In this episode of The Pain Podcast, Tim Beames and Bart van Buchem explore a deceptively simple question: can assessment itself be therapeutic?

Drawing on clinical experience from both in-person and online practice, they unpack how physical examinations are never neutral acts. Every question asked, every movement explored, and every test performed can shape expectations, build trust, reduce threat — or sometimes unintentionally increase it.

Rather than viewing assessment as a box-ticking exercise, Tim and Bart discuss assessment as a shared process of sense-making. They explore:

• How validation, reassurance, and curiosity can emerge before any treatment begins

• The difference between testing and exploring

• Why over-testing can sometimes increase uncertainty or fear

• How assessments can update internal models and predictions about the body

• The role of safety, trust, and co-creation in early clinical encounters

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In this episode of The Pain Podcast, Tim Beames and Bart van Buchem take on a big, often buzzword-y topic: neuroplasticity in pain recovery.

Starting from a real patient encounter (“I think this is about my neuroplasticity…”), they explore what this term actually means, where it comes from, and how to use it in a way that supports – rather than scares or blames – people living with persistent pain.

You’ll hear them discuss:

• Neuroplasticity as ongoing adaptation and change, not just “brain rewiring”.

• The shift from a narrow neuro focus to a broader bioplasticity lens across multiple systems.

• The problem with “maladaptive plasticity” and “broken pathways” language – and how it can reinforce a sense of defectiveness.

• How difference and context (holidays, relationships, movement, meditation, therapy, altered states) create new embodied experiences that can open the door to change.

• The role of salience, reward and emotional tone in determining whether change is large enough – and meaningful enough – to stick.

• Why recovery often shows up first as better participation, connection and quality of life, even when pain scores don’t shift dramatically.

Tim and Bart also reflect on popular “rewire your brain” narratives, highlighting where the metaphor can be helpful and where it risks oversimplifying complex science.

This episode is for you if:

• You’re a clinician trying to talk about neuroplasticity without slipping into hype or hopelessness.

• You work with people whose pain has become the “status quo” and are looking for ways to create safe, meaningful difference.

• You live with persistent pain and want a validating, nuanced explanation that doesn’t blame your brain or your beliefs.

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Pain can steal roles, confidence, and connection. Tim and Bart explore how to spot identity loss and how to guide patients toward a values-led, reconstructed sense of self using language, movement, small wins, and co-created experiments.

• Why identity matters: chronic pain often causes biographical disruption—a break in the story of “who I am.”

• Neuro/psycho frame: predictive processing and the “model of me”—how ongoing threat can dominate self-inference.

• Clinician toolkit:

  • Narrative reframing (precision over catastrophising).

  • Values clarification (ACT-informed prompts that patients can actually answer).

  • Small wins & the Three Gifts practice to re-evidence competence and joy.

  • Co-creation & teams to expand the landscape of affordances.

• Vignettes: CRPS-style limb disownership language; makeup/hair example as “new me” exploration.

• Micro-experiments: safe, graded role re-entries across movement, connection, work, and creativity.

Resources Mentioned:

• Le Pub Scientifique Free Membership (includes Sleep Clinical Action Plan).

• Prior conversations with Lance McCracken, Laura Rathbone, Bronnie Lennox Thompson (in the Le Pub library).

Connect & Subscribe: Le Pub Scientifique—free membership for clinicians & people living with pain. Share the episode if it helped you or your patients.

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Up to three-quarters of people with persistent pain report sleep problems. Tim and Bart dig into why sleep disruption boosts sensitivity (inflammation, circadian shifts, cortical filtering) and how targeted, realistic strategies can help—far beyond “no screens after 9.” Hear how to triage insomnia type, coach stimulus control and sleep-window tweaks, handle neuropathic night pain (yes, sometimes get up and move), and track progress weekly.

In this episode, Bart and Tim explore one of the most misunderstood terms in pain care: catastrophising. More than just negative thinking, this cognitive-emotional process is deeply rooted in attentional networks, threat prediction, and prior experiences.

We cover:

• The neuroscience of why catastrophic thinking increases pain

• The trap of premature reassurance or cognitive correction

• How to work with rumination, not against it

• Clinical tools that validate, reframe, and gently open space for possibility

With references to predictive processing, the Fear-Avoidance Model, and years of lived experience, this is a compassionate, grounded take for clinicians wanting to do better by their patients.

🎧 Bonus: Tim shares a personal story of following Michael Sullivan on stage—and what that taught him about catastrophising on both sides of the clinic!

👉 Listen now and reflect on: What’s one change you could make to your language this week?

In this episode of the Pain Podcast, Tim Beames and Bart Van Buchem tackle one of the most pressing challenges in pain care: how do we define success when pain doesn't go away?

They explore why the traditional pain scale often fails people with chronic conditions, and how clinicians can shift the narrative toward life expansion, not just pain elimination. From functional goals to emotional resilience, discover what meaningful progress really looks like — and why celebrating small wins can be transformative for both patients and therapists.

🎧 Topics include: – Why pain scales aren’t the full story – Alternative outcome measures that reflect real-life improvement – Reframing success: from reducing pain to living well with it – Building trust, confidence, and connection in long-term pain care

Perfect for clinicians, coaches, and anyone supporting people with persistent pain.

How do we respond when patients want immediate solutions to complex pain problems? In this reflective episode, Tim Beames and Bart Van Buchem explore one of the most common—and most challenging—clinical scenarios: the search for a quick fix.

Expect insights into:

• The psychology of urgency and fear in persistent pain

• Strategies for building rapport and redirecting unrealistic expectations

• Tools and metaphors (like “green vs red glasses”) to reframe pain experiences

• Real-life clinical stories that show how to meet patients where they are—without abandoning your professional values

Whether you’re a physio, doctor, or coach, this is essential listening for anyone working in complex care.

🎧 Follow and share if this episode resonates with your practice.