Pain is a major problem in society, and it should be much more spoken about and written about. I’m not sure why it isn’t.
Much of this space is about emotion. How our emotions drive what we do.
I wish it was the case that I could focus on the interaction between this doctor and the patient that is referenced at the end. And specifically, focus on the power of interest. But this referenced article cannot stand alone. As I have said before it must be made clear that this should not lead anyone to believe that or think that people don’t need to be medicated or that alternative treatments will get us out of this mess of addiction and the use of opiates. This is primarily because prescription drugs did not get us into the present overdose crisis. And although this seems to be about this beautiful interaction between doctor and patient, he does mention that he did not prescribe medication. I don’t see an indication that he is saying that he wouldn’t prescribe medication, but one might be led to that conclusion. What I am saying in no way diminishes the power of demonstrating genuine interest in people.
The thing is we do not live in an “as if” world where 1) not even a majority of caregivers have the education or ability to provide such natural caring. And 2) even if one has this ability, you don’t have a system to support you because, in general, the system will not allocate the time to provide such treatment. In the main, this type of care only takes place in a small minority of systems or in private practices dedicated to high-quality care and that understand what that entails.
Now for the good stuff.
What the following interaction between a doctor and his patient beautifully exemplifies is how the emotion of interest works to heal.
An ongoing interest impedes pain and shame. With physical pain comes shame. Pain does not come into our consciousness unless it passes through our emotional system. It is not simply stimulus or trauma then I feel pain. There is always some component of emotion. Usually, that component of emotion is not great and hardly noticed but at minimum, there is the emotion of interest, interest in my pain. We are interested in our pain. But obviously, there can be a great overlay of emotion that can exacerbate the pain. The more fear, distress, and anger we have the worse the pain will get. Therefore, counteracting those unpleasant emotions will diminish the pain. Pain and emotion are all part of the same nervous system.
So here is the interaction between the doctor and the patient. The link to the full article is provided.
We don’t get paid extra to listen to patients about their chronic pain, but we should. We all dread those patients that consume our time in the clinic. Although taking the time to listen to our patients with chronic pain may not be financially rewarding, we should advocate for it. Sometimes listening to one’s pain can bring about significant healing effects. That time spent with patients listening to their complaints of pain will likely not be reflected in our online reviews. Instead, we seek to be internally rewarded when patients improve over time without the more considerable secondary gains.
One day a patient of mine brought me a poem written in pencil on college-ruled paper. I had never done surgery on this patient nor provided him with opioids to treat his chronic pain. Over the years, I prescribed physical therapy, educated him about the benefits of yoga, meditation, aquatic therapy, and avoiding alcohol and tobacco. I mostly listened to him for 20 minutes every three months about his aches, family, and life’s drama. I never knew the actual effects I had on this patient until recently. Without my knowledge, the patient had started to write poetry. To my surprise, he brought me a poem I will share with you.
The poem: chronic pain
I was caught in the past
I couldn’t face the day
My thoughts were racing fast
And I had so much to say
I was used and abused
I’ll never forget to this day
I was lost and confused
Till you showed me the way
You took the extra time
And listened to my pain
Your words eased my mind
And now I can see again
You were there for me
When I needed a friend
You set my spirit free
And I found solace again
Although the night is long
I know I’ll make it through
And I’ll remain strong
Because of friends like you
I share these words with you
I know I can always confide in you