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Living Beyond Your Pain: Using Acceptance and Commitment Therapy to Ease Chronic Pain
Here is an approach to living with chronic pain unlike any you’ve seen before, one that breaks through pain to help you live the rich and full life you deserve. Based on acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT), one of the most promising and fastest growing psychotherapies in use today, this book breaks with conventional notions of pain management, the traditional “feel good” approaches—including the use of pain-killing medication—that work to prevent painful sensations. But the ACT approach to living with pain is different. It helps you recognize pain as an event in your life that doesn’t need to interfere with the way you live. In fact, attempts to avoid pain can often cause more harm than good, both to your body and to your peace of mind. By accepting and learning to live with pain, you can limit the control it exerts over your life. Mindfulness exercises, in particular, can help you transform pain from a life-defining preoccupation to a simple experience. From this strong position, you can make choices that will lead you to the life you’ve always wanted. Committed action is the way to make it happen. Use this step-by-step program •Discover why painkillers are not the answer
•Clarify what you value and how you want to live your life
•Stop your thoughts from holding you back
•Develop mindfulness skills to keep pain in perspective
•Commit to meaningful actions that lead to richer, more fulfilling experiences
•Clarify what you value and how you want to live your life
•Stop your thoughts from holding you back
•Develop mindfulness skills to keep pain in perspective
•Commit to meaningful actions that lead to richer, more fulfilling experiences
192 pages, Paperback
First published May 3, 2006
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324 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
February 24, 2010
When you spend forty years studying a subject theoretically and practically, you pick up a lot of experience. This book brought some new language to insights that others have approached in different ways.
However, this was clearly written and the exercises were useful and sometimes brought new insights.
The concepts were pretty much twofold: the acceptance of chronic pain and learning to live life as fully as possible despite chronic pain. She encourages full use of the medical treatment and drugs available to you. Acceptance must deal with the facts that chronic and in many cases degenerative conditions can not be cured, but only managed. The exercises are designed to help keep you from falling into despair and inertia.
If you, like me, have degenerate diseases, it will be helpful to review the exercises as your condition changes. I plan to keep the book and to do just that.
However, this was clearly written and the exercises were useful and sometimes brought new insights.
The concepts were pretty much twofold: the acceptance of chronic pain and learning to live life as fully as possible despite chronic pain. She encourages full use of the medical treatment and drugs available to you. Acceptance must deal with the facts that chronic and in many cases degenerative conditions can not be cured, but only managed. The exercises are designed to help keep you from falling into despair and inertia.
If you, like me, have degenerate diseases, it will be helpful to review the exercises as your condition changes. I plan to keep the book and to do just that.
August 6, 2021
I was so glad to see this book--I have fibromyalgia and I have gotten a lot out of practicing ACT.
There's some good stuff in here. I like the idea of "clean pain" and "dirty pain"--basically the difference is that in the former you just focus on the pain without thinking about your obligations, etc.
Some things in the book made me uncomfortable, though. The author presents a lot of things as being myths that actually are true, or else she seems to sidestep some of the realities of illness in her attempt to show that illness doesn't have to control our lives.
Another problem I had was the author's broad use of "avoidance." Obviously, our lives get more limited when we avoid that which could cause us pain. Her definition, though, includes like not taking Tylenol before running errands. She also instructs readers to, well, avoid avoidance pretty much by deliberately doing physically or emotionally painful things. At a certain point, that's masochism, or poor self-care.
The other thing I didn't like about her take on avoidance is that she seems to lump all medications together. She'll talk about "using pain relievers" as if ibuprofen and opiates are the same, as if one is avoiding life just because we use the tools in our arsenal.
There's some good stuff in here. I like the idea of "clean pain" and "dirty pain"--basically the difference is that in the former you just focus on the pain without thinking about your obligations, etc.
Some things in the book made me uncomfortable, though. The author presents a lot of things as being myths that actually are true, or else she seems to sidestep some of the realities of illness in her attempt to show that illness doesn't have to control our lives.
Another problem I had was the author's broad use of "avoidance." Obviously, our lives get more limited when we avoid that which could cause us pain. Her definition, though, includes like not taking Tylenol before running errands. She also instructs readers to, well, avoid avoidance pretty much by deliberately doing physically or emotionally painful things. At a certain point, that's masochism, or poor self-care.
The other thing I didn't like about her take on avoidance is that she seems to lump all medications together. She'll talk about "using pain relievers" as if ibuprofen and opiates are the same, as if one is avoiding life just because we use the tools in our arsenal.
December 25, 2022
As a therapist and someone with chronic pain I found this book helpful and I would recommend this book. I would say it’s possible too clinical at times and as a result a bit more dry and not as engaging as some other self help books out there but that is more of a taste issue. It gets to the facts and describes the rational.
Also, why so many metaphors and exercises that use cars! Cars suck (IMHO), more metaphors with bikes and trains please 🚴♀️🚂.
Also, why so many metaphors and exercises that use cars! Cars suck (IMHO), more metaphors with bikes and trains please 🚴♀️🚂.
May 11, 2023
I really liked this book - it dives into the content really quickly with practical exercises and worksheets to work on acceptance/willingness and committed action towards what you value. The lessons from this book are applicable to pain - and also other feelings that we might be tempted to want to avoid. It was also easy to digest this book - it didn't get overly technical or wordy. The metaphors were great.
My biggest critique is that it didn't really get into a discussion about when we must listen to our pain. I know this was written for chronic pain and for people who have gone through a litany of medical interventions over time. However, I think it's important to note that pain is often giving us a really important message to listen to - and sometimes rest and pause is really important. And sometimes what we actually can do is physically impacted by pain and sickness - which I think is another layer of acceptance. I don't think the authors exclude this understanding from this book - however I think it would be helpful to discuss this in a little more depth and to have a discussion about when it's important to listen to pain and problem solve.
My biggest critique is that it didn't really get into a discussion about when we must listen to our pain. I know this was written for chronic pain and for people who have gone through a litany of medical interventions over time. However, I think it's important to note that pain is often giving us a really important message to listen to - and sometimes rest and pause is really important. And sometimes what we actually can do is physically impacted by pain and sickness - which I think is another layer of acceptance. I don't think the authors exclude this understanding from this book - however I think it would be helpful to discuss this in a little more depth and to have a discussion about when it's important to listen to pain and problem solve.
December 24, 2023
Well, I tried and tried and tried and fell short I guess. I understand the principles; I am already doing everything right, but chronic pain is chronic pain, and accepting our lot (although better than feeling sorry for ourselves every single day) is no magical solution.
I agree with several of the principles explored in the book; I just see them as part of the whole anxiety surrounding chronic pain, not as entities in themselves. And pain becoming part of one's identity is unfortunate, but if it's our reality, it just is, end of story.
I agree with several of the principles explored in the book; I just see them as part of the whole anxiety surrounding chronic pain, not as entities in themselves. And pain becoming part of one's identity is unfortunate, but if it's our reality, it just is, end of story.
July 4, 2021
I found this to be a really refreshing approach to pain management, and I liked the workbook format to allow me to make notes and reflections as I went along.
March 25, 2025
If you have read any other ACT book there will not be much new in here. If you are new to ACT, then it is worth a read.
September 22, 2016
I bought this book as the designated workbook for a pain group I belong to for people with chronic pain. The idea is to use a new method called ACT (Acceptance & Commitment Therapy) together with Mindfulness, to help you cope with Chronic Pain i.e. pain 24/7. This is a wonderful workbook and well worth the 5 stars I have given it. It is a book that can be used on your own to help you cope with chronic pain. I highly recommend this book. Good luck to anyone out there who is suffering from any kind of pain. Mindfulness is a wonderful method to live your life by whether you have pain or not. I have several Minfulness books and audio files on my list that are all good :-)
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews