This group is designed for adults 18+ diagnosed with a chronic medical condition (i.e., autoimmune disorders, chronic pain, heart disease, kidney disease, etc.). Living with a chronic medical condition can be challenging. In attending this group, members join others who live each day with similar challenges and share their story. Together, they learn positive coping strategies, discover what makes them great, define a new sense of purpose, and learn to celebrate each day.
Hosted by Jennifer C Moore
Clinical Social Work/Therapist, MSW, LCSW
Verified Verified
Group meets in Las Vegas, NV 89128
There are times in our lives when we feel stuck, sometimes hopeless. We face problems in living that seem impossible to overcome. Sometimes these problems are internal struggles within ourselves. Other times, these problems are interpersonal struggles with others such as our spouses or significant others, our children, and other loved ones. Whatever the presenting issue may be, my goal is to assist you in finding hope and confidence within yourself to choose and apply positive, effective solutions to the problems that lie in your path.
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Chronic Pain Support Groups
How does chronic pain therapy work?
Engaging with a psychotherapist to help treat chronic pain does not mean that one’s pain is all in their head. Therapy for chronic-pain patients has been shown to benefit both the mind and the body, targeting physical symptoms and increasing daily functioning. In other words, for many, addressing their emotional health through therapy affects their physical health. A therapist can help a client challenge unhelpful thoughts about pain and develop new ways to respond to it, such as distraction or calming breathing techniques. Studies have found that therapy can be as effective as surgery for certain cases of chronic pain and many doctors recommend trying psychotherapy in advance of considering invasive surgery.
What are the most effective treatment options for chronic pain?
Stress, anxiety, depression, catastrophizing, ruminating, lack of activity, and social withdrawal all make chronic pain worse. Addressing these issues, research shows, can help people gain control over their pain symptoms. Therapeutic approaches such as cognitive behavioral therapy, biofeedback, and mindfulness-based stress reduction, along with greater pain-management education, have been found to help people reduce fear and disability.
Are there new treatments for chronic pain?
Many cases of chronic pain, particularly those involving back pain, remain medically unexplained. But there is evidence that changes in the brain or nervous system are caused by previous physical ailments such as tissue damage; in such cases, the brain may continue to send out pain signals despite the physical cause having healed. To aid patients under these circumstances, a recently developed treatment known as pain reprocessing therapy (PRT) is designed to help the brain “unlearn” this response. A PRT practitioner helps individuals to reduce the “threat value” of their ongoing pain signals until they can reappraise them as less threatening and fear-inducing. They also help an individual to develop new emotional regulation skills.
How long does therapy for chronic pain take?
There is no set timeline for recovery from chronic pain, especially as there may be a range of physical and psychological causes for any individual’s discomfort, but most patients should expect to see a therapist for a number of weeks or months, typically spanning at least 12 sessions. Studies of pain reprocessing therapy found that many individuals’ experience of pain lessened in eight sessions over four weeks.