Topic Overview:Over 47,000 people died from an overdose of opioids in the United States in 2017. The prescription of, misuse, and addiction to these drugs are decimating a generation of Americans. Heroin use and fentanyl overdose deaths are on the rise. This epidemic was born in another epidemic: chronic pain. This session will review how we got to this point, the nature of the epidemic, pain treatment and addiction, and solutions for changing course at this crucial time.
Objectives:- Describe principles of chronic pain, including central nervous system processing and the brain’s response to pain and suffering.
- Identify the effects of emotional distress on increasing chronic pain.
- Discuss techniques to manage opioid dependence and the experience of recovery from chronic pain with clinical methods including mindfulness, CBT, DBT and ACT.
