my physiatrist colleagues felt so … Read More