Vermilion The Pain-Free Mindset

I heard Dr Ravindran on a Radio 4 programme whose focus was a young woman he had treated who was in severe chronic pain. I was very impressed with his determined approach and when I looked on the internet I found he had written this book which I bought. The book turned to to be equally impressive and eye-opening. My daughter who is 28 has had chronic pain for 12 years due to Kienbock's Disease and she was keen to find an alternative to medication and surgeries (she has had two surgeries for pain relief, both of which made the pain significantly worse). This book offers a life line with a fresh approach to pain and gives the power back to the patient along with hope which is a wonderful thing. If you have chronic pain you have nothing to lose by reading this book and everything to gain. It is not a quick fix and requires persistence but it is worth the effort. By the way, my daughter subsequently had a consultation with Dr Ravindran and he highlighted 3 strategies for her. She came out feeling uplifted about her future.

Life changing. The advice itself is what we have heard time and time again- eat healthy, exercise, sleep, manage stress, etc. But the life changing part is understanding the “why”. I have a whole new respect for why I should do these things, and a whole new understanding on the underlying contributors to my chronic pain. I feel very hopeful reading this book and am grateful to the author.

I am a retired addictions counselor, who happens to have both osteoarthritis and fibromyalgia. In addition, my spouse is on disability, initially for ulner nerve pain, which has now spread to many sites in his body. Neither my husband or I choose to take opioids of any kind. Both of us need to take as few NSAIDS as possible, for other health concerns. I have worked with many, many other pain sufferers in my professional life, and in my recovery. This is the best patient-oriented book on pain I have read, written by a leading pain specialist for the National Health Service in England. Yes, some of the information is gathered from elsewhere, but some of the research information is very cutting edge. I know that, because I read several hours worth of medical journals a week, searching for clues on how to manage my fibromyalgia. I'd also like to keep my spouse from wanting to die from pain. The charts in the book are very clear and would help anyone with decisions over surgery and other interventions, meds to take and not take, alternative adjunct therapies to seek out or not. So much information here, clearly presented, and realistic. The only thing I don't like about this book is the title--it gives the false impression that this is just one more book saying you can overcome all pain with positive thinking or other mental gambits. That's not the approach this author recommends, not at all. Read the book in spite of its title, and buy another copy for your doctor. Something in here will be helpful, I assure you.

My Dr recommended this book to me to help manage my chronic pain, his advice was so spot on & the book has been a game changer. It has given me confidence in understanding my condition & making choices to really help my body recover. The book is well written with lots of case studies to help see theory put into practice. It's not full of Dr talk, or condescending in any way. I'm so very grateful for the recommendation & advice gained from the book. Whilst I'm still not 100% better I am definitely in a healthier positive mindset, which is helping my recovery.

Some good advice for controlling pain. Keep a log and track your activity so you gradually increase exercise. Start low, go slow, some very good advice when you are dealing with every day pain.