Summer holiday…
Take a few moments to enjoy reflecting on the good things from 2009 – then join me in 2010 for new beginnings!
Christmas glitter and glitz
It’s Christmas Eve, and I’ve been taking things so quietly I haven’t even noticed the rush out in the Real World! Nevertheless, you can’t avoid the Christmas advertising and the internet Christmassy things, so I haven’t quite missed out on the excitement. Just a couple of things to while away those hours after you’ve had … Read more
Getting through it
Some of you may know that I’ve just had surgery, and I’m gently recovering from the comfort of my own home over the next few weeks. Posts on here will be intermittent but I find myself considering aspects of pain management from a ‘patient’s’ perspective today as it’s about 5 days since surgery and my … Read more
…unexpectedly absent
After writing recently about post-surgical pain, I’m unexpectedly going to be having some surgery myself today. I’ll be out of circulation for about a month, and hopefully will be back on deck in the New Year. To all the readers who visit this blog, thank you! Thank you for the comments, the discussion, and the … Read more
…but I’m not ready to stop looking for a cure
People come to pain management with a wide range of attitudes and expectations. Over the past few months I’ve been reviewing the ‘goals’ that people write in their pre-appointment psychometric questionnaires, and almost without exception people write ‘Reduce my pain’ or ‘Fix my pain’. While they’ll also write down ‘do more’, ‘return to work’, ‘get … Read more
‘I want my epidural!!!!!!!!!!!’
I’ve had two children – now 19 and 16, and wonderful. At the time of their delivery I can remember both times thinking ‘as long as they’re healthy’ and being not at all worried about having medical intervention if it was needed. My eldest was born with epidural anaesthesia, and my youngest was born completely … Read more
Friday Funnies!
No. I am the Christmas Grinch right now. After hearing various cheesy and horrid renditions of Christmas Carols when I went into the local shopping mall, I can tell you the LAST thing I want to think of are Season’s Greetings! So, nothing Christmassy here – instead you’ll see good, wholesome humour of the worst … Read more
Recovering from a wrist or ankle fracture: pain-related fear, catastrophising and pain influences outcome
I have no idea how many wrist and ankle fractures occur every year, but I can bet it’s not a small number by any imagination. For most of us, I’m guessing we’d expect to have a fracture, wield a wonderfully-autographed cast, get it removed and go on our merry way – but after reading this … Read more
Norway’s National Guidelines for Evaluating Pain
I don’t envy the job of health economists – nor policy-makers or politicians who need to make the difficult decisions about who should receive allocation within the restricted health funding that is available. At the same time, I’m often worried when I hear that ‘high-tech’ treatments, and those that are perceived as ‘glamour’ health problems … Read more
There is nothing new under the sun
A new journal of pain has been published: The Scandinavian Journal of Pain, published by Elsevier, and contents lists available at ScienceDirect. One of the papers I flicked through today caught my eye – and it reminds me that although there is a huge amount of new information about chronic pain available now, many of … Read more
