That’s just one of the questions we ask tonight’s guest, an expert in the field of clinical pain research, Dr. Afton Hassett, PsyD. She is the author of the new book Chronic Pain Reset: 30 Days of Activities, Practices, and Skills to Help You Thrive.


As a chronic pain researcher, Dr. Hassett noticed while studying established treatments for chronic pain and developing new approaches that exciting research discoveries rarely reach those who could benefit the most. Chronic pain affects nearly 50 million people in the U.S. alone. A recent study in the Journal of the American Medical Association showed that new cases of chronic pain occur even more frequently than new cases of diabetes, hypertension, and depression. Just like autoimmune, chronic, or long-term pain affects all areas of one’s life, that’s why Dr. Hassett promotes a multipronged approach to pain self-management.


Research shows that simple, at-home changes, including effective and easy-to-implement habits such as paced breathing, easy sleep hacks, mindful walking, and even acts of kindness and gratitude, have been shown to reduce pain. Dr. Hassett shares with us a broader definition of chronic pain and how to implement several of her ’30-Days’ activities and strategies, including:


• How a pink Piggy Bank can change outcomes – yes, a real piggy bank…
• How the medical community defines chronic pain and how it relates to autoimmune conditions such as fibromyalgia and arthritis
• What neuroscience is now telling us about how our brain relates to pain
• How using the principles of cognitive-behavioral therapy reduces long-term pain
• Why doing simple activities that you enjoy and make life feel worth living is an excellent way to decrease pain, plus much more…


About Our Guest: Viewed as a leader in the field of chronic pain and resilience, Dr. Afton L. Hassett, PsyD, is an Associate Professor and Director of Pain and Opioid Research in the Department of Anesthesiology at the University of Michigan. She is a principal investigator at the Chronic Pain & Fatigue Research Center with research funding from the National Institutes of Health (NIH). She was the Keynote address at the 2023 Pain Consortium Symposium on Advances in Pain Research for the NIH.

Dr. Hassett and her book Chronic Pain Reset brings evidence-based strategies from research and academic medical settings directly to people who live with chronic pain with the hope that they will gain new tools to lead more rewarding lives with less pain. Learn more at https://aftonhassett.com/

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* Your host is neither a doctor nor medical professional. In the capacity of this presentation, we are everyday people trying to make sense of the world. The information presented in this interview cannot substitute for the advice of your physician or other trained medical, healthcare, legal, or other professionals. Host(s) and guest(s) are not diagnosing specific conditions during the show. This show is not intended to diagnose, prevent, or treat autoimmune diseases or other conditions or illnesses. The information provided on UnderstandingAutoimmune.com, Life Interrupted Radio.com and The Autoimmune Hour is for educational purposes only and opinion only. It is not a substitute for your own medical, legal, or other professional advice and care.
©2023 Sharon Sayler and UnderstandingAutoimmune.com