Cheryl,

Sorry to hear about the flare and hoping that you find relief from it soon. Someone told me that once pain sets in, a system is established and it easier for the cascade to occur. When sucesfully interrupted for a while, there is less of this "pain set" for the pain to continue. I don't know if I am explaining that well enough. Another way of saying it: when you have pain you are more likely to have pain and when you don't have pain you are less likely to have pain.

I understand the somatic evoked potential test to be quite painful. I remember a client describing it to me. She told me that after the testing the psychologist asked her if it was very painful and she replied, "Hold on a minute and hand me my cane, I will let you know!" She said he wouldn't hand her the cane until he got up and stepped away from her.

Best regards,

jcwinnie

Why Does It Hurst So Bad. Artist: Colleen Ross. Copyright: Fingerhut.