Have you been suffering from pain for more than 3 months, or do you have the same pain coming back repeatedly? Is your pain preventing you from engaging in activities you love? Have you tried many treatments which give temporary ease but haven’t resolved the problem?

Neuroplastic pain and the mindbody approach

Chronic or persistent pain is pain that lasts beyond tissue healing time of around 3 months. Unfortunately, it is a common and growing problem, affecting around 1 in 5 people in the UK. Symptoms may have started after injury or surgery, or sometimes without a significant physical event, and often coinciding with a period of stress or life change. It can negatively impact all areas of life: work, sleep, mood, relationships and movement. Whatever the initial cause, the pain is real and living with it can be exhausting and frustrating. We want to reassure you that you are not alone, and there are now ways to better understand and resolve the underlying reasons for your pain.

When medical tests have ruled out a serious underlying condition, evidence suggests that a lot of chronic pain is not caused by structural tissue damage. Scans often show degenerative changes which can sound daunting, but research has shown that these changes can be normal age-related changes commonly found in people without pain as well.

The good news is that there is now a scientific explanation for how real symptoms in the body can occur in the absence of tissue damage or disease. This is termed neuroplastic pain, which describes a nervous system which has become hyper vigilant and sensitised to normal sensory and emotional inputs, interpreting them as dangerous, therefore triggering the pain alarm.

It is important to state that we understand that your symptoms are real, not ‘in your head’, not your fault and not psychological.

The mindbody approach is a whole-person treatment which offers new hope for improvement and even recovery from chronic symptoms. The aim is to support you in understanding your pain, calming your nervous system and rebuilding confidence in your body.

This video explains the science behind neuroplastic pain and includes people who have recovered:

· https://share.google/hg1Do4nJNtt1UivFz

Irralee Andrzejowska is an experienced physiotherapist who has trained with SIRPA: Stress Illness Recovery Practitioners Association (www.sirpa.org) which provides her with the expertise to assess and support clients with mindbody strategies on a recovery journey from chronic neuroplastic pain. The White House Clinic is delighted to be able to offer this cutting-edge treatment approach to their clients who are curious and ready to explore a different approach to their persistent pain.

Treatment options

· One hour neuroplastic pain assessment

· 1:1 one hour mindbody sessions at the Whitehouse

· 8 week small group program

What does treatment entail with this approach?

Mindbody treatment is individually tailored and delivered at a pace that feels right for you. Depending on your needs, treatment may include the following:

A detailed assessment of your symptoms, history, beliefs, current challenges and goals.
Education and information specific to your symptoms to address fear, confusion and uncertainty
Relaxation techniques to calm the physiological stress response which perpetuates pain and muscle tension
Pain reprocessing exercises to help the brain and body respond with safely to movement triggers
Support with stress reduction, including noticing patterns such as self-criticism, perfectionism, people pleasing, over-achieving and over-responsibility.
Emotional awareness and processing to explore and resolve how stress and emotions affect pain
Support with life balance including prioritising time for rest, fun, self-care and enjoyable activities.
Discovering self-empowerment helping you to connect with your values, express your needs and approach yourself with greater self-compassion.

Patient testimonial:

'I gained a deep understanding that my unwanted physical symptoms and behaviours made sense, and that my nervous system had all the time been working hard to protect me. I also recognised that this was no longer necessary, that I could interpret things in a different way, and release myself into a good life - as long as I continue to listen to my internal needs and messages. With the input from Irralee, this change of perspective happened quickly and was transformational. My thanks go to Irralee, who listened with empathy and understanding, and gave me appropriate tools and relevant reading prompts to guide me, which have helped me let go of limiting beliefs, and allowed me to thrive.'

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FAQs

Do you have a ‘mind body’ disorder?

At the White House Clinic our chronic pain specialist (Irralee Andrzejowska) recommends an initial 1-hour Physiotherapy Assessment to obtain a detailed history and physical examination to explore the cause of your symptoms, and to determine if this approach is suitable for your pain problem. From her findings, she will advise you of the most likely cause for the pain you are experiencing:

A. A structural problem: which will respond best to a course of manual therapy treatment

B. A suspected serious issue, for which she will refer you for further tests

C. A ‘mind body’ condition

We understand you may be sceptical because you may not have heard about this approach, but we want to reassure you that it is at the cutting edge of evidence-based pain treatment strategies, and we are delighted to provide this service for clients at the White House Clinic.

What types of pain respond to this treatment approach?

Any persistent pain that is not due to an inflammatory disorder, infection, or serious disease.

Examples include:

Back, neck, foot and buttock pain
Migraines and headaches
Joint pain from osteoarthritis
Tennis elbow
Frozen shoulder
Sciatica

What does treatment entail with this approach?

Treatment is tailor-made to your individual problem, and as chronic pain is complex, it requires a comprehensive approach to address all the pieces of the pain puzzle. Treatment with a 'mind body' approach typically includes:

EDUCATION: resources and accurate information based on up-to-date science to reduce fear, confusion and uncertainty about your symptoms, as fear fuels pain
RELAXATION: strategies to activate the relaxation response and switch off the chronic fight/flight/freeze state of your nervous system which causes pain and tension
MOVEMENT: exercises to rewire the pain pathways in response to physical triggers to retrain normal relaxed movement and return to the activities you love
STRESS REDUCTION: techniques to reduce the physiological reaction to stress including how to modify: a negative mindset, critical self-talk and stress-inducing personality traits such as perfectionism, people pleasing, over-responsibility and over-analysing
EMOTIONAL: emotional awareness and expression exercises to release repressed emotions in response to stress, which have been shown to cause pain and tension in the body
BALANCE: identifying and correcting any imbalance in your life which doesn’t prioritise time for rest, down-time, fun and self-care activities which are essential for well-being and soothing the nervous system.