Often people experiencing persistent pain will bravely share their personal stories on social media. Most likely someone will comment with"be brave" "hang in there", "you got this" or "stay strong". There is nothing wrong with these comments, the intent is purely inspirational and motivational. I'm guilty myself of having posted these exact comments on a support group I am part of (for CSF leakers), trying to uplift a fellow chronic pain warrior.

So I thought it's time I should expand on what true bravery and inner strength really is, in the face of adversity.

Firstly I can tell you what it is not: suffering in silence, putting on a brave face, trying to do it all yourself and hiding behind a fake smile.

If you haven't heard of the train analogy, it goes something like this: Difficult feelings are tunnels, and we are trains traveling through them. We have to move all the way through the darkness to get to the—peaceful light at the end of the tunnel. The important part is we NEED to keep moving all the way through to the other side of the tunnel and feel all the feels.

There is dissatisfaction with the word “acceptance” because people feel it means giving up or giving in to their pain. I totally agree!

Please don’t get me wrong, I’m not against anything else to do with acceptance commitment therapy (ACT ) or Psychologists and Psychiatrists. I love mindfulness skills, experiential exercises, self-compassion, committed action and values guided behavioural interventions.

I think it’s fabulous that people are willing to get therapy (CBT, EMDR, DBT, EFT and many more abbreviations I'm sure) to help them with their persistent pain. I completely agree that psychological flexibility and a multidisciplinary approach is required as part of a successful experience with persistent pain. If you have cognitive rigidity, you can’t adapt to change.

I’m calling BS on acceptance!

MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) scans involve a patient lying on a bed and being rolled into a tunnel-like tube, where the patient lies still for approximately half an hour. It can be very scary for many people to lie flat in a noisy narrow tunnel for a long time, especially if they have claustrophobia (fear of an enclosed space).

Most presentations of low back pain do not require diagnostic imaging, as the result of any imaging, is unlikely to change the management/treatment. After being a Physiotherapist for 20 years I can safely say there is a lot of unnecessary dollars spent on imaging, that could have been redirected on quality conservative treatment.

If you are going ahead with a MRI read on for helpful strategies to make it a more comfortable experience….