Pain Management Overview Group

This was a three-hour--just what it was called--overview of what the Kaiser Pain Management program was like. They made it abundantly clear that, in most cases, this would not make the pain go away but would give the patient "skills" to cope with chronic pain. The main presenters were Francis, a physical therapist, and Dr. Whitehead, Pain Psychologist. They gave us just short "samples" of relaxation strategies: meditation, "calm breathing" techniques, and "gentle" movement.

There was a lot of paperwork to fill out and more detailed description of the programs offered. There were two once-a-week classes. Level 1 was called "Calm Body, Calm Mind" and was a drop-in group on Tuesdays at 3-5p. Level 2 was also once a week on Wednesdays at 3-5p with group acupuncture optional but encouraged. I knew I had to go straight for Level 3 called "Advanced Skills for Getting Your Life Back." Francis said the next Level 3 group would start on Friday, January 19, and that someone would evaluate our extensive paperwork and let us know within the next week if we would be a good candidate for that class.

I asked Francis how that could work since the next group would be starting in three days! He said to make a note at the top of my application that I wanted/needed to get into this class. So I did and kept my fingers crossed.