Lessons from a Chronic Pain and Depression Sufferer:Healthcare Must Prioritize Patients’ Mental Health
Caring for patients as whole human beings requires meeting their often-overlooked mental health needs, too. For years, I was one of 17 million Americans who suffered with high impact chronic pain (HICP) so severe that even basic daily activities became unmanageable. HICP is a subcategory of chronic pain that significantly diminishes a person’s ability to function including their ability to work, socialize, and even take care of themselves. In the middle of a successful career, first as an attorney and then as a human resources consultant, I eventually needed to raise the white flag, leave work, and apply for disability.
My debilitating and demoralizing journey with chronic pain has included:
Four failed back surgeries in eight years including a double fusion and surgical insertion of a spinal cord stimulator into my spine
Many years of opioid use and dependence which caused severe GI issues
Chronic debilitating migraines including one that mimicked a stroke and hospitalized me for nearly a week
Multiple mental health issues including depression, anxiety, and post traumatic stress disorder
I did everything Western medicine prescribed – and then some. My pain and depression only worsened. Over the last two and a half years, I have been on a remarkable journey of healing and hope. The turning point came when I discovered a relatively new branch of pain management based on the brain’s neuroplasticity, Pain Reprocessing Therapy (PRT) which leverages the mind-body connection and the ability to “rewire your brain” to reduce pain and help heal a number of other health issues.
Neuroplasticity is the brain’s ability to change and adapt due to experience and new information. While currently taught in only approximately 5% of medical schools, the tools I’ve learned through PRT have given me my life back.
Key techniques from PRT include:
Understanding how pain signals are generated in the brain
Learning the role that fear plays in exacerbating pain
Discovering techniques to calm my nervous system so that it stops sending alarm signals that manifest as pain
I have had literally hundreds of interactions with clinical and non-clinical staff in many different healthcare settings for my health issues including those listed above. I was also diagnosed with breast cancer twice by the age of 42. In my experience, there’s a notable and highly detrimental absence of mental health resources for patients. Having those resources adds value when patients are at their very best. Having those resources is essential when patients are at their worst, feeling weak, vulnerable, and oftentimes invisible.
If you are struggling with chronic pain, please check out the PXEmpower Resource List.
