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Other articles have looked at how controlling pain is the problem (See Dr David Craig’s article on “Trying to control your pain and the problems this brings”. Whilst it is natural to want to avoid painful thoughts, emotions and sensations; when it comes to chronic pain, it often does not help.

It does not help because when all we think about it avoiding pain, we actually get further and further away from doing the things that make us who we are. Have you noticed that in trying to avoid pain, you are doing fewer and fewer activities that you used to enjoy? Of course, it feels like it is the pain stopping you, and it is in a way, as you are trying to avoid the pain showing up by stopping activities. It is as if you are running away from the pain monster, and because you keep looking back over your shoulder to find out where he is, you aren’t paying much attention to where you are running to.

In this course, we help you to realise that you have the choice to focus on where you are going in life, rather than on trying to run away from pain. The choice looks like this: