One thing I love about my job is meeting people. Resolving Chronic Pain attracts some truly wonderful individuals - many have endured pain for a long time, most have seen numerous other health practitioners, and all have experienced a sense of despair at times in their pursuit of pain relief. Some of you have told me how much you appreciate hearing the stories of others’ recovery – with their permission and without their real names or pictures – so here is one I want to share.
Isabella had lived with chronic back pain, abdominal pain and fatigue for years. She and her husband had wanted to start a family relatively early in their marriage, but when I first met her this had not yet happened. It wasn’t even her first priority any more, as she had taken so much time off work because of her chronic pain she was worried about her job security and was finding it harder and harder to focus on anything but her pain and fatigue.
Isabella was looking for a solution to her pain. She believed it was caused by a structural problem, which was exhausting her and causing her fatigue. The first step was to address the pain with simple movement patterns which restored Isabella’s confidence in her body. Soon she was moving without pain even though it was still lurking and could flare up at times. This ability to move with relative ease gave Isabella a sense of control, a real impression of progress and hope. From the start we also talked about Resolving Chronic Pain being a two-pronged approach, involving body and mind. We started with movement, while recognising the importance of how the brain perceives pain.
Over time Isabella identified many stressful factors in her lifestyle and difficulties in her childhood. Despite her poor attendance record at work she planned a period of extended leave to go home to South America. This was the catalyst - away from work the pain diminished, only flaring a couple of times in direct response to reminiscent childhood stresses. The importance part stress plays in her chronic pain now made perfect sense to Isabella. Upon her return she worked her notice while planning a new career, including work experience and course interviews for relevant qualifications.
Throughout her career transition her pain would occasionally flare up as she managed the stress of limited finances, academic deadlines and baby-related anxiety. As a couple her and her husband decided that IVF was not an option, and alternatives were time consuming and uncertain. Isabella qualified and started her new career last year. In her words she felt recognised, her contribution was valued and her once over-active stress response settled down. Sometime later, she became pregnant. Her son was safely delivered last month, and today Isabella is happy and pain free, with a new and more welcome kind of exhaustion.