Dignity Health Yavapai Regional Medical Group Team Use Neuroscience to Help Patients Turn Down the Volume on Their Pain
By now, you have probably heard of the “mindfulness movement.” You may have read a magazine article or two, and it’s hard to ignore the ever-growing collection of mindfulness books at the bookstore or library. Many people who have tried it say mindfulness has made a remarkable difference in their quality of life.
Now take mindfulness and apply it to medicine; specifically, the treatment of chronic pain. This is what internationally acclaimed neurosurgeon Dr. Sam Safavi-Abbasi and neurosurgical nurse practitioner and certified somatic experiencing practitioner Elisa Venezia are bringing to their patients, right here in the Quad Cities area.
Safavi and Venezia are both with Yavapai Regional Medical Group – Neurosurgical Medicine and Physiatry in Prescott. They share a deep passion about what Venezia described as, “Helping our patients turn the volume down on their pain so it doesn’t dominate their life.”
It’s all based on a “biopsychosocial” approach to understanding pain. In simpler terms, pain is a complicated combination of biological, psychological, and social factors. According to Venezia, the standard medical approach, which too often is the norm, only treats the biological aspect of pain.
Venezia clearly acknowledges that there are highly effective surgical solutions for many types of pain, particularly back pain. In fact, the team at Yavapai Regional utilizes many leading-edge neurosurgical techniques. But when a patient is told that there is no clear indication for surgery, they are often left wondering whether they will have to live with their pain indefinitely. The unfortunate outcome for some of these patients can be anxiety, depression, isolation, and, increasingly, an addiction to painkillers, particularly opioids.
This is where Safavi’s and Venezia’s holistic approach takes up the challenge.
“Our brain pathways, including those that send pain signals to the brain, are wired very early in life,” explained Venezia. “For a person who experiences constant fight-or-flight responses related to early trauma—which might include symptoms like chronic pain, a fast-paced lifestyle or issues with alcohol—mindfulness can help ease them into the present moment rather than the state of hypervigilance that they’re used to. The practice is informed by neuroscience, as well as current pain-science literature, and is modeled after a more familiar practice called mindfulness-based stress reduction. It can decrease anxiety, depression, and pain.”
Yavapai Regional physical therapist Cheryl Van Demark has been facilitating the Chronic Pain Self-Care Program in the Quad Cities community for several years. Safavi and Venezia have now teamed up with Van Demark, combining their efforts to offer a true multidisciplinary approach.
“The class is all literature-based because we’re geeks,” joked Venezia. “As people learn about the neuroscience of pain and incorporate some very simple practices in their lives, their pain experience can greatly diminish.”
The passion that Venezia has for this approach, and her patients, shines through.
“If you have already explored surgical options and your condition is non-surgical, you can still recover from the pain. The pain does not need to be front and center in your life. Be aware that it will take work and it will take time, but you can connect with joy and lightheartedness in your life again.”
For more information about the Chronic Pain Self Care Program at Yavapai Regional Medical Group – Neurosurgical Medicine and Physiatry, call 928.445.4818.
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