For Group Members
Topics for the Group
8 sessions — a more detailed syllabus with reading and writing assignments will be provided after registration.
Somatic Tracking, Unwinding the Pain/Fatigue → Fear → Pain/Fatigue Spiral, and Using an Evidence List*
Our Relationship with Ourselves: Perfectionism, Shame, and Compassion
Decoding the Message: Thinking Psychosocially about Body Sensations
Layers of Emotions: Anxiety/Pain, Defenses, Feelings
Layers of Emotion: Transference — Past Person, Current Person, and Reality Distortion
Practicing Assertive Communication: Framing Our Observations, Needs, Feelings, Requests
Practicing Assertive Communication: Asking for Connection
Building a Resilient Recovery Identity
What needs to be read
Unlearn Your Pain: The Science of Recovering from Chronic Pain, Fatigue, Anxiety, and Depression — by Howard Schubiner, MD
Get the book on AmazonHelpful Resources
Watch: This Might Hurt
A documentary following chronic pain patients as they go through Pain Reprocessing Therapy (PRT) — the same approach this group draws on.
thismighthurtfilm.comThe Boulder Back Pain Study (PRT) — Alan Gordon
The landmark randomized clinical trial (JAMA Psychiatry, 2022): 66% of people with chronic back pain were pain-free or nearly pain-free after four weeks of Pain Reprocessing Therapy, with results maintained at one-year follow-up.
Read the studyAlso recommended: The Way Out — by Alan Gordon, LCSW
An accessible guide to Pain Reprocessing Therapy from the therapist who developed it — a great companion to Unlearn Your Pain.
Required commitment: to attend all 8 group sessions.
*Session topics are subject to revision. A more detailed syllabus with reading and writing assignments will be provided after registration.