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Today we’ll be discussing the ABC(DEFW)’s of Chronic Pain.

I guarantee you the people who came up with “No pain, no gain” never had it chronically or in debilitating states, while at the same time probably were not juggling kids and a full time job to boot (Good for them!).  Pain is nothing to fear, however it usually walks a fine line of “is it helping or hurting me”. We know that acute pain often protects us and guides healing, while its counterpart chronic pain…serves no purpose.  How do you know which is which?  Am I at risk for developing chronic pain after an injury?  One thing that may be worth paying attention to are “Yellow Flags”.  What are yellow flags?  They are as simple as ABC(DEFW).  Take a minute to think about these questions and which ones affect you. 

A stands for Attitudes and Beliefs – Do you feel that there is no hope?  Do you believe that every time you have pain you are harming yourself or that what you are doing will never work?  

B stands for Behaviors – Are you withdrawing from activities you normally enjoy?

C stands for Compensation – Are you worried about finances?  Has your pain affected your income? 

D stands for Diagnosis and TX – What have you been told is the reason behind your pain?  Purely structural/mechanical?  A weak core?  Poor posture?  Therefore the only treatment is surgery/injections/medication and an exercise program that is boring and never changing? 

E stands for Emotion – Is your pain also coupled with anxiety? Fear? Worry? Depression?

F stands for Family – Is our support system helping or enabling us?

W stands for Work – Have you been calling out more often, or has your performance suffered in recent months?

If you answered yes, or felt connected to one or more of these questions, that is ok!  No need to panic.  Pain of any type can often do this to us.  If these are questions your healthcare provider is not bringing up or considering in your plan of care, it may signal that it is time for a change (or a conversation).

One additional factor worth mentioning is how high your pain level is at onset of your experience – if you’re dealing with, or have been stuck in pain levels higher than 6 on a daily basis, it may be worth considering an alternate approach to your care.  An approach that we can definitely help with.