The Mind-Body Couple

Make 2026 The Year You Heal Chronic Pain and Symptoms

• Tanner Murtagh and Anne Hampson • Episode 135

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Send your questions to be answered live on the podcast to: info@painpsychotherapy.ca

Ready to make 2026 the year you unlearn chronic pain or symptoms? We’re laying out 4 clear steps to heal.

We start by reframing chronic symptoms through a neuroplastic lens: when assessments are clear and physical fixes stall, it often means the body is capable but the brain’s danger system is overprotective.

From there, we dig into full commitment—trading treatment inconsistentcy for dedicated daily practices that teach safety. You’ll hear how small, measurable wins mark real change that leads to symptom reduction.

Next, we break down the sensitization cycle and how to respond to sensations with safety instead of danger. We discuss embodiment practices that help you approach pain with curiosity, pairing these practices with safety signals like slow breathing and grounded awareness.

Then we tackle the hidden rulebook—those “don’t bend, don’t eat, must stretch” rules that keep life small and fuel symptoms. We discuss how  graded exposure can retrain the brain and reclaim movement, foods, places, and activities one small step at a time.

Along the way, we share real-world examples, mindset shifts, and function-first goals that make this work feel doable and meaningful.

If you’re ready to replace fear with skills and grow your world again, hit play, save this one, and share it with someone who needs hope.

Subscribe for more mind-body tools, leave a review to support the show, and send us your question for our upcoming Q&A series.

Tanner Murtagh and Anne Hampson are therapists who treat neuroplastic pain and mind-body symptoms. They are also married! In his 20s, Tanner overcame chronic pain and a fibromyalgia diagnosis by learning his symptoms were occurring due to learned brain pathways and nervous system dysregulation. Post-healing, Tanner and Anne have dedicated their lives to developing effective treatment and education for neuroplastic pain and symptoms. Listen and learn how to assess your own chronic pain and symptoms, gain tools to retrain the brain and nervous system, and make gradual changes in your life and health!


The Mind-Body Couple podcast is owned by Pain Psychotherapy Canada Inc. This podcast is produced by Alex Klassen, who is one of the wonderful therapists at our agency in Calgary, Alberta. https://www.painpsychotherapy.ca/


Tanner, Anne, and Alex also run the MBody Community, which is an in-depth online course that provides step-by-step guidance for assessing, treating, and resolving mind-body pain and symptoms. https://www.mbodycommunity.com


Also check out Tanner's YouTube channel for more free education and practices: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-Fl6WaFHnh4ponuexaMbFQ


And follow us for daily education posts on Instagram: @painpsychotherapy


Discl...

SPEAKER_03:

Welcome to the Mind Body Couple podcast.

SPEAKER_00:

I'm Tana Murtaugh.

SPEAKER_03:

And I'm Ann Hampson.

SPEAKER_00:

This podcast is dedicated to helping you unlearn chronic pain and symptoms.

SPEAKER_03:

If you need support with your healing, you can book in for a consultation with one of our therapists at painpsychotherapy.ca.

SPEAKER_00:

Or purchase our online course at embodycommunity.com to access in-depth education, somatic practices, recovery tools, and an interactive community focused on healing. Links in the description of each episode. Hi everyone. Hi, everybody. Welcome, welcome. Welcome back. We are moving into 2026.

SPEAKER_03:

I know it's crazy. It's actually really hard to believe that it's 2026.

SPEAKER_00:

It is. So we have a good topic for today about this. Four ways to heal your chronic pain and illness in 2026.

SPEAKER_03:

What a perfect way to start off 2026, right?

SPEAKER_00:

Yes. Yes. So some side notes before we get started. For the next few months, me and Ann are only going to be releasing podcast episodes every two weeks.

SPEAKER_03:

Yes.

SPEAKER_00:

I'll still be releasing multiple videos every week on YouTube.

SPEAKER_03:

Of course. He loves it. So he would not let that stop.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah. But we have a big project that we're working on. So me, Ann, and our producer Alex need the extra time to get it done. But we are very excited over the coming months to share more about this with you. Yeah.

SPEAKER_03:

And please know that it's definitely worth the limited podcasts for when you see kind of our project come into completion.

SPEAKER_00:

So also a reminder: we are doing a QA podcast series in the new year.

SPEAKER_03:

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00:

So we really want to invite you to start to submit your questions because me and Ann are going to be answering them directly on the podcast. So what you can do is you're going to write out a brief summary of your pain or symptom experience and one question you would like us to answer. Please make this a maximum of one to two paragraphs. Right. Because there's a lot of questions coming in. So we just want to be timely with how we can handle the volume of questions coming in.

SPEAKER_03:

Totally, totally. Because we want to get to everyone's question. We also think this is really exciting because like this is if you're wondering things as you're listening to our podcast, this is really a way to pose that question and get it answered so you can stop kind of like getting stuck in your head about it.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah. Now you can submit these to info at painpsychotherapy.ca and our Min will guide you through all of that. But we will put the email address and the instructions in the description of this episode. So it's all in there for you if you do want to submit questions. So in 2026, we want you to make this the year that you heal your chronic pain and chronic illness.

SPEAKER_03:

Awesome. I think most people want that.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah. And, you know, we specialize as therapists in treating people's chronic pain and symptoms using this brain and nervous system approach. And we deeply believe that healing is possible using this approach.

SPEAKER_03:

Yes.

SPEAKER_00:

Now, why do we believe this?

SPEAKER_03:

We've seen it.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah. We've seen it happen. We've worked with, you know, in our therapy practice and also in our digital course, hundreds of people. And we've seen so many people get great reductions or eliminate their symptoms. Personally, I also healed debilitating widespread chronic symptoms. So I am very passionate about this topic, as people can probably tell, because it was completely life-changing for myself. And third, the neuroscience supports this approach.

SPEAKER_03:

Yes. And we want to emphasize this because I think that's important for everyone to know. People want to know that it's supported.

SPEAKER_00:

Yes, it is. This is science-backed. There is more and more research coming out to support that this is essentially for most people the best way to heal their chronic pain or chronic symptoms. So in today's episode, we are going to be talking about the four ways to heal your chronic pain and illness in 2026. So let's dive in. Right.

SPEAKER_03:

And so we'll start with number one. The most important one in a lot of ways, commit to using a brain and nervous system approach. And I want to highlight committing here.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah. So as we know, most forms of chronic pain and symptoms are neuroplastic. They are. And what this means is that people's body is not damaged or diseased. And the symptoms, the sensations are occurring because your brain has been stuck in this heightened state of danger and dysregulation for a long period of time.

SPEAKER_03:

And if you're someone that's been chasing assessments, been doing all the tasks, going to all the practitioners, but nothing's really being found, then there's a likelihood that this could be neuroplastic in nature.

SPEAKER_00:

Absolutely. And I'll add to that, nothing being found and the physical treatments have not been effective.

SPEAKER_03:

Why is it important to note that, Tenor?

SPEAKER_00:

Because it may mean that you're trying to treat your pain and symptoms in the wrong place. Yes. You know, as we know, when your symptoms are neuroplastic, your body's healthy and capable. So if you keep trying to treat the physical body, it's kind of like we're banging our head against the wall over and over again, but we're treating it in the wrong place. We need to shift our approach to the brain and nervous system.

SPEAKER_03:

And it's not uncommon, I think, a lot of people that I talk to will start to shift, but not fully. So back to that full commitment in a way, of like, okay, I believe, but I still entertain the uncertainty over here. And we want to start jumping in to this approach.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah, you're right about that because you I see so many people, and I get why. I don't say this in a judgmental way, because everyone's coming at a different place, a different level of readiness to dive in. But what'll happen is people are almost like ping-ponging back and forth between, oh no, there's something wrong with my body. I got to get another assessment, even though it's the 30th one I've gotten, or I got to try this new physical treatment. So they pause the brain and nervous system approach. And then that doesn't work. So they swing back over for a month to doing the brain and nervous system. And it's just like it's really hard to make progress when you don't spend some time and commits.

SPEAKER_03:

Well, no, something I want to say here is we do encourage people to go through their medical system and rule things out. But you're right, you said something by the 30th assessment or the 30th test that is not finding something, that tells us something.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah. And for people who are literal, we're saying 30 is a number is meaning a lot. But you know, it is important to get assessed and maybe do some physical treatments up front. But if it's not working, we want to shift to the brain and nervous system approach. Because neuroplastic symptoms are reversible. But as Anne's favorite word is, we need to be committed to doing it.

SPEAKER_03:

And then that's like daily practices and routines, and we'll talk about that a little bit of like things you can start being committed to. But we need to be implementing this into our lives.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah, and I had this moment when I was in debilitating chronic pain. The moment I remember it very clearly, like it's so vivid in my mind where I committed. Like I made the choice of like I'm done with the physical side. And at the time, very debilitated. I had just started working, but it was not going well. Like I was struggling to sit, I was lying down on the ground in between therapy sessions. Very small world, no movements. And I had been to every specialist imaginable. And they had found some little things wrong with my body, but no smoking gun to explain what was taking place. And I had done almost every physical treatment outside the surgeries, and nothing was helping. And I had this last appointment that I had built in all this stuff. And at the same time, I was starting to learn about like a brain and nervous system approach, like, but I wasn't committed yet. Like I was learning, I was like, oh, that's kind of interesting. Um, but maybe that's not me. And I went to see the sports medicine doctor. He ran all these tests. I had this meeting with him. And in that meeting, he was like, we can't find anything major, majorly wrong with you. You have hypersensitive nerves, and you're gonna be in pain the rest of your life.

SPEAKER_03:

Wow. What was it like hearing that, Tanner?

SPEAKER_00:

It was like I had this moment, this moment of like despair and hopelessness in the office. Yeah. But because I've been learning about a brand new nervous system of approach, I remember walking outside to my car and being like, I'm done. Like I am done with this physical stuff. It has only resulted in my pain getting worse over time. And I got to commit. And from that day forward, I really made that commitment of like, this is what I'm doing.

SPEAKER_02:

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00:

So I say that story because I think it was so powerful for me that moment. Uh, and it was a powerful moment of like, you know, screw you, medical system. Like, I'm done with this.

SPEAKER_03:

Um, I think something so interesting about that too, that could have been such a moment of hopelessness for you. But it really, in some ways, became this moment of hope of like, okay, I am gonna believe I can get better, and I'm gonna use this approach.

SPEAKER_00:

Yes. So in 2026, is the first thing people need to do, make that commitment and dive into the work. Yeah. Number two. Number two. Respond to sensations with safety. Safety. Yes. So most of us, oh yes, this is this is needed. Yeah. Most of us, when we have chronic pain, chronic symptoms, it's not going away, we start to have a very dysregulated response.

SPEAKER_03:

Understandable.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah. So this can look like fight, like frustrated, angry, flight, nervous, anxious, fawn, where we actually just dive into like taking care of other people's needs, not doing self-care, trying to be perfectionistic in our life. And for some people, this is a free shutdown response. Numb, despair, hopeless, helpless, dissociated. Now, these responses will fuel your symptoms. And uh we talk about in our approach a sensitization cycle. This is a feedback loop that we have seen people caught in for decades that will worsen your symptoms over time and just maintain them. Now, a sensitization cycle, you imagine you have pain and symptoms, and then you have a dysregulated response.

SPEAKER_03:

Yes.

SPEAKER_00:

Dysregulated response in your nervous system, um, some type of like danger thoughts taking place, uh, avoidance behaviors. And as you do this, your brain and nervous system feels more in danger, produces more pain and symptoms, or keeps them going. Okay. More pain and symptoms, more dysregulation, more dysregulation, more pain and symptoms. This is the cycle we need to break.

SPEAKER_03:

Would part of it then being aware of when we're in that cycle?

SPEAKER_00:

Yes. That's the first thing is like people need to start to be aware how am I responding to my symptoms. Yes. Because don't get me wrong, when I had debilitating pain, I was very dysregulated, but I never put together that these two things were cycling one another.

SPEAKER_03:

Right. And that's really important, I think, to understand the connection and relationship to the two.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah. And so what we need to be doing is to desensitize your nervous system, you need to intentionally practice the opposite. You need to practice feeling safer with the sensations.

SPEAKER_03:

How do you do that when you don't feel safe? Like you feel dysregulated, then.

SPEAKER_00:

So in our approach, we talk about embodiment practices. So embodiment, what this includes for the people listening, is really two main things. You're getting exposure to dropping in your body, being with the sensations, exploring them with curiosity. Like we're no longer running away, we're being with the pain or symptom inside. I like to say moving towards. Yeah, moving towards and exploring it just in great detail.

SPEAKER_03:

Yep.

SPEAKER_00:

And as we do that, we're also creating safety using the safety signals we talk about.

SPEAKER_03:

It might feel a bit unsafe at first. Absolutely. If we're not used to it. So that's okay. And that might feel a bit backwards of like, okay, I'm creating a safety, but I feel unsafe because I don't want to go to the sensation.

SPEAKER_00:

At first, when I was doing this, ooh, it was dysregulating. Okay. And that's okay. What I talk about with people is we're going for these little healing wins. Yes. Now we're not going for doing an embodiment practice and your pain and symptoms magically disappear. Sometimes that happens. Not commonly. Not commonly, but then people chase that. Yep. We're not trying to control or fix the pain and symptoms live. The healing win that we're going for is do I feel 2% safer? Do I feel 2% calmer? Can I approach the sensation and be with it a little bit longer?

SPEAKER_03:

Well, and that should be the goal. So again, back to creating safety with the sensation. Our goal is to spend time with it and feel a bit more regulated.

SPEAKER_00:

Exactly. So there's that little bit more regulation that starts to happen. And you start to get these healing wins, they will start to stack up. So our digital course has a lot of brain retraining, embodiment practices that can support you to desensitize your system. So if you want that extra support in 2026, we'll put the link for that digital course down below. It's wonderful. We have these group QAs every month with the members. And it's, you know, there's lots of really useful conversation questions, but you know, hearing about people's little healing wins.

SPEAKER_03:

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00:

It always gives me this like warm-hearted um feeling inside, right? Like, yeah, they're working towards it, like these little steps forward.

SPEAKER_03:

Okay. So number three, breaking the rules. And something that's important to remember that when we're in chronic pain, we tend to kind of navigate towards avoidance.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03:

Avoiding things that might trigger pain, avoiding things that might feel scary to us.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah. What kind of things do you notice people avoiding to almost like cope?

SPEAKER_03:

Movements, different activities. Sometimes people, places, and things, if that their pain might come on stronger during those times.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah. Yeah. Yeah, I would say with things like IBS or different things, it's like foods. Yep. For sure. What your brain's doing is it loves to make associations.

SPEAKER_03:

Well, and I think that can feel complicated to people because as we do this work, we realize, oh, maybe my body is safe and it's not the thing. But I think early on, it can be really hard to differentiate that it's not the thing, causing the pain and symptoms to be stronger. It's like every time I go near this or I do this, my pain is high. Of course, that thing is keeping it going.

SPEAKER_00:

That's it. Like, and it's so important to understand your brain makes these mistaken dissociations. Yes. So it starts to link, for example, bending equals back pain. Right. But when symptoms are neuroplastic, you're actually safe to be bending.

SPEAKER_03:

Well, and it makes sense to think it's the bending.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah. Yes. All that's happened is your brain has linked. Okay, bending equals danger. So it's clicking on pain right off the bat. And so what happens is we start to avoid to kind of survive. We develop what we call a pain or symptom rule book.

SPEAKER_03:

Ah, the rule book. Which I think everyone I mean has a book of rules.

SPEAKER_00:

Everyone has a rule book. My rule book was massive. These are things that you do or don't do because you think it's going to reduce your pain.

SPEAKER_03:

And I like that you say do as well, because I think that's important that we mention that.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah, you need both because there are things that you do. Yes. Like, for example, I was like strict with certain diets. I was doing something because I believed, oh, my diet's going to change my chemistry in my body.

SPEAKER_03:

Well, it was like I must do this to control and manage my pain.

SPEAKER_00:

So it was a do rule. Yeah. In the morning, I would wake up and do like 30 minutes of stretching. Because I was convinced if I don't do that, I'm going to have back pain all day.

SPEAKER_03:

Did you ever miss one of those stretching episodes? Or was it like, no, I must do this.

SPEAKER_00:

Oh, I was so extreme about that. But then you have the don't do rules. Yeah. Now, the things that we don't do could include anything like don't bend, don't eat certain foods, uh, don't walk more than 10 minutes. So this huge rule book gets developed. But when and and it's really developed around these mistaken dissociations, right? That we started to interpret, oh, this thing causes pain, so I'm gonna stop doing that. Or doing this helps, so I'm gonna keep doing that. The problem is over time, if we keep following this rule book, our world gets really, really small. Yes. And our brain keeps learning, oh, the body's really frail and damaged.

SPEAKER_03:

Well, yeah, that's right. So when the world is really small, Tanner, what happens to someone that steps outside of the rule book? What happens to the brain?

SPEAKER_00:

It freaks out. Yeah. It will freak out. And we're gonna explain in a second how you do this, but you don't want to go too big. Like I could barely walk more than 10 minutes. If I went and walked for two hours, I would have a huge flare. Not because my body was damaged, but because my brain viewed that activity as very dangerous. Well, that's right.

SPEAKER_03:

So having this kind of strict rules or control around pain and symptoms in our world, if we venture out of that, the brain starts to panic. And then that keeps us back in that. And that's how the world can stay really small.

SPEAKER_00:

And this is why people get locked into this. And it's so important to understand that following your rulebook over time, long term, will not help you heal. Avoidance is a danger signal.

SPEAKER_01:

Yes.

SPEAKER_00:

And the more you avoid, the more your your brain learns, oh, my body must be damaged. And so we teach people you want to gradually re-engage in the movements, activities, um, any type of condition, like really slow. Like, for example, I would practice walking in our apartments for like five to seven minutes at first. That's all I could do. And that was okay.

SPEAKER_03:

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00:

Over time, over months, a few months, all of a sudden I could walk an hour. But that took time and repetition. So we want to invite people, you know, to break some of these rules in the new year. Pick one thing to approach each day.

SPEAKER_03:

Ah, and start small, like Tanner's saying, and something that feels challenging yet a little bit safe. So not super hard.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah, something small. Um, and as you're doing this, you're doing the embodiment practices with the sensations of pain, symptoms, or dysregulation. So the graded exposure is part of it, but it's also creating the safety in your nervous system. Attending to your body as you do it.

SPEAKER_03:

Right. So there's going to be some dysregulation that's supposed to happen.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03:

Something I talk with people about is changing up routine a little bit. And so often when our world is smaller, we have rules, we have strict routines throughout our day. And routine can be really good. We talk about one hand, like nervous system regulation routine. But when we have a strict rule book, that routine that we have around what we can and can't do sometimes keeps our symptoms rolling. And so mixing up routine a little bit can be part of that exposure of like, oh, I normally lay down at 2 p.m. Maybe I'm gonna change up that routine and expose to that of it.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah, like maybe you delay it and you lay down at 3 p.m. Like all these rules that you've set out, you just want to break them little bit by little bit.

SPEAKER_03:

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00:

So pick one thing and just consistently work away at it. That's the key. I did this with walking, as I said, right? Like I started with five, seven minutes. I would do it once or twice a day, really consistently, and then I would build 10 minutes, 15 minutes, 20 minutes. And it just got bigger and bigger as I felt safer over time. And as you do this, you will have some pain and symptom increase. That's normal. So for people listening, like it will increase your symptoms a little bit, but you're doing it gradually enough that you're not having constant flares. But over time, your pain and symptom system will desensitize. And now you're gonna be able to more fully use your body, not having symptoms. Yeah.

SPEAKER_03:

What a great goal for the new year.

SPEAKER_00:

That's the goal. And I think that's really the goal of what we actually want for most people. Most people get so locked in, I just need my pain and symptoms to go away. But I invite people to ask, why? Why do you want your pain and symptoms to go away? Oh, it's because I want to do this certain career where I have to move my body a lot. Or I want to be passionate about my hobbies and dive into them. That's actually the goal. Yes, the pain and symptoms we want to go away over time, but focus on what the actual goal is, which is to live a more full, vibrant life. Number four, regulate the nervous system.

SPEAKER_03:

Yes. And we've been talking a lot about that.

SPEAKER_00:

So one thing that we want to shift is being in chronic states of fight, flight, fawn, freeze, or shutdown. And I when I say chronic, I mean prolonged. Like you're really having a hard time shifting out of these states. When that happens, your brain is going to continue to generate pain and symptoms as a warning because it's feeling in this intense state of danger. You know, all pain and symptoms, they are warning us about danger. We don't like the warning system as we talked about, but this is one way that it warns us of danger. So if you're in this chronic dysregulated state, it makes sense that your brain's going to keep generating pain and symptoms.

SPEAKER_03:

So we need to shift out of that dysregulation.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah. Well, I want to be clear about this because people get this confused when they hear the term nervous system regulation. People often think I'm regulated when I'm constantly calm and at ease.

SPEAKER_03:

I like thinking of it like that. I know. It's quite nice.

SPEAKER_00:

Most people like that. Now, yes, we want more easy access to a safe state. We want you to hang out there more often. Mm-hmm.

SPEAKER_03:

Spend time there.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah. But nervous system regulation means your system's flexible.

SPEAKER_03:

Uh, so it means we can't fully get rid of dysregulation.

SPEAKER_00:

No, there is there is no path forward where you are always going to be calm and feel safe. Okay. That cannot be the goal. The goal is here's a huge healing win that I want for my clients. They come to session. Let's say someone comes to session and they're like, you know what? I felt anxious the other day, but I did all the practices, I responded differently to the anxiety. And within, you know, 20 minutes, I shifted out of that and I felt safe and calm. That's great.

SPEAKER_03:

Ah, so it's not. Well, they still kind of shifted out of the anxiety.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03:

But it wasn't that the anxiety was wrong or bad.

SPEAKER_00:

No. Like no state of the nervous system is wrong or bad. Yes, if you're in a chronic dysregulated state, that's going to perpetuate pain and symptoms. But I like to be clear with people, you don't have to eliminate your anxiety or your anger to heal. I run a bit anxious and knows this about me. It's it's way better than before. Because when I get anxious, like say something, I had a moment earlier this week where I thought I like missed sending a form to one of like our college, you know, that is a very anxiety-provoking thing for Tanner. It is. And I was like, oh my goodness, like what's gonna happen? Is this form late? There was a moment for maybe like five or 10 minutes of like moderate, high anxiety.

SPEAKER_03:

Was that, I want to say, did that make sense for the situation and the anxiety was there, Tanner?

SPEAKER_00:

It made sense because the anxiety was helping me take action.

SPEAKER_03:

Ah, it was serving you.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah. Like I went onto the online portal for the college, I looked at it, I made I found the form, you know, I shifted some things, and then I did some embodiment work, regulated myself, and I came back up to a safe, calm state and moved on with my day. Like that whole process was probably 25 minutes. And that's nervous system regulation. It's flexibility.

SPEAKER_03:

Well, and it's important to know like dysregulation or anxiety or different difficult feelings or high like being on alert that serves a purpose. We can't completely wipe that out. But that's right. We want to be able to move through it.

SPEAKER_00:

Yes. Now, how do we regulate the nervous system?

SPEAKER_02:

Yes.

SPEAKER_00:

Part of this is the safety signals me and Anne always talk about. Consistently doing some somatic movement like qigong or yoga, doing some breath work, some present moment sensing, visualizing something pleasant. So we want to be proactive with this. I was just talking with someone earlier this week about this. You do not want to just use all this stuff reactively. So proactively, right before this podcast episode, I was upstairs doing deep breathing and some qigong for about 25 minutes.

SPEAKER_03:

Uh so I kind of mentioned routine that keeps us within our rulebook. Developing a routine of regulation that kind of brings safety can also be important. A different kind of routine.

SPEAKER_00:

A different kind of routine. And that's my routine. In the morning, I do safety signals. Now, you also want to use the embodiment practices where you're actively approaching the dysregulation inside. Like, say the anxiety feel tense in your chest. That's how I always feel it. Like tense, constricted chest, um, breathing's a bit rapid and fast. My arms feel a bit buzzy. Like I want to be able to approach that, explore it, and create safety. So it's not just like always shifting to a safety signal. We also need the exposure to be with the sensations. So they become less and less overwhelming over time. And the third thing you want to do to regulate is living from a place of lightness, slowness, and self-compassion to create this natural regulated state.

SPEAKER_03:

I like that you hit on slowness. That's something I try to incorporate a lot. When I slow myself down intentionally, I notice maybe that like high alert state drop a little bit, tension kind of slow down. Like that's a big signal for me.

SPEAKER_00:

Absolutely. Like I think that slowness is the first thing I will do if I'm feeling dysregulated. Yeah. I'll slow down my speech. I'll slow down my movement. You can take one task out of your day or work one less hour today.

SPEAKER_03:

Ah, so make your whole day a little bit slower.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah. Yeah. Your world's not going to fall apart if you do this.

SPEAKER_03:

Yes.

SPEAKER_00:

Um, maybe you do like a small act of kindness, have a little nap and like her nappies.

SPEAKER_03:

Do you like napping?

SPEAKER_00:

You do. Yeah. Uh get your favorite coffee or tea, call a friend. So these are some ways that people can start to regulate their system in 2026. We truly believe that you can heal your chronic pain and symptoms in 2026.

SPEAKER_03:

100%.

SPEAKER_00:

As we've stated, most chronic symptoms are neuroplastic, and neuroplastic symptoms are reversible.

SPEAKER_03:

Totally reversible.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03:

We want to keep that as hope in our minds.

SPEAKER_00:

Keep that in mind. You can desensitize your pain and symptom system in the brain.

SPEAKER_03:

Yes.

SPEAKER_00:

Using the process that we outlined in this episode.

SPEAKER_03:

Totally. And it can be that simple. So keep it that simple.

SPEAKER_00:

Yes. So people commit and start to do the work. If you need the extra support as you're doing the healing work, we have two agencies that can help you. Our first agency, Pain Psychotherapy Canada. We are able to provide therapy sessions to people located in certain provinces in Canada. An also does equine therapy.

SPEAKER_03:

Yeah. If you're local to the Calgary area, I provide this work combined with equine assisted therapy. And so if you're looking for something different in the outdoors, around nature, with that co-regulation, that's something we offer as well.

SPEAKER_00:

Aaron Powell And loves horses.

SPEAKER_03:

Tanner does not.

SPEAKER_00:

I'm not.

SPEAKER_03:

Tanner needs echoin-assisted therapy to just work on his races.

SPEAKER_00:

I'm scared of horses. Maybe 2026 is where I face my fear of horses.

SPEAKER_03:

It could be great exposure for you. But, anyways, we'll keep you updated on his horse journey.

SPEAKER_00:

And we also have our second agency, Embody Community, and we provide a very comprehensive digital course with hours of education. So if you want to kind of work away at things on your own and you need a path forward where a whole healing system is laid out, you can check that out as well. I will put the links for both these agencies in the description of this episode. And we will talk to you all soon.

SPEAKER_03:

Talk to you soon. Thanks for listening. For more free content, check out the links for our YouTube channel, Instagram, and Facebook accounts in the episode description.