Therapy for Chronic Pain & Chronic Illness
My Approach to Therapy for Chronic Pain & Illness
As someone who has a chronic autoimmune disease and lives with chronic pain (ankylosing spondylitis and fibromyalgia if you’re curious), I have a deep understanding of the struggles that come with living with chronic pain. We have a unique way of living in the world and a different relationship with our bodies that some abled bodied people may not fully understand. I certainly don’t believe that ‘this is all in your head’, but that is where our brain is which sends us pain signals and causes all of our distressing thoughts and feelings. There is a combination of grief, anxiety, internalized ableism, guilt, loneliness, depression, betrayal trauma, medical trauma, fatigue, post exertion malaise- and so much more that can occur in a variety of ways. Just like a pain flare, they can even crop up unexpectedly when everything was fine the day before. If you have a chronic health condition, we can work through those hard feelings and the emotional pain together.
These sessions are 53 minutes long, and in them I like to use a blend of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, Existential Therapy, Feminist Therapy, and Person Centered Therapy. I will use Cognitive Behavioral Therapy occasionally, but I personally find it to be a bit invalidating for chronic pain if used incorrectly or too much.
Frequently Asked Questions
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Yes! Therapy can help with the emotional aspects of chronic pain. Will it magically take all the pain away and cure you of all ailments and diseases? No. Can it take away some of the emotional heaviness like grief, disappointment, frustration, and sadness related to being in pain and illness all the time so it doesn’t hurt like it did before? Yes it can. We can process the the emotional pain, existential grief, and/or trauma that living with these conditions can cause.
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It’s grief of the loss of something intangible. Grief isn’t only felt when a loved one dies. Grief can occur due to any loss. With chronic pain or illness, it often comes in the form of grieving the potential life that was lost, or could have been, if the pain or illness didn’t happen. That ‘what if…’ can be very heavy and triggered by different aspects of life.
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Ableism is one of the most overlooked ‘isms’ in our society. It’s the thoughts, beliefs, assumptions, and/or privileges that people think they should be able to do, take for granted they can do, or are resistant to having to do because of what they think their body should do on its own. It can be seen in a variety of ways, like not wanting to take medication that can help, be resistant to any accommodations that may be needed, judge themselves, or be judged by others, for having to ‘overthink’, and more.
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You can schedule a free consultation so that we can make sure I’m the best fit for your therapy needs, or if I know someone that may be a better fit. You can also send me a message if you have questions before scheduling a consultation.
Let’s Work Together
If none of the consultation times available work for your schedule, that’s okay. Please fill out this form and we can find a time to meet that works for both of us.