A clinical program of Energize Occupational Therapy Services
Get Back to Life Despite Pain
No one can promise that pain will disappear. I can help clients work toward greater understanding, choice and participation—and toward a life that feels more manageable and meaningful, even if pain remains.
ChronicPain OT offers individualized occupational therapy to help you understand your patterns, respond to your body’s signals and develop practical strategies for everyday life.
SERVICES
A Toolbox Built Around You
People living with chronic pain are often given individual pieces of advice: pace yourself, take breaks, exercise, relax, move more or improve your posture. Each of these approaches can be helpful, but no single technique addresses every person’s needs.
Pain and fatigue can be influenced by the interaction among the body, nervous system, thoughts, activities, routines and environment. I work with clients to understand their individual patterns and identify which tools may be useful for them.
Depending on the individual’s needs, our work together may include:
-
developing interoceptive awareness—the ability to notice, distinguish and understand signals arising from within the body;
-
identifying personal pain, fatigue and energy patterns;
-
using cognitive approaches to examine expectations, habits and interpretations of symptoms;
-
rebuilding confidence in movement when pain or fear of reinjury has led to avoidance;
-
comparing what the person expects will happen with what their body actually experiences;
-
reducing unnecessary muscular effort through relaxation, positioning and physical support;
-
balancing "Active-Working" with "Working-Recovery": adjusting effort or support so recovery can begin while the person continues to participate;
-
adapting activities, routines and environments to make everyday life more manageable.
Some people do not notice increasing tension, effort, fatigue or pain until their symptoms have already become severe. Others notice a sensation but have difficulty understanding what it means or deciding how to respond. An early warning sign may even be an apparently ordinary change in movement or posture that only becomes meaningful when recognized as part of that person’s individual pattern.
Not every client needs every tool. At ChronicPain OT, part of the intervention is determining which approaches fit the person, their condition, their goals and the activities that matter to them.
Resources for Learning
Your Pain Is Real
My approach does not dismiss symptoms or suggest that pain is “all in your head.” I integrate current pain neuroscience by considering what may be happening at the tissue and nervous-system levels, as well as how thoughts, activity patterns, habits and environments may affect the person’s experience.
The goal is not simply to do less or avoid every increase in pain. It is to help people notice and interpret their body’s signals more clearly, test strategies safely and make more informed choices about how they use their energy, manage symptoms and participate in meaningful activities.