With chronic pain, you may experience irrational and paralyzing fear. Irrational fear lacks reason and clarity. Paralyzing fear keeps you frozen in place, unable to move forward. Fear is a natural human emotion that can help us to respond effectively to things that threaten us. Walking out into the middle of a busy highway appropriately…
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Another variable that can contribute to imbalance is emotional sensitivity. People who are emotionally sensitive feel things more rapidly and more deeply than others and tend to personalize them. Emotionally sensitive people may learn ways to numb themselves from their feelings because so many of their feelings are painful. For individuals with chronic pain in…
DetailsMost people struggling with chronic pain and dependence on pain medication try to avoid emotional as well as physical pain. Our common thought process tells us that if we can just avoid the pain, it won’t affect us. However, in the same way that lightning always finds a path to ground, feelings—including painful and uncomfortable…
DetailsRead through the list of feelings in the left column and circle the ones you are experiencing. Next, take a moment to think about them—it may be helpful to close your eyes and turn your focus inward—then, in the right column, indicate where you experience each feeling in your body. For example, anger might be…
DetailsLAS VEGAS—Las Vegas Recovery Center (LVRC) has appointed Daniel Shiode, PhD, as clinical program director. Dr. Shiode brings nearly thirty years of training and experience to the position, with emphasis in the psychological evaluation and treatment of chronic pain, psychological aspects of medical conditions, post-traumatic disorders, eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR), and clinical hypnosis.…
DetailsDr. Pohl, Medical Director of the Las Vegas Recovery Center, is featured in a major USA Today feature on older Americans and the growing problem of their dependency on opiate painkillers”. It’s estimated that over 336,000 seniors are currently misusing their medications. Furthermore, nearly one in four are being prescribed a number of ‘risky’ medications…
DetailsMay 13, 2014 – Prescription drug abuse is on the rise in Nevada and opiate prescribing is front and center in discussions to stem the diversion and misuse of prescribed drugs. Together with Mel Pohl, Medical Director of Las Vegas Recovery Center (LVRC), the University of Nevada School of Medicine is offering a class on…
DetailsThe capacity to identify, feel, and express emotions is essential to a balanced state. Yet many people have great difficulty identifying feelings and expressing them in ways that support emotional balance, especially in the presence of chronic pain. There are several levels of awareness involved in cultivating emotional balance. The first level is becoming consciously…
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Chronic pain includes both the physical experience of pain and the thoughts we have about it, as well as the feelings associated with it. As we discussed in the previous chapter, the mind and body share such intimate connections that they affect each other in direct and powerful ways. Emotions are a critical part of…
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