Groundhog Day is a 1993 movie starring Bill Murray. Murray portrays Phil Connors, a cynical television weatherman covering the annual Groundhog Day event in Punxsutawney, Pennyslyvania, who becomes trapped in a time loop forcing him to relive the same day repeatedly. This short blog is a deep dive into Groundhog Day as an analogy for [...]
Physiotherapy has been going through some significant changes in the last 20-30 years. Probably one of the most significant is the paradigm shift from the biomedical to the biopsychosocial (BPS) model. The BPS model shifting the emphasis from tissue pathology to a systems based approach capturing biological, psychological and sociological components. Despite the argument that [...]
I do wonder what the response might be to the title of this blog? Physiotherapy within pain management is still very much in the midst of an explaining pain / CBT evolution, but I do wonder if we have disregarded what our peers in other professions have been questioning with respect to their own methods? [...]
Physiotherapists tend to have a bit of a reputation for jumping onto bandwagons. In writing this blog I am committing hypocrisy by admitting I am a strong proponent of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT). Yes, it’s true I can be accused of jumping onto a bandwagon. If I look up the meaning of bandwagon here’s [...]
There’s a moment in the Lord of the Rings, where Frodo and Sam are walking in the rocky terrain of the Misty Mountains trying to head towards Mordor. Sam speaks about the familiarity of the terrain and Frodo, jaded, responds with, “That’s because we’ve been here before, we’re going in circles” Eventually, it is Golum, [...]
There’s a deeper philosophical perspective within Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT). Clinicians can familiarize themselves with the strategies and techniques within ACT and use them as everyday clinical tools. Defusion, Acceptance, Values and Commitment sit on either side of the ACT Hexaflex within a clear delineation (see figure 1)and so these techniques could be seen [...]
"Your doctor has asked me to write a report on why there's been so little progress" Those words must be dreaded by every person that lives with pain. It must be hugely invalidating for someone who has been through so much in an attempt to try and understand, resolve or "get on top of" their [...]
“It’s important that you pace your activity, this is to minimize the risk of your pain increasing. Once you identify how long you can spend at a task before your pain increases, you will eventually be able to increase your time doing the task.” Pacing Activity pacing (AP) is a term widely used to describe [...]
Anyone who reads my blogs will know that I like to venture off the beaten track and explore how transferable knowledge between areas of interest or other specialties relate can be implemented into our understanding of persistent pain. I’ve blogged a few times about exercise dosage here, here and here and I thought I would [...]
A common experience for people living with pain is the enigmatic behavior of pain. People feel a lack of control due to the unpredictability, intensity or severity of pain. This can significantly affect a person’s ability to achieve a desired outcome, such as playing with their kids, being able to vacuum, being able to work, [...]
