Chronic Pain Relief

Relief for Chronic Pain and Other Neuroplastic Symptoms

Chronic pain is often seen as purely physical, but it’s frequently much more complex. Pain can show up without a clear injury, or linger long after the body has healed. Symptoms like back pain, migraines, fatigue, or tension don’t always have a structural cause.

The pain is very real.(believe me, I’ve been there).
But sometimes, it is caused by a nervous system that’s stuck in a protective loop, continuing to send danger signals even when there’s no ongoing threat.

All pain, whether from a broken bone or a stress headache, is created by the brain. Your brain is constantly interpreting signals from your body and environment, deciding when protection is needed.

Think about how your body responds to stress: sweaty palms, butterflies in your stomach, a tight jaw or headache after a long day.

Chronic pain can involve this same system becoming overly sensitive—misreading safe signals as dangerous and keeping the alarm turned on. The hopeful part is that what’s been learned can also be unlearned. As the nervous system begins to feel safer, these pain pathways can quiet.

A person with long hair wearing a striped jumpsuit is dancing in a field of tall grass with trees and hills in the background under a cloudy sky.

Healing chronic pain is possible. And it begins by recognizing that your body is not broken, it’s trying to be heard.

My approach integrates Pain Reprocessing Therapy (PRT) and Emotional Awareness and Expression Therapy (EAET), two evidence-based methods that help reestablish safety in the nervous system and heal chronic pain and other issues. Together, they:

  • Offer specific techniques to break the pain cycle and overcome symptoms

  • Help your nervous system get out of state of fight/flight/freeze.

  • Encourage processing of emotions and experiences that have been held beneath the surface

  • Work to shift long-standing patterns that keep symptoms going

Get Started Today

Chronic Pain Video Resources

Helpful Books for Your Journey

  • Book cover titled "The Way Out" by Alan Gordon, LCSW, with colorful dotted design.
  • Book cover titled 'The Body Keeps the Score: Brain, Mind, and Body in the Healing of Trauma' by Bessel Van Der Kolk, M.D. It features an abstract illustration of a black human figure with yellow stars around it on a blue background, with the Penguin logo at the bottom right.
  • Cover of a book titled "When the Body Says No" by Gabor Maté, featuring a yellow leaf illustration with golden spray detail.
  • Book cover titled "The mindbody prescription: Healing the body, healing the pain" by John E. Sarno, M.D., with quotes about the book on top and author information.
  • Cover of a book titled 'It Didn't Start With You' by Mark Wolynn, with a DNA double helix and two faces outline on the cover, and a native book awards winner medal.
  • Book cover titled 'The Deepest Well' by Nadine Burke Harris, M.D., with a subtitle about healing childhood adversity, a circular window showing a blue sky with clouds, and a red circle indicating an ACE test is included.
  • Book cover titled "Emotionally Healthy Spirituality, Updated Edition" by Peter Scazzero, featuring an iceberg with its reflection in the ocean.
  • Book cover titled "Anatomy of the Soul" by Curt Thompson, M.D. Features an digital illustration of a human head with a neural network and spiritual light effects in the background.
  • Book cover titled "It’s Not Always Depression" by Hilary Jacobs Hendel, LCSW, with a foreword by Diana Fosha, PhD. The cover has a light background with red, pink, and blue text, and includes simple sketch icons of a triangle, a person, a heart, and a smiling sun.
  • Cover of the book titled "The Divided Mind: The Epidemic of Mindbody Disorders" by John E. Sarno, M.D., featuring a digital illustration of a human head and body with network lines and a silhouette of a person with arms outstretched inside a globe.
  • Book cover titled 'Self-Compassion' by Kristin Neff, Ph.D., with a quote encouraging to stop beating yourself up and leave insecurity behind, featuring a bee and a yellow flower.
  • Book cover for "The Soul of Desire" by Curt Thompson, MD, featuring a watercolor illustration of a human profile with branches, leaves, and interconnected nodes.
  • Book cover titled "The Gifts of Imperfection" by Brené Brown, with subtitle "IMPERFECT" and additional text about tools to make work easier, featuring a white background with large blue and orange text.
  • Book cover titled "No Bad Parts" by Richard C. Schwartz, PhD, with a subtitle about healing trauma and restoring wholeness with the internal family systems model. The cover features abstract line art of a face with three color blocks in yellow, orange, and teal behind it.
  • Book cover titled "Addiction & Grace: Love and Spirituality in the Healing of Addictions" by Gerald G. May. Features a serene nature scene with a swan swimming in a calm lake beneath green trees.
  • Book cover for "The Brain That Changes Itself" by Norman Doidge, M.D., featuring a brain illustration and the subtitle "Stories of Personal Triumph from the Frontiers of Brain Science."
  • Book cover titled 'The Voice of the Heart' by Chip Dodd, second edition. The cover features a green landscape with a single tree and text advertising discovering the gift of the eight feelings.
  • Cover of the book titled "Mind Your Body" by Nicole J. Sachs, LCSW, with a foreword by John Stracks, MD. The cover features illustrations of a brain, a human figure silhouette, and the title in large colorful letters. The subtitle mentions a 28-day jump start program to regulate the nervous system for chronic pain and anxiety.
  • Book cover titled "Facing Codependence" by Pia Melody, with a subtitle "What It Is, Where It Comes From, How It Sabotages Our Lives". The cover features a blurred background of yellow and green leaves with white and blue text.
  • Book cover titled "The Practical Guide for Healing Developmental Trauma" with subtitle, "Using the NeuroAffective Relational Model to Address Adverse Childhood Experiences and Resolve Complex Trauma." The cover features water ripple imagery at the bottom and lists authors Laurence Heller, PhD, and Brad J. Kammer, LMFT.
  • A book cover titled 'The Needs of the Heart' by Chip Dodd, featuring an image of a forest trail seen through a torn paper effect.

A Few Highly Recommended Podcasts

Your symptoms aren’t random — your body may be trying to tell you something. This quiz will help you understand what’s really going on.

Take the 5 minute quiz

“The body says no when the mind cannot.”

— Gabor Maté

Mind-Body Conditions and Symptoms that I Work With:

  • Chronic Back Pain

  • Neck and Shoulder Pain

  • Widespread body pain (often labeled Fibromyalgia)

  • Joint pain without clear injury

  • Muscle tension, tightness, or spasms

  • Sciatica-like pain without structural cause

  • Headaches or migraines

  • Anxiety/ Panic Attacks/ Depression

  • Hypervigilance

  • Dizziness or lightheadedness

  • Tingling or numbness (hands, feet, face)

  • Burning or electric shock sensations

  • Brain fog or difficulty concentrating

  • Abdominal pain

  • Bloating

  • Diarrhea or constipation (often diagnosed as Irritable Bowel Syndrome)

  • Nausea

  • Shortness of breath

  • Chronic fatigue

  • Insomnia/ Sleep disturbances

  • Long Covid

  • Pelvic pain

  • Sexual pain or dysfunction

  • Urinary urgency/frequency without infection

  • Jaw pain (TMJ)

  • Skin sensations (itching, crawling feelings)

  • Symptoms associated with Lyme’s Disease

Schedule Your First Appointment Today
A variegated rubber plant (Ficus elastica 'Variegata') with green and white leaves in a terracotta pot, placed on a light-colored surface against a plain light background.

Medical Disclaimer: I am not a medical doctor, and nothing shared through this website or in our work together is intended to be medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. This information is not a substitute for care from a licensed medical professional.

I strongly recommend that you work with a qualified medical provider—ideally one who is knowledgeable about the mind-body connection—while engaging in this work.

Always consult your physician or another licensed healthcare provider regarding any medical concerns, symptoms, or treatment decisions. Do not disregard or delay seeking medical advice based on information provided here.

Interested in working together?

Fill out the form to the right to get in touch. You can also email diana@somahousecounseling.com. 

I will get back to you within 24 hours, and together we’ll find a time that works for your first session.

A woman with short hair wearing a gray shirt and pink striped pants assists a woman with dark hair, wearing a striped shirt and colorful skirt, at a rural or outdoor setting with a walker.

Okay, I’m interested, but skeptical.

I get it, I was too.

But then I remembered learning about phantom limb pain in Haiti. Most of the amputee patients I worked with complained of pain in their missing foot. They were confused and embarrassed.

Pain. In a foot that wasn’t there. How?!

Because all pain is created by the brain, based on how much danger it thinks we are in.

Even more surprising:

With mirror therapy, their brains would “see” the missing limb again. This signaled to their brain they were safe, and then the pain would start to fade.

If your brain can create real pain in a foot that is not there, it can also learn that you’re safe again, and let that pain go.

“The nervous system’s number one job is to protect you — even if that means creating pain to slow you down or keep you safe.” 

— Dr. Sarno

A woman in outdoor gear, including a tan cap and checkered jacket, sitting on a rock in a foggy forest, taking notes in a notebook.

Working With Me Will Be a Good Match If:

  • You’re open to the idea that the mind and body are deeply connected.

  • You are curious about the neuroscience of how symptoms can be caused by the brain.

  • You prefer to get to the root of what’s going on rather just manage surface-level symptoms.

  • You’re ready to explore the coping patterns that once protected you but may no longer serve you, and to approach those parts of yourself with compassion and care.

  • Learn in a supportive community

  • Explore mind-body connection together

  • Feel seen and understood

Group Therapy for Chronic Pain and Other Symptoms

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Close-up of dark green, glossy leaves on a plant against a plain, light gray background.