INJURY & SURGERY RECOVERY

With the current practice of performing surgeries on an outpatient basis, a higher incidence of patients developing unexpected chronic pain is resulting from unmanaged post-surgical acute pain. Individuals struggle to manage post-surgery recovery on their own and often miss or ignore the signs of potential chronic pain development.

Tonia Anderson, Calgary psychologist specializing in injury and surgery recovery.

An Innovative Approach to Pain Management & Chronic Pain Prevention

While the influence of psychological and social factors on pain development and persistence are now widely accepted, the integration of presurgical counselling has yet to be practiced with our healthcare system.

Preoperative counselling and proactive intervention during the acute stage of injury recovery is a key factor in chronic pain prevention and return to peak performance levels. The common practice of assessing the client’s biological risks for surgery, such as anesthesia risk factors, fails to address the risks for pain chronicity development. Once pain has become chronic in nature, it is much harder to treat than preventing the chronicity in the first place.

For individuals facing surgery, Tonia evaluates risk factors for the development of chronic pain, collaborates to create a customized post-surgical support plan, and develops strategies for post-operative pain management tailored to the specific needs of each client. Follow-up sessions, help address unforeseen recovery challenges and pain flare-ups.