Why Things Hurt

Why Things Hurt is a collection of true stories and meaningful explanations about how our bodies work and the journeys we travel to maintain them. It provides accessible answers and structured principles on topics such as posture, pain, pregnancy, exercise, footwear and sports. Physiotherapist, Brent Stevenson discusses how to navigate your medical systems and what you should and should not expect from your physicians. He outlines what everyone should know about their own body, both physically and emotionally, by combining conversational lessons with cathartic true stories of injury, pain, resilience and perseverance. This book will empower you to make proactive choices for your body and help guide your journey in the right direction. Praise for Why Things Hurt: "This book encapsulates Brent's wisdom beyond his years and is extremely well written. It is personal, yet professional. Through his blogs and patient's stories Brent explains the current state of the art and science of physiotherapy and has made the complex topic of chronic pain simple to understand. Experience doesn't always create wisdom, but reflection and sharing of experiences often does. I personally and professionally resonated with many parts of this book and look forward to using it as a tool in my practice to help clients understand Why Things Hurt." -Diane Lee, Physiotherapist & Educator "From cover to cover, Why Things Hurt is a rare and exciting reading adventure. He explores the ever-fascinating multiverse of the dynamics of the body and mind, related with his own unique heart, empathy and practicality. A handbook for every health care professional and any "body" that loves to move regardless of age or stage of life." -Siobhan O'Connell, Physiotherapist & Clinical Pilates Instructor 'First and foremost, Why Things Hurt is a great read. Through his interaction with thousands of patients, Brent has developed a unique and special insight into how our bodies work, both on a functional and holistic level. What is remarkable is how he has translated this into a book that has useful lessons and guidance for everyone; there is valuable learning here in terms of how to manage pain, both physically and psychologically, as well as how to prevent it. He advocates for a multidisciplinary approach to pain management which is key. A must read, even if you don't hurt, yet.' - Dr. Kenneth Ryan, MD, Anesthesiologist "Why Things Hurt takes you on a wildly entertaining journey of discovery into how your body actually works or doesn't work, and how to fix it according to Brent's unique mastery of physiotherapy, IMS and complex problem solving. Being a detail-oriented PhD scientist, and having competed at numerous world championships in triathlon and mountain running, this book is a fantastic resource for keeping my body moving and pain-free even with all the twists and turns life throws at me! -Mike McMillan, PhD Scientist & Triathlete

Solid evidence now shows that knowing why we hurt will help us heal. All pain is real, and for many people it is a debilitating part of everyday life. In a world where 1 in 5 of us experience ongoing pain and where there is increasing evidence for the failure of synthetic drugs, take heart: help is at hand. It is now known that understanding more about why things hurt can actually help treat pain. Recent advances in fields such as neurophysiology, brain imaging, immunology, psychology and cellular biology have provided an explanatory platform from which to explore pain. In everyday language accompanied by quirky illustrations, Explain Pain Second Edition discusses how pain responses are produced by the brain, how responses to injury from the autonomic motor and immune systems in your body contribute to pain, and why pain can persist after tissues have had plenty of time to heal. Co-author Dr David Butler, founder of the Neuro Orthopaedic Institute, says that "it is no longer acceptable that pain be just managed: we must expect that it can be treated, and sufferers can alter it themselves through education." Explain Pain has sold around 60,000 copies world-wide in 5 languages and continues to inspire clinical research and multidisciplinary pain treatment globally. Explain Pain aims to give people in pain the power to challenge pain and to consider new models for viewing what happens to your body and brain during pain. Once they have learnt about the processes involved they can follow a scientific route to recovery. Why a second edition? A decade of scientific research is a lot – and we need to keep on top of it. In the last 10 years there has been increasing support for therapeutic neuroscience education from clinical trials, educational science, neuroscience, plain logic and the failure of drug therapy on chronic pain outcomes. Lorimer and David have subtly changed some of the language so that the second edition can be delivered with much more authority than the first. Noigroup Publications (2013), 133 pages, 90+ illustrations and diagrams, half-canadian wire bound. ISBN: 978-0-9873426-6-9 Authors: Dr David S. Butler and Prof G. Lorimer Moseley.

Dr. John E. Sarno's groundbreaking research on TMS (Tension Myoneural Syndrome) reveals how stress and other psychological factors can cause back pain-and how you can be pain free without drugs, exercise, or surgery. Dr. Sarno's program has helped thousands of patients find relief from chronic back conditions. In this New York Times bestseller, Dr. Sarno teaches you how to identify stress and other psychological factors that cause back pain and demonstrates how to heal yourself--without drugs, surgery or exercise. Find out: Why self-motivated and successful people are prone to Tension Myoneural Syndrome (TMS) How anxiety and repressed anger trigger muscle spasms How people condition themselves to accept back pain as inevitable With case histories and the results of in-depth mind-body research, Dr. Sarno reveals how you can recognize the emotional roots of your TMS and sever the connections between mental and physical pain...and start recovering from back pain today.

For: People experiencing pain'The Explain Pain Handbook: Protectometer' is a personal workbook for people experiencing chronic pain. Based on the most up-to-date research, this handbook is a key element in the Explain Pain toolkit. It introduces the 'Protectometer' - a groundbreaking pain treatment tool - that helps you understand your personal pain formula, identify your DIMs (Danger in Me) and SIMs (Safety in Me) and provides six clear strategies for recovery from pain.

Using mindfulness-based techniques and cognitive behavioral tools, a leading expert on the use of acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) teaches readers to transcend the experience of chronic pain by reconnecting with other, more valued aspects of their lives.

Some people suffer from chronic, debilitating disorders for which no conventional treatment brings relief. Can marijuana ease their symptoms? Would it be breaking the law to turn to marijuana as a medication? There are few sources of objective, scientifically sound advice for people in this situation. Most books about marijuana and medicine attempt to promote the views of advocates or opponents. To fill the gap between these extremes, authors Alison Mack and Janet Joy have extracted critical findings from a recent Institute of Medicine study on this important issue, interpreting them for a general audience. Marijuana As Medicine? provides patientsâ€"as well as the people who care for themâ€"with a foundation for making decisions about their own health care. This empowering volume examines several key points, including: Whether marijuana can relieve a variety of symptoms, including pain, muscle spasticity, nausea, and appetite loss. The dangers of smoking marijuana, as well as the effects of its active chemical components on the immune system and on psychological health. The potential use of marijuana-based medications on symptoms of AIDS, cancer, multiple sclerosis, and several other specific disorders, in comparison with existing treatments. Marijuana As Medicine? introduces readers to the active compounds in marijuana. These include the principal ingredient in Marinol, a legal medication. The authors also discuss the prospects for developing other drugs derived from marijuana's active ingredients. In addition to providing an up-to-date review of the science behind the medical marijuana debate, Mack and Joy also answer common questions about the legal status of marijuana, explaining the conflict between state and federal law regarding its medical use. Intended primarily as an aid to patients and caregivers, this book objectively presents critical information so that it can be used to make responsible health care decisions. Marijuana As Medicine? will also be a valuable resource for policymakers, health care providers, patient counselors, medical faculty and studentsâ€"in short, anyone who wants to learn more about this important issue.

Imagine if we treated broken hearts with the same respect and concern we have for broken arms? Psychologist Guy Winch urges us to rethink the way we deal with emotional pain, offering warm, wise, and witty advice for the broken-hearted. Real heartbreak is unmistakable. We think of nothing else. We feel nothing else. We care about nothing else. Yet while we wouldn’t expect someone to return to daily activities immediately after suffering a broken limb, heartbroken people are expected to function normally in their lives, despite the emotional pain they feel. Now psychologist Guy Winch imagines how different things would be if we paid more attention to this unique emotion—if only we can understand how heartbreak works, we can begin to fix it. Through compelling research and new scientific studies, Winch reveals how and why heartbreak impacts our brain and our behavior in dramatic and unexpected ways, regardless of our age. Emotional pain lowers our ability to reason, to think creatively, to problem solve, and to function at our best. In How to Fix a Broken Heart he focuses on two types of emotional pain—romantic heartbreak and the heartbreak that results from the loss of a cherished pet. These experiences are both accompanied by severe grief responses, yet they are not deemed as important as, for example, a formal divorce or the loss of a close relative. As a result, we are often deprived of the recognition, support, and compassion afforded to those whose heartbreak is considered more significant. Our heart might be broken, but we do not have to break with it. Winch reveals that recovering from heartbreak always starts with a decision, a determination to move on when our mind is fighting to keep us stuck. We can take control of our lives and our minds and put ourselves on the path to healing. Winch offers a toolkit on how to handle and cope with a broken heart and how to, eventually, move on.

This much anticipated collection of stories, written by Oxford University Fellow and Pain Scientist, Dr GL Moseley, provides an entertaining and informative way to understand modern pain biology. Described by critics as 'a gem' and by clinicians as 'entertaining and educative', Painful Yarns is a unique book. The stories, some of his travels in outback Australia, some of experiences growing up, are great yarns. At the end of each story, there is a section "so what has this got to do with pain?" in which Lorimer uses the story as a metaphor for some aspect of pain biology. The level of the pain education is appropriate for patients and health professionals. The entertainment is good for everyone. You don't have to be interested in pain to get something from this book and a laugh or two!