About this episode

David Hanscom discusses the connection between mental and physical pain and shares his insights on healing from chronic pain.

Thinking Above the Lower Mind with David Hanscom David Hanscom, M.D. is author of, Back in Control: A Surgeon’s Roadmap Out of Chronic Pain and Do You Really Need Spine Surgery?: Take Control with a Spine Surgeon’s Advice. Dr. Hanscom is an orthopedic complex spinal deformity surgeon who quit his surgical practice in 2019 to focus on teaching people how to break loose from the grip of chronic mental and physical pain – with and without surgery. His insights arose out of escaping from his own 15-year ordeal of suffering with severe chronic pain. As he began to share his approaches with his patients, a predictable sequence of learning evolved. It is reflected in the self-directed action plan that he created, The DOC (Direct your Own Care) Journey. His website is backincontrol.com. David explains how mental and physical pain are not separate. He suggests ways to detach from the ego – that he says are a set of cognitive distortions – to heal from unwanted thoughts, reactivity, and anxiety in the mind and calm the physiology of the body. New Thinking Allowed CoHost, Emmy Vadnais, OTR/L, is a licensed occupational therapist, intuitive healer and coach, and spiritual guide based in St…

People in this episode

Host: Emmy Vadnais

Guest: David Hanscom

Topics covered

• chronic pain
• mental health
• physical health
• cognitive distortions
• self-directed care

Keywords

• chronic pain
• mental pain
• physical pain
• cognitive distortions
• DOC Journey

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: backincontrol.com

Books & works: Back in Control: A Surgeon’s Roadmap Out of Chronic Pain, Do You Really Need Spine Surgery?: Take Control with a Spine Surgeon’s Advice

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