Outsmart Your Pain

Description

Confronting chronic pain can feel overwhelming. People have a natural tendency to lump everything related to pain - stressful thoughts, negative emotions, uncomfortable sensations - into one big unwieldy box that we then struggle to carry around all day. But what if we could put down this box and unpack its contents to tackle one by one, aided by an expert doctor's tried-and-tested methods? Outsmart Your Pain is a transformative guide to reframing and managing pain, "unpacking the pain box" through proven mindfulness and self-compassion techniques. This book is designed with the pain-sufferer in mind, with concise advice and instruction for those seeking immediate relief. Each chapter addresses the what, why, and how: What is the strategy, why it is helping with pain, and how to put it into practice. Some practices are guided meditations, others are reflections, and still others are brief awareness exercises to use while going through the day. Dr Wolf draws these insights from her experience as a teacher and trainer for Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR), and the patients she's guided in her fifteen years of practice - every chapter involves a story from a real-life person with chronic pain who she's taught and learned from. The book also offers a companion audio track to guide readers through each of the meditations. Outsmart Your Pain works on the principle that we are all capable of changing our brains to outsmart pain - and, in the process, leave our pain behind.

Christiane Wolf, MD, PhD, is an internationally respected mindfulness and Dharma teacher, trainer, speaker and author. She is a senior teacher at InsightLA, a senior certified Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) trainer, and is on faculty for the Center for Mindfulness, University of Massachusetts Medical School. Dr. Wolf is coauthor, with J. Greg Serpa, of A Clinician's Guide to Teaching Mindfulness. Dr Wolf teaches and trains in the US, her native Germany, and elsewhere throughout Europe. She lives in Los Angeles with her husband and their three children.

A Best Mindfulness Book of 2021 --Mindful.org "Mindfulness and compassion practices should be in everybody's toolbox for a happier and healthier life. But people dealing with chronic health challenges have it especially hard. Dr. Wolf's accessible, down-to-earth--and beautifully designed--book is essential reading for providers who treat chronic illnesses and for those suffering from them."--Arianna Huffington, founder and CEO of Thrive Global "A brilliant guide for transforming our relationship with pain. Step by step, we learn to meet difficult experience with mindfulness, curiosity and kindness, dissolving the resistance that obscures our full aliveness and radiant spirit."--Tara Brach, author of Radical Acceptance and Radical Compassion "This is a fantastic book, bringing together the kindness and depth of a meditation teacher with the science and tools of an experienced physician. Every page is insightful, helpful, and heartfelt. Highly recommended!"--Rick Hanson, PhD, author of Resilient and Buddha's Brain "Brilliant in its simplicity and effectiveness, Dr. Wolf offers us truly healing and revolutionary medicine. Try it!"--Jack Kornfield, PhD, author of A Path With Heart "If you are living with any type of pain, be it physical or chronic, stress in the mind or body, Outsmart Your Pain is a wonderful resource. Thoughtfully and compassionately written, this book will support and guide you in understanding your relationship to pain and the healing journey."--Sharon Salzberg, author of Lovingkindness and Real Change