Pain Psychotherapy Canada Inc.

Pain Psychotherapy Canada Inc. Pain Psychotherapy Canada’s mission is to support clients in greatly reducing their chronic pain.

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Disclaimer: The information provided by Pain Psychotherapy Canada Inc., and its director Tanner Murtagh, on this page is for general informational and educational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional advice, psychotherapy, or counselling. Please Read
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STARVE THE PATHWAY.That’s how the brain changes.Neuroplastic Pain & Symptoms. OCD. Addiction.Same rules!With chronic pai...
06/08/2026

STARVE THE PATHWAY.
That’s how the brain changes.

Neuroplastic Pain & Symptoms. OCD. Addiction.
Same rules!

With chronic pain & symptoms, every time you:
• fear it or fight with it
• focus on it
• avoid because of it
…you strengthen the circuit.

OCD & ADDICTIONS WORK THE SAME WAY
Compulsions and cravings survive because they get reinforced.

TO RETAIN THE BRAIN:
Stop feeding the pathway.
• Less fear
• Less checking
• Less reacting
• More living
The brain learns:
“This signal no longer matters.”

STARVE IT OUT!
Neural pathways need fuel to survive.
No fuel = weaker circuit.
Weaker circuit = less pain/symptoms

Healing chronic pain and symptoms starts with showing up for yourself. Learning your pain/symptoms are neuroplastic can ...
06/07/2026

Healing chronic pain and symptoms starts with showing up for yourself.

Learning your pain/symptoms are neuroplastic can feel like a lot of responsibility - for your own healing!

Your doctor cannot help you retrain your brain.
Education is key, but all the knowledge needs to be applied personally.
Counselling can be a big help, but it’s still up to you!

Nobody can take responsibility for changing your internal and external world except YOU.

We know that’s hard to hear. And honestly, we know how scary that responsibility feels. We’ve lived it ourselves, and we help folks in their healing every day.

But if healing your chronic symptoms is your goal, every day. Even when you feel like giving up, giving in, or shutting down. You have to remind yourself each day.

“I am going to show up for myself today. That means thinking differently about my body, engaging in consistent graded exposure, and practicing embodiment.”

What are you doing lately, to show up for yourself? Let us know in the comments!

One of the biggest misconceptions about neuroplastic healing is that you have to be 100% convinced before you start.In r...
06/06/2026

One of the biggest misconceptions about neuroplastic healing is that you have to be 100% convinced before you start.

In reality, most people begin with uncertainty. They may be skeptical, doubtful, or simply curious. But they decide to stay open enough to explore a different possibility.

Then they start noticing things:
✨ Symptoms shifting or moving
✨ Less fear around symptoms
✨ Better days appearing unexpectedly
✨ Growing evidence that the body isn’t actually damaged

Those small healing wins become evidence. And over time, belief grows naturally; not because someone talked them into it, but because their own experience starts showing them a different story.

You don’t need complete certainty to begin. You just need enough openness to try.

You need to grow your life bigger than your symptoms!The goal is not to spend your whole life healing. The goal is to ge...
06/05/2026

You need to grow your life bigger than your symptoms!

The goal is not to spend your whole life healing. The goal is to get back to living.

Healing can accidentally turn into another pressureful, fixating task.

This pressure and intensity keeps the nervous system in survival mode.

Healing happens when you practice graded exposure, and get back to the rewards of:
•Social Connection
• Hobbies
• Purposeful Action
• Play
• Feeling the Power of Your Body
• Fun!

What can you do for your nervous system today?
• Go outside
• Laugh with someone
• Create something
• Get focused on something else of value
• Enjoy some exercise (at your own pace of course!)

New experiences of living life with a sense of safety overwrite the danger pathways in your brain.

Not everyone experiences instant relief after learning about neuroplastic pain and symptoms, and that’s okay.For many, h...
06/04/2026

Not everyone experiences instant relief after learning about neuroplastic pain and symptoms, and that’s okay.

For many, healing is slower, messier, and more gradual than expected. If you’re feeling discouraged, it doesn’t mean you’re doing it wrong.

Real healing often begins when we stop desperately searching for the fix and start showing up with curiosity, patience, and consistency.

Keep going. You got this!

06/03/2026

Why are you still stuck in chronic pain, fatigue, anxiety, or other persistent symptoms even though you are doing brain retraining, somatic practices, or nervous system work?

In this video, I explain one of the biggest reasons people stall in healing chronic symptoms.

The problem is often not that you failed.
The problem is that your healing approach is too narrow.

Many people search for one perfect solution such as somatic tracking, journaling, safety messages, meditation, or nervous system regulation practices. While these tools can absolutely help, chronic symptoms are complex and often require a more comprehensive healing approach.

To truly heal, your nervous system needs safety across multiple areas of life.

In this video, you will learn the 5 key healing areas that help reduce chronic symptoms over time:

✨ Changing fearful thoughts and beliefs about your body
✨ Brain retraining and graded exposure
✨ Nervous system regulation and emotional processing
✨ Trauma processing
✨ Creating social safety and meaningful connection

One of the most important discoveries in pain science: Pain is not an accurate measure of tissue damage.In this famous s...
06/02/2026

One of the most important discoveries in pain science: Pain is not an accurate measure of tissue damage.
In this famous study, participants experienced MORE pain simply from seeing a red light instead of a blue one, despite the physical stimulus being identical.

Why?
Because the brain predicts danger based on context, memory, meaning, and expectation.

This is called predictive coding.

Your brain is constantly interpreting whether you are safe or unsafe, and pain is one of the outputs of that interpretation.

This does NOT mean pain is imagined. It means pain is deeply influenced by the nervous system and the brain’s protective mechanisms.

And that’s hopeful, because a brain-based approach can often reverse this type of chronic pain.

Reference:
Moseley, G. L., & Arntz, A. (2007). The context of a noxious stimulus affects the pain it evokes. Pain, 133(1–3), 64–71.

Many people with chronic symptoms:• can’t find clear physical answers• have tried multiple treatments• feel stuck, frust...
06/01/2026

Many people with chronic symptoms:

• can’t find clear physical answers
• have tried multiple treatments
• feel stuck, frustrated, or hopeless

Symptoms like:

• chronic pain
• fatigue
• migraines
• dizziness
• IBS
• Long COVID
• fibromyalgia

can often become neuroplastic.

That’s why we developed: The Somatic Safety Method A comprehensive approach that targets:

• fear of your body and symptoms
• nervous system dysregulation
• trauma responses
• unprocessed emotions
• social danger

The Somatic Safety Method gives you a step-by-step healing system to help you:

✓ retrain your brain
✓ regulate your nervous system
✓ reduce pain and symptoms
✓ gradually return to movement and life

Created by specialized therapists using evidence-based strategies.

Healing is possible.
If you’re ready to take a comprehensive approach to chronic pain and symptoms, check out the Somatic Safety Method course today.

Link in bio.

Who has been the MOST influential person in your mind-body healing journey?A therapist? Doctor? Author? Creator? Or frie...
05/31/2026

Who has been the MOST influential person in your mind-body healing journey?

A therapist? Doctor? Author? Creator? Or friend?

Consider who has helped you:
• Stop fearing symptoms
• Understand neuroplastic pain/symptoms
• Regulate your nervous system
• Process trauma
• Feel hope again
• Believe healing was possible

Bring gratitude for them - call their helpful presence to mind! And if you’d like, drop their name below!

Let’s build a powerful healing resource for this community.

My colleague and friend Dr. Schubiner’s new book, UNLEARN YOUR PAIN, offers an important and compassionate look at chron...
05/30/2026

My colleague and friend Dr. Schubiner’s new book, UNLEARN YOUR PAIN, offers an important and compassionate look at chronic pain, anxiety, fatigue, depression, and the brain-body connection, helping readers better understand pathways to healing and recovery.

UNLEARN YOUR PAIN is available now on Amazon in hardcover and audiobook formats. To learn more or order UNLEARN YOUR PAIN, visit the link in ’s bio!

Address

PO Box 49003 RPO Ogden
Calgary, AB
T2C3W5

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