We just ended our series on pain management skills.  If reading about these skills is all you need to use them and feel better …  great!  For some of you, however, it may be helpful to see a pain management psychiatrist or therapist, too.  In what ways might you benefit from this?

Well, that’s the topic of this next series.

For many people, when their doctor recommends seeing a pain management psychiatrist or psychologist, it’s not clear to them exactly why this might be helpful.  Thoughts arise such as, Does my doctor think my pain is all in my head? and, Will I have to lie on a couch and recount my dreams?

The answer is no.  No, it’s not all in your head.  And, no, you’ll do other things instead of talking about your childhood.

There are many ways some visits to a pain management psychiatrist might be helpful.  Over the next several weeks, we’ll look at some of them.  They include:

1. Why comprehensive treatment works better
2. Benefits of a psychiatric evaluation
3. Treatment of psychiatric symptoms
4. Using psychiatric medications for pain
5. Learning psychological skills
6. Making positive behavioral changes
7. Making positive psychological changes
8. Benefits of supportive therapy
9. Benefits of a pain support group
10. New brain-based treatments

So stay tuned to this series!

Readers, have you visited a pain management psychiatrist?  What was your experience?