Lessons from a chronic pain management program

Last week I was sitting in my bed around midnight writing a letter to commemorate the conclusion of my participation in an intensive extended-length physical rehabilitation program at Spaulding Rehabilitation Network tailored specifically for people with chronic pain in the greater Boston area. I had first read about the program in an article in the Boston Globe, and was immediately interested in trying it out. I had tried shorter rounds of physical therapy (once-a-week sessions at only 30 minutes each) several times in the year prior with no improvement. In fact, much of the time I felt worse afterwards. As such, I wanted to engage in a more thorough program that would not just prescribe blanket regimens, but would consider my individual needs according to my particular diagnoses. Additionally, I wanted to better understand the biology and neuroscience behind pain so that I could manage it better, or at least make peace with it. After attending several exams and assessments in order to gain entrance to the program, I had to wait five months until my name came up on the waiting list. Once admitted, I went every Monday and Wednesday for the entire day. It was like a kind of summer camp for adult spoonies. Each day would start out with strengthening, stretching, and cardio exercises, followed by group classes where we discussed our goals for improvement and many other related themes. We also had t’ai chi and yoga interspersed with individual appointments with a personally-as...
Source: Harvard Health Blog - Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Tags: Back Pain Health Managing your health care Neurological conditions Pain Management Source Type: blogs