Photo of Susan Mellon, Marriage & Family Therapist Associate in Austin, TX
Susan Mellon
Marriage & Family Therapist Associate, MFT
Verified Verified
Austin, TX 78723  (Online Only)
Do you feel stuck but can't quite put your finger on what is is or where to go from here? Are you looking for extra support and guidance through a challenging situation or you just feel like there's something missing and you can't quite put your finger on it? Are you a new Mom or a single Mom that feels alone and isolated? Are you just going through the motions in your relationship and want to get back to or maybe for the first time experience true authentic openness and connection? Sound familiar? If you want to change, reach out to me.
Do you feel stuck but can't quite put your finger on what is is or where to go from here? Are you looking for extra support and guidance through a challenging situation or you just feel like there's something missing and you can't quite put your finger on it? Are you a new Mom or a single Mom that feels alone and isolated? Are you just going through the motions in your relationship and want to get back to or maybe for the first time experience true authentic openness and connection? Sound familiar? If you want to change, reach out to me.
(512) 298-1856 View (512) 298-1856

Online Therapists

Photo of Tony Vitela, LCSW, SAP, Clinical Social Work/Therapist in Austin, TX
Tony Vitela, LCSW, SAP
Clinical Social Work/Therapist, LCSW, SAP
Verified Verified
Wimberley, TX 78676
Licensed since 1993 and in private practice since 1999. Previous work-related experience includes working at a residential treatment center, youth shelter, juvenile detention center, chemical dependency unit, adolescent and adult in-patient hospital, Employee Assistance Program, crisis intervention, in-take assessments, and intensive out-patient programming. Over the past two decades, I have served individuals, couples, families, children, adolescents, adults, and the elderly. I am a certified and approved DOT Substance Abuse Professional.
Licensed since 1993 and in private practice since 1999. Previous work-related experience includes working at a residential treatment center, youth shelter, juvenile detention center, chemical dependency unit, adolescent and adult in-patient hospital, Employee Assistance Program, crisis intervention, in-take assessments, and intensive out-patient programming. Over the past two decades, I have served individuals, couples, families, children, adolescents, adults, and the elderly. I am a certified and approved DOT Substance Abuse Professional.
(210) 941-2132 View (210) 941-2132
Chronic Pain Therapists

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.