During the worst years of my pain journey I found it very easy to inwardly focus on my pain for much of the day.  I’m sure that this only served to make my pain situation worse, but when you are in that situation it is very difficult not to do so.  Pain can be all consuming!

One of the things I found helpful to break out of that situation was to move my focus away from me and onto other people.  Supporting others, maybe who are in difficulty themselves, not only can help them but can help you as well.   It can bring back a purpose to life, an enjoyment of being with other people, and a lessening of the sometimes all consuming focus of pain. 

I have given many hours of my time to volunteer and work with others since my injury.  I can definitely recommend the healing powers it can bring.  Obviously you need to be careful you don’t overdo things and create more difficulties for yourself, although I would say that the downsides of a little more pain can be completely outweighed by the benefits gained when volunteering. 

I can also recommend becoming a patient advocate.  I have found writing and talking about my pain story to be very therapeutic.  It has provided me opportunity to think what has happened to me through in a way I wouldn’t otherwise have done and I have met some really lovely people along the way.  There were many mistakes made by clinicians along my pain journey (in my humble opinion) and there is something good about knowing that your patient advocacy work may help in some small way others not having to go through the same type of experiences.  Supporting healthcare professionals to further improve is very worthwhile.