In this episode of the Constructed Awareness Podcast, Tyler Orr (developer of CA) and Christina Kantzavelos (integrative psychotherapist) explore how Constructed Awareness can help people with chronic pain. They explain that pain is generated in the brain, not the body, which means that mental health professionals can play a key role in pain treatment. The conversation covers: - The three principles of Constructed Awareness: - Awareness brings change. - All experiences are comprised of mental, sensation, and external building blocks. - People tend to orient to one building block more than others, and healing often involves tuning across them. - Personal stories of chronic pain and how both speakers found relief through awareness-based approaches. - Pain is a protective mechanism that can become stuck, especially when the nervous system is overwhelmed. - Tuning as a technique to shift awareness gently between thoughts, sensations, and external input. - Research supporting CA’s effects on trauma and chronic pain. - How CA can support regulation and help uncover and process the emotional roots of pain. The episode ends with encouragement for those struggling with pain and an invitation to learn more about CA training and therapy.
- Pain is real, even when not linked to tissue damage. It’s a brain-based protective response, not a something originating in the body.
- CA is a mindfulness-based, trauma-informed model that helps clients reconnect with disowned or underdeveloped parts of their experience.
- Tuning helps clients avoid overwhelm by shifting attention across different types of awareness, rather than diving straight into distressing material.
- The hosts suggest that chronic pain often arises from repressed emotional experiences, especially feelings of powerlessness.
- Many clients come to therapy expecting to accept a life with chronic pain, but end up experiencing transformation and relief.
- CA research has already shown early results in reducing symptoms of trauma and chronic pain.