What if the best thing you could bring to a complex pain case… is curiosity instead of certainty?In this episode, Mark Kargela sits down with physical therapist and pelvic health specialist Faith Stokes to explore what trauma-informed, psychologically informed care actually looks like in practice. When patients present with persistent pain, grief, trauma, or complex comorbidities, rigid clinical labels and quick solutions often fail. Faith shares how clinicians can step back, regulate themselves, and create space for the patient’s story to guide care.

This conversation dives into practical ways to show up more human, grounded, and effective when treating messy cases that don’t fit the textbook.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

• Why you don’t need to be “the expert” in the room
• How clinician nervous system regulation changes patient outcomes
• What trauma-informed care actually looks like during treatment
• How curiosity improves clinical reasoning in complex pain cases
• Why acknowledging a patient’s story can transform rehabilitation
• How to integrate psychological awareness without abandoning physical treatment

If you treat persistent pain, pelvic health conditions, or complex chronic cases, this conversation will change how you approach patient care.

Subscribe for more conversations on modern pain care, clinical reasoning, and treating complexity.

Explore the resources and programs mentioned in the links below.

Link:

Sondermind
Complex PTSD Book
Holistically Treating Complex PTSD Book
IG Post on Veterans  Stress and Suicide

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Modern Pain Care is a company dedicated to spreading evidence-based and person-centered information about pain, prevention, and overall fitness and wellness

What if biomechanics isn’t the reason your patients improve?

And what if your best “tool” isn’t a tool at all?

In this episode, I sit down with exercise physiologist Samuel Bulten to unpack the identity shift many clinicians face when persistent pain doesn’t respond to traditional care.

We discuss:

• Why biomechanics has a weaker link to pain than we were taught
• The ego trap of being the “fixer” in the room
• How ACT and psychologically informed care change clinical conversations
• The tension between objective measures and meaningful life change
• Why therapeutic alliance may matter more than your technique
• How rural practice highlights the limits of biomedical narratives

If you’ve ever felt unsettled leaving school confident—only to feel lost with persistent pain cases—this conversation will help you recalibrate.

If you’re ready to build confidence with complex pain, subscribe for weekly episodes.

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Modern Pain Care is a company dedicated to spreading evidence-based and person-centered information about pain, prevention, and overall fitness and wellness

What if the guideline isn’t wrong—but incomplete?

And what if your patient isn’t “non-compliant”—just complex?

In this episode, I’m joined by Joost Van Wijchen to explore the tension between clinical guidelines and the messy reality of practice. We unpack the concept of mindlines—the experience-shaped frameworks that actually guide what we do—and why uncertainty isn’t a flaw in care, but part of it.

You’ll learn:

• Why guidelines are population-informed—but patients are personal
• How “mindlines” shape clinical reasoning more than we realize
• Why outcome measures like the Oswestry don’t tell the whole story
• How the capability approach shifts focus from impairments to meaningful freedom
• Practical ways to navigate uncertainty without losing clinical integrity
• How to co-construct care instead of imposing solutions

If you’ve ever felt the tension between measurable outcomes and meaningful outcomes, this conversation will resonate.

If this episode challenges or sharpens your thinking, subscribe and share it with a colleague.

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Modern Pain Care is a company dedicated to spreading evidence-based and person-centered information about pain, prevention, and overall fitness and wellness

Mindfulness for pain isn’t candles and breathing apps.

It’s measurable, mechanism-based analgesia.

In this episode, we break down what the neuroscience actually shows about mindfulness and pain modulation—and why it works through pathways completely independent of opioids.

You’ll learn:

• How mindfulness decouples sensation from suffering (insula vs. prefrontal activity)
• Why “trying to relax” can backfire—and what to cue instead
• How thalamic gating may reduce nociceptive input before conscious processing
• The role of predictive processing and reduced anticipatory threat (amygdala + salience network)
• How shifting from narrative mode to experiential mode changes pain
• Why mindfulness still works even when endogenous opioids are blocked
• How improved interoception supports emotional regulation in chronic pain

This is not about turning your clinic into an eight-week meditation program. It’s about understanding the mechanisms so you can apply brief, practical strategies in real sessions.

If you work with complex or persistent pain, this reframes mindfulness as a clinical skill—not a wellness add-on.

Subscribe so you don’t miss Part Two, where we cover the dose-response data and the minimum effective dose.

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Modern Pain Care is a company dedicated to spreading evidence-based and person-centered information about pain, prevention, and overall fitness and wellness

What do you do when a patient says, “I don’t care about goals—I just want less pain”?
This moment shows up every day in pain care—and how you respond can either reinforce stuckness or help someone get their life back.

In this episode, Mark Kargela breaks down why pain reduction isn’t wrong—but often incomplete—and how clinicians can navigate this conversation without invalidating the patient or taking away hope.

You’ll learn:
 • Why pain reduction alone can narrow a patient’s life
 • Red flags that someone is stuck in the pain reduction loop
 • How pain scores function as communication—not thermometers
 • How to use “creative hopelessness” without confrontation
 • Ways to pair short-term relief with long-term valued living
 • How to reframe goals when patients fear movement and activity

This episode is for clinicians who want practical, psychologically informed tools to manage complex pain conversations—without abandoning pain relief or overstepping their role.

If you work with persistent pain, this discussion will sharpen how you listen, how you frame goals, and how you help patients move forward—even when pain doesn’t fully disappear.

👉 Subscribe for weekly evidence-informed conversations on modern pain care. -  @ModernPainPodcast  

👉 Explore the links below for related resources and deeper learning:

• Kenneth Craig Paper on Social Communication Model of Pain 
• A biopsychosocial formulation of pain communication 
• Creative Hopelessness Guide 

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Modern Pain Care is a company dedicated to spreading evidence-based and person-centered information about pain, prevention, and overall fitness and wellness

🎙️ What happens when a clinician becomes the patient—and almost doesn’t survive?
 💥 HLH. ICU. Life support. Then… powerlifting again.

In this powerful episode, strength coach and physio Jared Maynard shares his shocking journey through a life-threatening diagnosis of HLH, his fight to stay alive, and what he learned about healthcare, humanity, and healing.

You’ll learn:

• What HLH is—and how it nearly ended Jared’s life
• The deep clinical lessons from losing strength, speech, and independence
• How small human moments in care created lasting impact
• What it’s like to rebuild your life, body, and mindset after ICU
• How Jared’s story reshaped his clinical work and coaching
• Why “being human” matters more than “having the answer”

Whether you’re burned out, feeling disconnected from your work, or want to show up better for patients—this story will move you.

👇 Subscribe for more clinician-to-clinician conversations.
 🧠 Join the Modern Pain Pro community.
🎓 Explore Pain Practice OS and start applying modern principles.

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Modern Pain Care is a company dedicated to spreading evidence-based and person-centered information about pain, prevention, and overall fitness and wellness

Part 2 goes from definitions to implications.

Bottom-up pain does not mean “it’s in the tissues.”

This episode is a recording of a live interview with pain researcher and clinician Asaf Weissman. If you haven’t watched Part 1, start there—we laid the foundation: why pain semantics matter, how mixed messages harm patients, and why “nothing is wrong with your body” is an overreach.

In Part 2, we dig into:

• What “always bottom up” actually means (and what it doesn’t)
• Structural paradigm vs pathophysiology: why imaging often fails us
• Why stress, fear, and emotions are usually modulators, not causes
• Threshold models: when trajectories may (and may not) be changeable
• The case for neuroimmune mechanisms in chronic pain states
• Where diagnostics and biologics may take chronic pain care next
• What role physios may play as case managers and guides

This is the second half of a two-part series. Part 1 builds the framework. Part 2 challenges how we interpret evidence, scope, and clinical uncertainty—while staying anchored to what helps the patient in front of you.

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Modern Pain Care is a company dedicated to spreading evidence-based and person-centered information about pain, prevention, and overall fitness and wellness

Chronic pain care is stuck—and definitions may be the reason.

In Part 1 of this two-part series, we reset how clinicians talk about nociception and pain.

This episode is a recording of a live interview with pain researcher and clinician Asaf Weissman, whose work explores the relationship between nociception and pain—and why confusion in the field creates real-world harm for patients.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

• Why “just semantics” becomes a patient trust problem
• How mixed messages (“all in your head” vs “tissue damage”) derail care
• Why “nothing is wrong with your body” is an overreach
• Where neuroimmune processes may fit in chronic pain biology
• Why psychological interventions tend to show only modest effects on pain intensity
• How clearer definitions could move research and practice forward

This is Part 1 of a two-part conversation. Here, we focus on the foundations—definitions, clinical frustration, and the biological plausibility behind what patients feel. Part 2 will go deeper into implications for treatment and the direction pain care needs next.

Subscribe for Part 2.

Join the Modern Pain Pro community.

Enroll in Pain Practice OS.

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Modern Pain Care is a company dedicated to spreading evidence-based and person-centered information about pain, prevention, and overall fitness and wellness

Enrolling our next cohort of Pain Practice OS soon - JOIN US!

Most back pain improves – but how we guide recovery makes all the difference.

In this part 2 conversation with Dr. Jim Eubanks, we dig into:

• First-line care for acute low back pain
• Why rest is often the worst advice
• The role (and limits) of hands-on care
• When and how pain procedures fit into a plan
• Clear guidance on when to refer to a physiatrist
• Navigating complex cases that stall in recovery
• Future potential (and current pitfalls) of regenerative medicine

This episode brings clarity and clinical confidence to some of the most debated decisions in spine care.

Subscribe for more evidence-aware guidance, and check the links below for show notes, resources, and clinician tools.

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Modern Pain Care is a company dedicated to spreading evidence-based and person-centered information about pain, prevention, and overall fitness and wellness

In this episode, Dr. Jim Eubanks, physiatrist and spine specialist, breaks down the most harmful back pain myths patients encounter online-and what clinicians can say instead. If you've ever struggled to help a patient move past catastrophic thinking or scary MRI language, this conversation will give you the tools to reframe pain, imaging, and recovery.

What you'll learn:

• Why "pain equals damage" keeps patients stuck in fear and avoidance
• How to translate radiology reports into plain language that empowers movement
• When imaging is actually necessary (and when it's not)
• The role of lifestyle, sleep, stress, and psychological factors in back pain recovery
• Why rehabilitation should almost always come first-even before imaging

This is part one of a two-part series. Part two dives into first-line care, injections, procedures, and when to involve a specialist.

🎧 Listen to the full podcast 

💬 Join Modern Pain Pro for mentorship, case discussions, and clinical resources → modernpaincare.com

📘 Learn about Pain Practice OS → Our flagship program for clinicians building local pain programs

Your work matters-let's build modern pain care together.

#BackPain #PhysicalTherapy #ChronicPain #PainScience #Physiatry #RehabFirst

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Modern Pain Care is a company dedicated to spreading evidence-based and person-centered information about pain, prevention, and overall fitness and wellness