Understanding Persisting Pain And the Journey to Wellbeing & Recovery

Let’s dive in straight away.

The first step to wellbeing & recovery is most often gaining an up-to-date basic understanding of pain science…

All pain is generated by the brain and we now know that pain can also be generated without any physical cause such as an injury or a disease process in the body.

And in the case of persisting pain lasting beyond 3 months (historically referred to as chronic pain), pain without physical cause has been shown to possibly be occurring in 88 - 95% of cases. (Schubiner et al 2024).

This form of pain is now more accurately being termed neuroplastic pain and is estimated to be occurring in 1 in 3 people in our Western culture – that’s around 23 million people in the UK alone.

The Launch to Recovery

Knowing this small part of pain science knowledge is very often the crux to finally launching a journey to actual recovery from persistent pain – a journey that is still possible even if pain has been present and severe for many years.

Understanding and accepting this vital piece of neuroscience, changes the meaning behind the pain that someone experiences.

Establishing Reassurance

So, once injury, infection, tumour or an autoimmune process have been cleared by a qualified health professional, this knowledge removes the misperception of danger happening in the body-part that hurts, and instead allows in an understanding that the body-part is most likely intact, strong and safe.

Accepting this is a vital initial step in the journey to wellbeing & recovery – and is something we address early on in the Freedom From Pain online programme.

The Role of Emotions & Pain

One of the first common questions to then arise is, if there’s no injury or disease process, why is the pain there?

Similar to the common sensation of butterflies in our stomach prior to a demanding work presentation or job interview, our brain can also generate tension & even the sensation of pain due to rising uncomfortable emotions & fear.

Our brain usually learns, often from childhood experiences, that particular emotions are unwanted. This is because, once upon at time, those emotions posed a threat to our acceptance within our family, school, community, culture or peer group, eg boys mustn’t cry because it shows weakness, or girls mustn’t show anger because it’s not nice. And not being accepted as a child can feel very isolating & like a deep sense of threat to our actual survival.

As this pattern of thought & emotion sets in, whenever stressful life situations stimulate these same emotions, the brain in its self-protection mode may immediately & repeatedly repress & bury the emotion, unexpressed & unprocessed, into the subconscious. We don’t necessarily realise this is happening, as it's often out of our conscious awareness.

Accumulation

Over time, with an ongoing accumulation of repeatedly buried emotions as we move through the rich experiences of life, the brain in its protection mode, may continue to prevent & distract us from feeling those unwanted / unacceptable emotions by generating bodily pain instead.

Mind chatter

When pain arises, it is habitual in our culture to believe (mostly misguidedly) that there must be something wrong or injured in the body-part that has begun to hurt. We look back for something physical to explain the pain:

For example:

      i.         “It must have been when I lifted those boxes yesterday.”

    ii.         “It must have been how I slept last night.”

   iii.         “It must be the position my arms are in at the PC at work.”

   iv.         “It must have been the paddle boarding the other day.”

We don’t consider the challenging emotional aspect / psychological stress that had been building & the thoughts & emotions that were happening at the time. For example:

      i.         “I haven’t got time to find what I need in these boxes. It’s really not my job. It’s Sandra’s.”

    ii.         “I really can’t face another day like yesterday. Mum has been such a challenge recently. And how can I support her, whilst supporting two teenagers studying for their important exams, keep the house going AND fulfil all that I need to at work with that vital presentation I have to prepare for next week.”

   iii.         “Sarah, my boss, is such a school mistress and unsmiling. I feel she’s judging me all the time. I can’t think clearly when she’s around.”

   iv.         “I didn’t like the paddle boarding. I was slow, despite trying my best, and the others just left me behind, so it wasn’t the "family activity" it was supposed to be. They obviously don’t really care and just need me around to cook the meals.”

These are not uncommon examples of thoughts that whizz through our minds. They may become the final straw in a piling up of our perspectives on our current life, layered on top of repeated emotional repression in the past.

The brain protects

In an attempt to protect us from feeling our stress & emotional trauma, our brain may generate pain in a body-part to help protect or distract us from the sensations of the stress & emotion.

We then believe (misguidedly) we are physically injured. And, to add to this, many of us have heard or witnessed the frightening stories of others who’ve never recovered from a similar pain (because they too have not understood this deep mindbody connection & not known how to recover).

Understandably our fear levels rise, which stimulates our fight & flight response which fuels the pain, leading to more fear… and the pain cycle begins & perpetuates.

Recovery is Possible

Thankfully, once we learn, understand & accept this very relevant piece of modern pain science and develop our curiosity & awareness of what possibly may be the real root cause of our persisting symptoms, we can then learn the newer, evidence-based ways to empower recovery.

We can learn to calm our fears, release past emotional turmoil from our system, settle the fight, flight & freeze response, and fill ourselves with health promoting - & brain “rewiring” - thoughts, habits & behaviours.

Freedom From Pain programme

The science, these strategies & more are all taught, practised and customised into each client’s everyday life in my online live & interactive Freedom From Pain programme - to empower their future, free from the chains of persisting / neuroplastic pain.

To find out more, please go to https://www.catherinepollitt.co.uk/freedom-from-pain.

Your Recovery Awaits!

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