Welcome back to the Savvy Psychologist Podcast. I'm your host

Dr. Ellen Hendrickson and every week I'll help you meet life's challenges

with evidence-based research, a sympathetic ear, and zero judgment.

Chronic pain is a pain in the neck, back, and anywhere else.

It can disrupt your work, your relationships, and... and

by extension, your mental health.

So this week, by request from listener Kristen from Utah,

we'll talk about five tips to deal with the Common Challenge of Chronic Pain.

So the Common Challenge of Chronic Pain.

When I say common, I really mean common.

According to the Institute of Medicine,

a whopping 100 million Americans, that's one in three,

suffer from some sort of chronic pain.

And if you're one of them, chances are at least one doctor has told you it's all in your head.

So the trick is that chronic pain wears many disguises. Sometimes chronic pain is psychosomatic, which does not mean it's all in your head or that you're faking. That's another term, malingering. but it does mean that your very real pain is caused by psychological factors, like stress or depression.

Other times to everyone's befutlement, pain is caused by a mysterious injury that may or may not be visible

on x-rays or MRIs. And in other cases, there's an underlying condition, like arthritis,

fibromyalgia, or neuropathy.

And if those weren't enough options, sometimes chronic pain stems from damage to the nerves and spinal cord, the pain system itself.

In the comprehensive book that inspired some of these tips,

managing pain before it manages you, Dr. Margaret A. Caudill

likens chronic pain to a fire alarm that keeps clanging long after the fire is out.

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