Episode 18: Dr. Schubiner talks about all things chronic pain and how to get rid of it.

Episode 18: Howard Schubiner, the Director of the Mind Body program and the best physician you can ask for when you have chronic pain

Dr. Schubiner is a clinical professor, Founder and Director of the Mind Body Medicine Center at Ascension Providence Hospital in Southfield, MI. He treats patients with chronic pain and makes their lives better. By curing or reducing the pain.

He is my role model, I have first met him in September 2021 on a conference call as part of my participation in Whole Health Medicine Institute course, and my whole trajectory was changed after his lecture. I then took his course Freedom from Chronic pain and learned so much about pain, and what to do about it. And I want to be a little bit like him  I want to be myself, of course but a little bit like him 

3:07 We started off by talking about Boulder Back pain study – the first of its kind, that showed that pain reprocessing therapy (PRT) works! For chronic back pain! 33 of the 44 patients in PRT arm experienced significant meaningful improvement in their pain! that’s huge!

5:43 Most patients with chronic back pain DO NOT have structural cause! (they may have “findings” on MRI but clinically they don’t account for the pain)

9:43 neuroplastic pain is real

10:00 neurocircuitry principles: brain processes ALL pain, with emotional injry/pain, brain can turn on the pain!

12:19 Diving into HOW DO WE KNOW WHETHER your pain is neuroplastic?

15:15: we usually assume that pain means there is something wrong with our bodies

16:48 It all comes down to HOPE

18:35 Why it is important to have Marvel and be curious about your pain and brain

20:05 Where to start with pain reprocessing – start with LOVE, COMPASSION and LISTENING

22:56 the pain usually does not come out of nowhere

23:45 Pain is reinforced and driven over time -> the more fear and frustration we have, the more pressure we put on ourselves, the more pain we often have

26:25 How to overcome the lack of belief (in the diagnosis of neuroplastic pain)

28:16 Ongoing stigma against role of psychology in pain but patients understand and get it – how the pain can be caused by our nervous systems/brain

31:31 Approach to pain reduction in fibromyalgia: education, emotional processing, what changes needs to happen in patients’ lives; gradual exposure to activities that cause pain

35:50 PRT is not “coping” with pain but getting rid of the pain!

36:11 speed of recovery depends on how fast we can learn, not on how long we had the disease!

38:19 Predictive processing by the brain

43:14 more about Emotions processing: NOT everybody needs to deal with emotions before they get better (boulder pain study emotional processing was not included). But given the state of current world, and high stress in everyone’s lives, it is important to at least address them because releasing the anger and resentment can be therapeutic

You can find Dr. Schubiner at: https://www.unlearnyourpain.com