Thanks for joining me for this episode. If you’ve been following along with each episode, you know that we often speak about the psychosocial variables that are effective for the management of chronic pain. Why do we spend so much time on this? Study after study confirms that psychological interventions alone are more importantly combined with interventions such as physical therapy are effective for the management of chronic pain. Theories and methods such as Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, Mindfulness-based Stress Reduction, mindfulness explained pain and pain-neuroscience education all have supporting evidence and are a part of a comprehensive program for the management in chronic pain. With many treatments to choose from, a wise clinician may ask, “Which one works best?” Perhaps a better question, “Which components that are embedded in these methods are most effective for the management of chronic pain?” There has been little research to answer these questions or guidance to help the clinician choose the most important components as they’re creating a plan of care for people living with pain.
Joining me to discuss the necessary components of psychological treatment in pain management is Professor Louise Sharpe. She is an expert in health psychology with a particular expertise in Cognitive Behavioral treatments for patients with chronic pain and physical illness. She’s particularly interested in the way in which people adjust to illness and the interventions that prevented development of psychological problems and increase physical disability. On this episode, you’ll learn all about the efficacy of Cognitive Behavioral treatments for the management of chronic pain, the three essential components that should be a part of every Cognitive Behavioral approach and if we should shift our approach away from focusing on components and more toward process-based therapy. There’s a lot to unpack here in this episode with regards to which components are necessary for the treatment of chronic pain. Let’s begin and meet Professor Louise Sharpe.
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