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Central Sensitization - please share your stories

Chronic Pain | Last Active: Dec 20, 2023 | Replies (159)

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@lorirenee1

@rwinney Hi Rachel, I know that central sensitization syndrome has to do with people having amplified pain due to the brain's faulty working. The brain turns up the volume in the pain level for really no reason at all. The brain is not working right, and does this. Treatment for central sensitization is basically retraining your brain to turn down the volume/remove the pain. It might effect your senses, also, like being ultra sensitive to light, or sound, and thus, you retrain your brain, that you can stand the light or sound. That you are ok. Fabulous educators/doctors on this subject are Lorimer Moseley and Jonathan Kuttner, both doctors from Australia. I have read ALL of their books and seen all their videos on youtube about managing pain. I have also had a free consultation, via the computer, assessing my pain, from Jonathan Kuttner's daughter, Naomi, right from Australia, to me, in Illinois. Naomi basically said that the retraining of the brain, when it comes to neuropathic pain, is intensely challenging. I wanted to take one of her dad's on line pain classes, and she basically said that there is no telling whether it would work. Therefore, I did not take it. Tapping away pain is in the same thread, so to speak, because it also tries to retrain the brain not to amplify pain. I am in pain so often, that I would basically be trying to turn down the amplification of my pain, ALL DAY. I would be telling my brain that there is no reason for giving me pain, I would be fantasizing a lovely sun, where my pain is. I would be letting my brain know it can stop working so hard to let me know I am in danger, and give me pain, to prove it. I would be telling my brain to chill out, and stop sending pain messages. I could do this, all day, and the nerve pain would laugh and say, "Hey lady! Gotya! Ya can't escape me!!!!! Ha!" Such is neuropathy. A bear. A beast. The boogie man in the closet..... Lori M

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Replies to "@rwinney Hi Rachel, I know that central sensitization syndrome has to do with people having amplified..."

@lorirenee1 You are spot on. You've done your research! Thank you. As you define it, CPS targets me perfectly but, what the hell do I do about it? I understand the importance of retraining your brain. It makes perfect sense in theory but, i'm not so much a patient person that buys into all of the imagine beaches 24/7 theory. I can do that and I do, in intervals but, That omits whatever normal life for me at my age. But, beggars cant be choosers, right?

I dont know, it's very confusing and frustrating to me. I am willing and waiting to work with Mayo's pain rehab program where they can teach me or discover new things about me, but it's been months in the making and now on hold since Covid19. Also, being without weekly myofacial has taken a toll. I mildly stretch and try my best to balance use of my body with proper resting. All extremities are failing to worse proportions and am ble to do less and less. I believe it's time for physical and occupational therapy so I can learn how to not cause myself harm. It baffles me. I have alot of fear for my future.

Rachel

These researchers are phenomenal. Rachel Zoffness is a pain educator whose book, The Chronic Pain Workbook, was just released and is excellent. A good portion can be read online. Unfortunately, so many doctors take this information and think it means the pain is in their patients' heads. I found it on my own and started doing "movement snacks" and worked my way up to full exercise and activity. My pain was chronic migraine and thoracic back pain. Neurogists had told me once chronis, it's permanent.

I agree with a lot of what you said. No don’t understand retraining the brain. Frustrating!

One of my coping mechanisms is to mentally distance myself from the pain. I’m separate from the pain. It is a separate entity & not part of Me. I’ve practiced that for so long that my pain tolerance has increased and I can then use distraction (watching a movie, reading), to ignore its presence. I still feel it but it’s a long ways off & not overwhelming. I hope you have better days!