Egoscue Commentary: Pain Free: Introduction

A short commentary on the Egoscue Method book:

PAIN FREE: A Revolutionary Method for Stopping Chronic Pain
Pete Egoscue with Roger Gittines

The 'legal' disclaimer.

I *love* this about Egoscue. No consulting your physician. You should know whether you are capable of going through this book or not. It's all about personal responsibility, from page one.

INTRODUCTION

The focus: 'the body's inner power to heal itself and to be pain free'. 'Being pain free takes personal effort and commitment'. That's right - it's up to you, not Advil or Dr. Orthopedist. YOU. And remember, your was is the 'easy way out'.

A Quick Guide to Using 'Pain Free' (pg. xviii)
1. Read the first three chapters. Get the background. Egoscue first introduces here his philosophy of 'design motion' which he elaborates on later.
2. Skim through all the chapters. Your foot is connected to your shoulder. If your foot hurts, you should at least have a basic idea of what's going on with your shoulder.
3. Go to the chapter that focuses on your condition. Only now. After you've gotten the background.
4. Don't just read it, do the exercises, daily and in order.

I would add that it may help to jot down the changes that you notice in your body during and after the exercises. You will be better able to track your progress.

Now, Egoscue puts forth his business plan (pg. xix): ask a client what he / she expects from the Method. Then deliver, and inform how much time it will take and how it will cost. If the client does not feel better, the visit is free.

Wow. Imagine that, a responsible health care practitioner. How many times have I walked out of physical therapists offices in more pain than I came in? 'That's just how it goes', I was told. Boy were they wrong.

Egoscue goes on to ask his readers to put forth these questions to their health care practitioners: Not what is wrong, but why is there pain? And what do the diagnostic tests have to do with the cause of the problem? I'll venture further to state that this line of questioning should extend beyond musculoskeletal conditions.