On the path to healing chronic pain, sometimes our brains will mess with us. In fact, it’s a feature of our biology — when our situations change for the better, our brains have the habit of redefining what it classifies as a "problem." We instinctively move the goalposts, which can mask that things are, in fact, improving. The same applies for solving chronic pain & other symptoms, and so part of recovery will be to overcome your brain's built-in biases (we all have 'em!) that work to keep our perceptions basically the same over time. Read on to learn more about this feature of our brains and how to help your perception shift in the right direction.

When you’re searching for a solution to chronic pain, undoubtedly your feed fills with tales promising "5 steps to solving your chronic pain" or "with this program I solved my pain in 3 sessions!" That type of messaging is really enticing, especially when we've been in pain for months, years, or even decades. So it's really tempting to set our expectations of healing to align with those fast-results stories. Those stories don’t sync with the reality of healing for most people though, and the quick solution we’re hoping for gives way to what you really need in order to heal.

Returning to movement and activity while recovering from pain can feel extremely high stakes. And it's often laced with advice, guidance & prescribed routines from professionals like PTs or physios, as well as fear, frustration, uncertainty and a host of other emotions. To recover from chronic pain, finding safety, ease, and even playfulness & laughter are incredibly important. What’s a shortcut to get there? An exploratory mindset when you move. Read on to learn exactly what an exploratory mindset is, how to cultivate one, and how it can help you in your pain recovery journey.