Why focus on pain management (rehabilitation)? Response to comments

My response to comments is that at this time self-efficacy (confidence you can do things despite your pain) is really low. Self-efficacy, like love, isn’t a finite resource though, although the energy required to keep on coping (balancing all the multiple demands that persistent pain has on you) can exceed current capacity. Both self-efficacy and energy are renewable resources and change over time. Love expands as we add to it. Self-efficacy increases as we have more successes. Energy renews as we find ways to fill our buckets up faster than the holes leak it out. This post was written for health professionals, health professionals who may be inadvertently undermining what little self-efficacy an individual has by promoting a focus on what they do, rather than on what the person is using to deal with their situation. Health professionals who may well be told they must record pain intensity before and after Every. Single. Treatment. Who may not recognise just how much effort it has taken for a person to come in for a session – especially when feeling guilty or ashamed that “homework” hasn’t been achievable. I think pain heroes do need to be celebrated. All we hear about in the media are people suffering, wanting techno-fixes and ways to get rid of their pain without recognising that for many people pain reduction just is not possible. For those who are able to live well, why not applaud their efforts – I’m not talking about their ability to get rid of their...
Source: HealthSkills Weblog - Category: Anesthesiology Authors: Tags: Uncategorized Source Type: blogs