Pain Management Psychotherapy: A Practical Guide - Hardcover

Eimer, Bruce N.; Freeman, Arthur

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0471157082 ISBN 13: 9780471157083

Publisher: Wiley, 1998

Synopsis

The most up-to-date and comprehensive guide for treating chronic pain, this book, written by a leading pain management therapist and one of the most widely published psychologists today, features detailed instructions for assessing patients' pain and implementing pain management techniques.

About this title

From the Author:

A book for therapists who want to relieve chronic pain.
I wrote this book because chronic pain is a misunderstood and sorely undertreated problem. Part of the problem is the common belief that there is little or nothing than can be done if pain-killing drugs or surgery have not yet done it. Also, most therapists hold the belief that "real" chronic pain patients are quite impossible to help. This book attempts to dispel these misguided beliefs by providing a body of knowledge, theory, and techniques that have proven value in understanding and relieving chronic physical pain.

I myself live with chronic pain which is related to several chronic physical diseases I have (i.e., ankylosing spondylitis, rheumatoid arthritis, cervical and lumbar spinal stenosis). I know through personal experience that one does not have to suffer. There are many alternative approaches to managing pain that have considerable value and are not "off the wall". Of course they require both a motivated patient/client and a motivated therapist. The good news is that everybody is motivated to experience pleasure and escape pain. So, that in itself is a built-in advantage that had better be utilized by the therapist.

The challenge for the therapist is to persuade the would-be pain patient/client that he or she has something to offer that can help take away pain and bring back more pleasure. This challenge is negotiated through the therapeutic relationship. However, the therapist just can't be "warm, accepting, non-judgmental, and empathic". The therapist must also have knowledge and skills relevant to relieving pain. Only then can the therapist impart such knowledge, and in teaching these skills to the pain patient, help the patient become something of a "self-therapist".

This book was written to teach therapists how to do this. It is grounded in my personal experiences with pain, my 20 years as a practicing clinical psychologist, and the up-to-date research and pain management literature in the fields of clinical psychology, psychiatry, psychotherapy, clinical hypnosis, and medicine.

I dedicate this book to everyone who wants to find ways to make living with pain more comfortable, and to the ongoing search for better ways to relieve pain.

From the Back Cover:

Chronic and persistent pain syndromes are as much behavioral and psychological problems as physical or medical problems. Mental health professionals involved in pain management must have a thorough knowledge of the latest pain management techniques in order to select the best methods and strategies for helping each patient cope with pain.

Pain Management Psychotherapy is the most up-to-date comprehensive guide available for the psychological treatment of chronic pain. It addresses the behavioral, emotional, sensory-physiological, cognitive, and interpersonal aspects of pain problems and provides accessible technical knowledge that enables practitioners to alleviate unnecessary pain and suffering. Based on sound research and theory and written by two leading practitioners, this book introduces a short-term therapy model for treating chronic pain that integrates clinical techniques drawn from cognitive therapy, hypnotherapy, behavior therapy, and desensitization therapies. This remarkably thorough volume: Supplies step-by-step treatment methods from initial consultation through termination of pain treatment Describes brief, solution-oriented pain treatment strategies that work in a managed care environment Features assessment and outcome measurement instruments, checklists, worksheets, and clinical scripts Demonstrates the latest therapeutic techniques, including eye movement desensitization and reprocessing, therapeutic imagery, relaxation training, and self-hypnosis Includes pain inventories, questionnaires, and other assessment tools

This book is an indispensable guide for psychologists, psychiatrists, social workers, and other mental health professionals who need fast, reliable methods for promoting pain relief. It is also an excellent text for undergraduate and graduate students in these and other disciplines, and a valuable reference for insurers, physicians, and managed care providers.

BRUCE N. EIMER, PhD, ABPP, a leading pain management therapist, clinical psychologist, and neuropsychologist, is in private practice in Philadelphia. Dr. Eimer is a Diplomate in Behavioral Psychology of the American Board of Professional Psychology, and a Diplomate of the American Academy of Pain Management. He is a member of the American Psychological Association, American Pain Society, International Association for the Study of Pain, and a Certified and Approved Consultant in Clinical Hypnosis of the American Society of Clinical Hypnosis. Dr. Eimer lectures frequently and gives seminars and workshops on pain management and other psychological topics.

"This is a practical and informative text that will be of great use to psychologists and psychiatrists who treat people with chronic pain. It is one of the most, specific, helpful, and user friendly volumes on pain management." --Dennis C. Turk, PhD

John & Emma Bonica Professor of Anesthesiology and Pain Research University of Washington

"A remarkable, comprehensive, and practical guide for pain management therapy. Everything you wanted to know about the cognitive-behavioral treatment of people with severe pain problems is exceptionally well presented in this book." -- Albert Ellis, PhD, President Albert Ellis Institute for Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy Author, A Guide to Rational Living

"Pain Management Psychotherapy makes a strong contribution to the clinical literature. It provides a clear overview of the management of persistent pain and offers insight into the psychological and interpersonal nightmare experienced by pain patients. This important work will help therapists better understand and treat chronic debilitating pain." -- Richard S. Weiner, PhD, Executive Director America 0n Academy of Pain Management

"An exceptional handbook. Clinicians will emerge knowing how to mitigate the suffering of people in pain." -- Arnold A. Lazarus, PhD, ABPP Distinguished Professor of Psychology Emeritus Rutgers University Author, Brief But Comprehensive Psychotherapy

"A definitive and comprehensive text for assessing and treating patients suffering acute, subacute, or chronic pain. I heartily endorse and recommend this text to students and practitioners alike." -- C. David Tollison, PhD Editor, The Handbook of Pain Management

"Pain Management Psychotherapy has the best psychological techniques for the care of the chronic pain patient, which includes cognitive-behavioral, EMDR, and hypnosis therapy. This book should be in the library of every clinician who treats chronic pain." -- Dabney M. Ewin, MD, FACS. Diplomate, American Board of Surgery Diplomate, American Board of Medical Hypnosis

About this edition

• Publisher: Wiley
• Publication date: 1998
• ISBN 10: 0471157082
• ISBN 13: 9780471157083
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 528