Chronic Pain Management

Behavioral and cognitive therapies (CBT) have proven their effectiveness in the multidisciplinary management of pain. Behavioral therapy is based on progressive exposure to movement, while avoiding excessive activity. Psychoeducation helps to identify when to take analgesics and to adopt the right postures. Learning to manage an agenda helps to plan activities in advance and avoid procrastination. Behavioral activation enables the resumption of pleasurable activities abandoned because of pain. Assertiveness techniques enable patients to clearly express their needs to those around them. Cognitive restructuring enables dysfunctional automatic thoughts to be replaced by more appropriate alternative thoughts, and central patterns to be relaxed.