When we’re faced with surgery, the expectation of pain and the unknowns of recovery can be just as daunting as the procedure itself. But what if I told you that the pain we anticipate might not be purely physical? Some of it, known as "neuroplastic pain," is actually created from our fears—the mind’s reaction to surgery, the healing process, or the pain itself.
This is where Pain Reprocessing Therapy (PRT) and Hypnotherapy come in as allies in healing, offering powerful tools to navigate and even reduce our experience of post-surgical pain. These therapies allow us to tap into our mind’s power, creating a pathway not only to a smoother recovery but also to a stronger belief in our body’s ability to heal itself.
Understanding Neuroplastic Pain and Surgery-Related Fears
Regardless of how commonplace the surgery may be, there are still fears that can arise about the procedure, the aftermath, and your body’s recovery. These fears, although normal and very common can create what’s called neuroplastic pain. Unlike the pain from the surgery itself, neuroplastic pain is created from fear.
To break it down into simple terms, fear causes your brain and nervous system to go on high alert; fear puts you into a hypervigilant state. This hypervigilance can also start to impact your pain perception as your brain starts to become hypervigilant to sensations in the body.
There are sensations happening in your body all the time -your intestines pushing food, your heart beating, blood flowing, micro tensions in your muscles as you move, and so on.
Most of these sensations go unnoticed because your brain has decided that they are safe, and because your conscious mind can only be aware of so many things at once, most of those sensations lie outside of your awareness. Of course, at any time you can tune into your body’s sensations – this means bringing your conscious awareness to them.
When you experience sensations that your brain decides are dangerous, such as stubbing your toe or getting a paper cut, your brain will send signals of danger in the form of pain. This is what pain actually is – it’s a danger signal sent from your brain, warning you that something is wrong.
However, when your brain is fearful and hypervigilant, it can start to interpret all sensations as if they are threatening and dangerous, and send the signal of pain when any sensation is noticed. This type of pain feels exactly like pain from an actual injury – pain is pain, no matter how it originates. It’s just as painful and just as real to the person experiencing it.
Where neuroplastic pain differs from structural (or injury-induced) pain is that instead of the pain being fueled by injuries or structural damage, it’s fueled by fear. And because of this, you can eliminate neuroplastic pain by simply eliminating fear.
Pain Reprocessing Therapy (PRT) for Pain Relief After Surgery
This is where Pain Reprocessing Therapy (PRT) comes in. PRT is a simple technique that reduces fear and helps the brain to interpret sensations properly, therefor, reducing or even eliminating neuroplastic pain all together.
What does this mean for post-surgical pain? It means that any pain that is caused by the fear of the pain, or the fear of recovery can be eliminated with a very simple mind-body technique.
Does this mean that all pain from a surgery can be eliminated? No, there is a level of pain we can expect from post-surgical recovery, which is the pain caused by the incision and surgery itself. However, you might be surprised to see just how much of the post-surgical pain is neuroplastic.
Using PRT for pain relief after surgery is all about reducing the fear of the pain itself. You might be wondering; how do I reduce the fear of pain? It’s in the way you perceive it. Pain Reprocessing Therapy is a technique that guides you to interpret the sensations of pain differently, therefor reducing the fear you feel towards it.
Don’t worry if this sounds like a difficult feat, after all, our instinctual response to pain is fear. Using your conscious awareness, you can alter the way you think about the pain and begin to fear it less.
Some common strategies I use with my clients include:
Detach yourself from the sensation by imagining you are observing it on a tv screen in your mind.
Imagine letting go of the need to control this sensation. Remind yourself that any sensation you feel is only evidence that your body is healing.
Practice observing the sensation only for what it is in the current moment. For example, perhaps it is a dull ache, or pulsing pressure – watch that you aren’t catastrophizing the sensations and instead, simply observing what you notice right now.
These are just a few ways to begin to interpret the sensations differently, reducing the fear of the pain itself. This is the primary goal of Pain Reprocessing Therapy. When the brain no longer fears the pain, the brain can then interpret the sensation properly, commonly resulting in a noticeable decrease in pain.
Reducing Pain After Surgery: Real Client Results
To illustrate how rapid the results of Pain Reprocessing Therapy are, I’ll share real client results. To maintain my client’s privacy, I will refer to her as Jane.
Jane had undergone liver surgery just two weeks before our session where they had removed a significant percentage of her liver. At the time of our session, she was in a lot of pain. The session was originally scheduled to work on something completely different, but when we started the session and I realized how much pain she was in, I suggested we focus the session on pain relief after her surgery instead, and she very happily agreed.
I started by explaining the role of fear in neuroplastic pain, and how her pain levels could be influenced by her fear of the pain. I then explained Pain Reprocessing Therapy and the simple technique that we would use.
Once her questions were answered I began by asking her to close her eyes and begin to observe the sensations. At the beginning of our session, she described the intensity of the pain as 8/10. However, as we started the process of reframing the sensations, she very quickly noticed the pain decreasing. After only minutes, the pain reduced to 4/10 and she described the pain as much more manageable.
We finished up the session by doing a hypnosis focused on stress reduction, visualizing her healing and trusting in her body’s ability to heal. I send the hypnosis recording home with her and recommended she listen daily to reinforce the positive suggestions.
I also walked her through the Pain Reprocessing Therapy technique again and advised her to use the technique any time she felt increased pain, training her brain to observe the sensations from her surgery as safe.
These techniques aren’t magic and won’t cause miraculous healing after surgery. However, Jane did experience a very rapid decrease in her pain levels after just minutes of implementing the Pain Reprocessing technique.
Each day that she listens to the hypnosis recording, she is reducing fears and stress around her recovery, and mentally rehearsing a smooth healing from surgery.
Is My Pain Neuroplastic?
Do you suffer from chronic pain or a chronic condition? Are you curious to know if your pain can be healed with a mind-body approach? Find out with my Neuroplastic Pain Quiz. Enter your details below and I'll send it straight to your inbox.
With this detailed, 30 question quiz you'll discover if your pain is neuroplastic and therefore, can be healed with a mind-body approach.
Hypnotherapy for Accelerated Healing After Surgery
Hypnotherapy can be an incredible tool for pain relief and healing after surgery. Hypnotherapy’s role in surgery recovery is to help you believe that your body has the ability to heal quickly and smoothly, and to keep you optimistic about your recovery.
Hypnotherapy is a technique that puts you in a meditative state where you can bypass your conscious mind and receive suggestions that can help reframe your beliefs and ultimately aid in your recovery.
A typical post-surgical hypnosis will include visualizations of your body healing; wounds closing up, muscles repairing, white blood cells repairing damage, and so on. It will also include positive suggestion about the body’s ability to heal itself, expecting and anticipating a smooth recovery, and an overall increase in trust that the healing processes are taking place.
These positive suggestions reduce stress and fear after surgery and put the mind to work, aiding in a speedy recovery. When we visualize our body in a state of wellness, we’re not only reinforcing a positive outcome mentally but also creating a physiological response that supports healing.
The Science of Visualization in Healing & Pain Management
Research shows that visualization has a measurable impact on healing. Studies have found that guided imagery can reduce pain perception, stress, and even inflammation levels. Johns Hopkins Medicine highlights that visualization can significantly help manage pain, reduce stress, and improve symptoms associated with various conditions.
Techniques such as guided imagery enable patients to mentally picture a pain-free state, contributing to a greater sense of well-being and control, which can be incredibly beneficial for recovery.
Furthermore, Duke Health's resources on mind-body techniques underscore the power of visualization and guided imagery to accelerate physical recovery. Their studies indicate that mental imagery can improve outcomes by promoting a calm and focused recovery mindset, which is beneficial for the nervous system's role in healing.
These studies and others like them underscore the mind's role in physical healing, showing that what we imagine can indeed impact what we feel.
Conclusion
Incorporating Pain Reprocessing Therapy and Hypnotherapy into your post-surgical healing isn’t about ignoring pain or dismissing it—it’s about creating a partnership between your mind and body. When we allow ourselves to see pain in a new light and believe in our body’s natural resilience, we unlock a new level of healing that reaches beyond the physical.
Remember, you are not alone in your pain or fears. By exploring these therapies, you’re embracing a profound opportunity to connect with your body, trust in its ability to heal, and find a deeper sense of peace along the way.
If you are healing from surgery and want a personalized plan to integrate these modalities, you can book a free consultation to speak with me directly, or simply book a session now.
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