Dr. Joseph Mercola - Take Control of Your Health Psychological Treatment: How Brain Changes Can Heal The Body - AI Podcast
Jun 21, 2025
Discover how psychological techniques can significantly alleviate chronic back pain. Pain reprocessing therapy has shown that changing your perception of pain can lead to remarkable relief. Functional MRI scans reveal the brain’s structure alters alongside symptom improvement. Practical cognitive behavioral strategies are shared to help retrain your brain, viewing pain as a false alarm. Engaging in movement despite discomfort is emphasized, proving that our minds play a pivotal role in the experience of pain. Transformative insights await those ready to challenge their pain perceptions!
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Chronic Pain as Brain False Alarm
- Chronic pain can often be caused by a false alarm in the brain, not actual tissue injury.
- The default mode network keeps this alarm active, making harmless sensations feel painful.
Brain Changes Underlying Pain Therapy
- Psychological therapies like CBT can interrupt fear loops that amplify chronic pain.
- Brain scans show reduced threat activity and improved sensory processing after therapy.
Steps to Retrain Pain Response
- Reframe pain as a false alarm, not injury, to retrain your brain's response.
- Interrupt fear reactions, practice reprocessing daily, and gradually move despite discomfort.