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Chronic pain can feel unbearable at times and therefore it is understandable why it can impact your mental wellbeing, leading to symptoms of depression and anxiety.

Having chronic pain may affect your ability to carry out daily activities, such as working, engaging in your hobbies, having a social life, and taking care of yourself or others. As a result, you may feel low or anxious, which in turn can make your experience of pain worse. This can create a vicious cycle.

Self-refer

If you are suffering from anxiety, depression, post-traumatic stress disorder, low mood or excessive worry, NHS Talking Therapies can provide you with advice, guidance and support.

Support & resources

Book: Neck And Back Pain: A Practical Guide to Getting on With Your Life (2011)

Authors: Dr Chris Jenner
Publisher: Robinson; UK ed.
Dr Chris Jenner has studied for many years in the field of Pain Medicine and works with sufferers of these and other chronic pain conditions in his roles as consultant in Pain Medicine and Anaesthesia at St Mary’s Hospital, London, and as Director of London Pain Clinic.

Book: Living beyond your pain: Using acceptance and commitment therapy to ease pain (2006)

Based on acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT), one of the most promising and fastest growing psychotherapies being practiced today, this book breaks with conventional notions of pain management.

Authors: Joanne Dahl and Tobias Lundgren

Book: Overcoming Chronic Pain: A self-help guide using cognitive behavioural techniques

This self-help book is based on highly effective self-help methods developed by specialists and used in community and hospital pain management programmes.


2nd Edition (2020)
Authors: Frances Cole, Helen MacDonald and Catherine Carus

App: getUBetter

An easy, safe and effective way to help you self-manage your musculoskeletal pain at home, work and on the move.

The app provides evidence-based digital self-management support for all common musculoskeletal conditions and injuries, including: Low back pain.

Find out more

Useful links

Watch our video to listen to Katie Orr, Psychological Wellbeing Practitioner at VitaMinds who runs the ‘Living Well with MSK Pain’ course, talks about the course and the referral process in more detail here

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Mental Health

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