Turning Pain into Purpose: Why Pain Coaching Matters
My Journey into Pain Coaching
I live with Complex Regional Pain Syndrome (CRPS), often called “the suicide disease.” It is considered the most painful condition a human being can endure. CRPS stripped me of nearly everything I once valued: my health, my career, my sleep, my relationships, and at times, my will to live.
I had been a relatively successful advertising executive, running global advertising agencies - and then, as CRPS progressed, I lost my agency. I lost jobs. I lost the rhythm of a normal life. Like so many with chronic pain, I spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on procedures, treatments, and medications. Each new intervention came with hope, but time and again, the relief was fleeting or nonexistent.
One morning, after yet another sleepless night, I went into work around 5:00 a.m. By 6:00 a.m., mentally exhausted and desperate, I typed into a search engine: “Is there a pain therapist or pain counselor I can talk to?”
That moment of searching changed my life.
I found pain coaching.
Pain coaching was not another procedure. It was not a prescription. It was not another attempt to “fix” me. Instead, it offered a new kind of support - one that gave me back a sense of agency, taught me how pain works in the brain and body, and helped me build tools to live a meaningful life despite CRPS.
That experience was so profound that I can say with certainty: pain coaching saved my life.
And that realization led me here - to becoming the CEO of Pain Coach Academy, the only NBHWC-approved training organization dedicated exclusively to training Pain Coaches. My mission today is clear: to scale PCA so that pain coaching becomes a standard of care for chronic pain worldwide.
What Coaching Is
Coaching is a professional partnership grounded in collaboration, trust, and client-driven growth. It is not therapy, consulting, or treatment. Instead, coaching helps clients move from where they are to where they want to be, by:
Focusing on strengths rather than deficits
Using powerful questions and reflective listening to spark self-discovery
Setting goals that align with values
Building accountability and motivation for sustainable change
The science behind coaching is grounded in self-determination theory, motivational interviewing, and behavior change research. Studies show that coaching improves self-efficacy, the belief in one’s ability to influence outcomes, which is a strong predictor of better health results [1].
What Pain Coaching Is
Pain Coaching is a specialized form of health and wellness coaching designed for people living with chronic pain. It combines:
Evidence-based coaching skills (goal setting, motivational interviewing, strengths-based exploration)
Pain neuroscience education (understanding how pain is generated in the nervous system, and how it can change)
Practical lifestyle skills (stress management, sleep hygiene, pacing, movement, nutrition, mindfulness)
Emotional support (reducing isolation, validating experiences, helping clients find hope and purpose)
At Pain Coach Academy, students learn not only the core competencies required by the National Board for Health and Wellness Coaches, but also advanced training specific to chronic pain, including:
How to coach pre-contemplative clients who may not believe change is possible
Understanding central sensitization and the brain’s role in pain [2]
Techniques for building resilience, reducing fear, and restoring function
Group coaching facilitation skills for community-based support
Why Pain Coaching Works
1. The Science of Pain
Modern neuroscience has shown that pain is not simply a signal from damaged tissue; it is an experience generated by the brain and nervous system. Chronic pain often persists not because of ongoing injury, but because the nervous system has become sensitized [3].
Pain neuroscience education (PNE) has been proven to reduce pain intensity, improve movement, and decrease fear in people with chronic pain [4]. Pain Coaching integrates PNE into a supportive relationship, helping clients understand their pain and respond differently to it.
2. Neuroplasticity
The brain is changeable! Through repeated experience and learning, the nervous system can rewire itself, a process known as neuroplasticity. Pain Coaching leverages this by guiding clients to experiment with new behaviors, thoughts, and strategies, reinforcing healthier patterns [5].
3. Self-Efficacy and Behavior Change
Research consistently shows that higher self-efficacy predicts better outcomes in chronic illness [6]. Pain Coaching fosters self-efficacy by empowering the client, breaking down goals into manageable steps, and celebrating progress.
4. Reducing Isolation
Chronic pain is isolating. Many clients feel misunderstood or dismissed by the medical system. Pain Coaching offers a safe and validating relationship. In group coaching, clients also discover they are not alone, which is itself therapeutic [7].
Who Pain Coaching Helps
Pain Coaches work with people across the chronic pain spectrum, including:
CRPS, fibromyalgia, migraines, arthritis, back pain, neuropathy, cancer-related pain
Veterans and first responders managing long-term pain injuries
Individuals adjusting to life after surgery, trauma, or life-altering injury or illness
People who are “pre-contemplative” and do not yet believe recovery is possible
Caregivers and family members seeking tools to better support loved ones
Formats of Pain Coaching
One-to-One Coaching: Personalized sessions focused on the individual’s goals and challenges.
Group Coaching: Small groups facilitated by a coach, providing peer support, education, and collective motivation.
Clinical Integration: Increasingly, Pain Coaches are being integrated into clinics, rehabilitation programs, and the VA system.
Independent Practice: Many coaches establish private practices, offering virtual sessions worldwide.
Outcomes and Benefits
Clients who engage in Pain Coaching often report:
Reduced pain intensity
Improved sleep and mood
Increased activity and function
Decreased reliance on medications or passive treatments
A stronger sense of control and purpose
Less fear, more resilience
A general ability to be able to do more and step back into the life that was lost
Published evidence supports these outcomes. For example:
PNE studies show reductions in pain and disability in chronic low back pain [8].
Coaching interventions improve adherence, reduce hospital readmissions, and enhance quality of life across chronic conditions [9].
Social support is a well-documented predictor of better pain outcomes, which coaching directly fosters [10].
From Client to Coach
One of the most inspiring patterns we see is that many clients who benefit from pain coaching later feel called to become coaches themselves. Lived experience creates empathy. Those who know what it feels like to lose hope often become the best at restoring it for others. Pain Coach Academy proudly trains these individuals, equipping them with the skills and credentials to serve in a professional, heart-centered role. Reciprocity is obviously beneficial for the person receiving, but giving healing is also a form of self-healing; this is medicine for you, too!
Two Invitations
If you are living with chronic pain: Consider exploring pain coaching. Find a Pain Coach and take a step toward regaining agency and hope.
If you feel called to help others: Consider becoming a Pain Coach. Learn more about Pain Coach Academy’s training. Your pain may become your purpose.
Because pain coaching helped save my life. And I believe it can change yours.
References
Bandura A. Self-efficacy: Toward a unifying theory of behavioral change. Psychological Review. 1977.
Woolf CJ. Central sensitization: Implications for the diagnosis and treatment of pain. Pain. 2011.
Apkarian AV, Hashmi JA, Baliki MN. Pain and the brain: Specificity and plasticity of the brain in clinical chronic pain. Pain. 2011.
Louw A, Zimney K, Puentedura EJ, Diener I. The efficacy of pain neuroscience education on musculoskeletal pain: A systematic review of the literature. Physiother Theory Pract. 2016.
Doidge N. The Brain That Changes Itself. Viking Penguin; 2007.
Marks R, Allegrante JP, Lorig K. A review and synthesis of research evidence for self-efficacy–enhancing interventions for reducing chronic disability: Implications for health education practice. Health Promot Pract. 2005.
Cacioppo S, Cacioppo JT. Social relationships and health: The toxic effects of perceived social isolation. Soc Personal Psychol Compass. 2014.
Louw A, Diener I, Butler DS, Puentedura EJ. The effect of neuroscience education on pain, disability, anxiety, and stress in chronic musculoskeletal pain. Arch Phys Med Rehabil. 2011.
Wolever RQ, Simmons LA, Sforzo GA, et al. A systematic review of the literature on health and wellness coaching: Defining a key behavioral intervention in healthcare. Glob Adv Health Med. 2013.
Uchino BN. Social support and health: A review of physiological processes potentially underlying links to disease outcomes. J Behav Med. 2006.
