ABOUT
Chronic pain sucks... but it is not a life sentence
Our team is committed to providing you with the guidance and support you need to overcome chronic pain. Most chronic pain conditions can be cured through supporting your mind, body and nervous system to find safety. Our personalized coaching aims to empower you to take control of your well-being and live a fulfilling life, free from constant pain. To learn more about the science behind chronic pain conditions, check out our blog.
COACHING PROGRAMS
Ready to relieve your pain?
In our coaching programs we utilize a wide range of techniques to help your mind, body, emotions and nervous system relax into safety. In support of your nervous system we implement somatic exercises to help down-regulate its automatic pain response and help it find a new, more relaxed base line. We will teach you and support you through implementing a variety of cognitive strategies to encourage the emergence of new, pain-free neural pathways. Additionally, we will help you move towards the life you crave by balancing graded exposures with pain-relief behaviors, by engaging in play, social activities, and cultivating moments of joy . We will assist you in decreasing internal and external pressure by nurturing self-compassion and learning new interpersonal skills. You will also discover new ways of understanding your emotions, and gain the ability to respond to the messages they send from a grounded and accepting place.
Pain recovery can be a transformative experience, helping you to develop a toolbox of skills you will be able to implement throughout your life!
Common Conditions We Support
* It is important to see a doctor to rule out any serious medical conditions before working with us.
Anxiety
Chronic back pain
Chronic abdominal and pelvic pain syndromes Chronic fatigue syndrome
Chronic hives
Chronic tendonitis
Fibromyalgia
Foot pain syndrome
Gastrointestinal issues
Insomnia
Interstitial cystitis (irritable bladder syndrome) Irritable bowel syndrome
Migraines
Myofascial pain syndrome
Neck pain
Paresthesias (numbness, tingling, burning)
Plantar fasciitis
Postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome
Repetitive strain injury
Sciatic pain syndrome
(TMJ) syndrome
Tension headaches
Vaginismus
Vulvodynia
Whiplash
Meet Rachel
Rachel Sabey
Chronic Pain Coach
I came to this work after experiencing years of chronic pain - pelvic pain, nerve pain, back pain, neck pain, and strange sensations all over my body. Just like most people with chronic pain and other chronic symptoms, I spent loads of time, energy and money (not to mention tears) trying to get to the bottom of what was going on. When I finally learned about neuroplastic pain, the clouds cleared and my future opened up. I became engrossed in the science of chronic pain and inspired by the possible paths to recovery. I can't wait to work with you and explore which avenues will best help you to relieve your chronic pain. I know it can be hard to believe that a cure is possible, especially after years of trying every possible doctor, treatment and supplement. But emerging research is showing us the way, so please hold onto hope! I am here to help you walk the path towards a full and complete recovery!
Pastries - $4
Butter Croissant - $2.5
Coffee/Tea - $1
Fresh Juice - $2
Pain reprocessing includes education about the neuroscience of chronic pain, collecting evidence of neuroplastic pain, learning new responses to pain signals, discovering when to use pain alleviation techniques, strengthening new pain free neural pathways, sending your brain and body messages of safety, and eventually taking steps towards reengaging in life more fully.
Pain Reprocessing
Pastries - $4
Butter Croissant - $2.5
Coffee/Tea - $1
Fresh Juice - $2
Somatic exercises help us to work directly with your nervous system. We aim to regulate nervous systems that are stuck in fight, flight, freeze and/or fawn. People can have learned nervous system patters which are often developed through unresolved trauma or stress. By listening and connecting to the messages coming from your nervous system we can learn how to intentionally shift states and eventually change automatic patterns.
Somatic Exercises
Pastries - $4
Butter Croissant - $2.5
Coffee/Tea - $1
Fresh Juice - $2
Often suppressed emotions can be a contributing factor to the development of chronic pain conditions. Part of our work together will be learning how to feel and move through emotional states, and learning how to respond to your emotions and view them as messengers with valuable information to share with you. We will also process and release stored emotional energy.
Emotional Expression
Finding Joy and Safety
Pastries - $4
Butter Croissant - $2.5
Coffee/Tea - $1
Fresh Juice - $2
Understandably, when people are stuck in chronic pain, they start to eliminate elements of their lives that aren't absolutely necessary. These are often the parts of life that lead to joy, community and pleasure. We want to slowly reintroduce play, pleasure and connection to your life but in a way that feels safe and manageable.
Who can we help?
Research has shown that most lasting pain becomes chronic because the brain learns these painful neural pathways and continues to fire them even after any injury or damage has healed. Often, there is no physical damage causing the chronic pain, and any findings are incidental (this is often the case for back pain). Other times, like with headaches, pelvic pain and fibromyalgia, there aren't even these incidental findings that could indicate injury or disease. These diagnoses are defined by the lack of another potential cause. They are confirmation of neuroplastic pain.
The brain is the source of all pain. Sometimes it triggers pain when it receives threatening information from the body warning it of tissue damage, as is the case for a broken bone. But constant stress, traumatic experiences, life circumstances, nervous system dysregulation, and some personality traits can also send danger signals to the brain. When the level of threat surpasses an invisible threshold the brain will send pain signals to warn of perceived danger. These signals are neural pathways and they can become habitual. The more they are triggered, the easier it is for the brain to fire them. This is good news! It means that your chronic condition has a cause, which can be treated and even cured! We can teach the brain new neural pathways and train the brain to respond differently to the old pain pathways, making them less threatening and therefore less important for the brain to respond to. Contact us and we can discuss your specific symptoms and experiences, and determine if we believe we can help relieve your chronic pain.
Are you saying it's all in my head?
No! You absolutely are NOT making up your pain! The brain is the genesis of all pain. There is absolutely no difference between the experience of pain caused by tissue damage and that caused by neural pathways. Pain without a tissue based cause can be as bad as any other experience of pain (reminder: the brain causes it all). However, the solution is different.
How can I tell if my pain is neuroplastic?
There are many signs that your pain might be neuroplastic. Together we will explore more thoroughly, but a few signs that is likely is neuroplastic are:
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The location of the pain shifts
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You have the same or similar sensation on both sides of the body
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Your pain comes and goes or otherwise is inconsistent
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Your pain is triggered by the time of day, time of year, weather or other external factors
What if I have a diagnosis?
Sometimes a diagnosis can be comforting to receive after searching endlessly for answers! However, some diagnoses are confirmation that the pain is neuroplastic. Other diagnoses, like herniated disks, a torn meniscus, and osteoarthritis, occur in most adults at some point in their life. There is no correlation between pain and these wear and tear injuries - often they are incidental findings. When conventional treatments don't alleviate pain symptoms, it may be time to look into neural pathways as the root cause.
CLIENTS
Success Stories
“Coaching with Rachel has profoundly increased my mental and emotional resilience.”
LAUREN
“Rachel is thoughtful, professional and has a great style to her practice.”
CHRISTINA
Rachel’s coaching has given me so many new skills, and is guiding me to more harmonious living with my thoughts and emotions.
TRACI