Chronic Pain Rehabilitation Program

The Mission

What is Chronic Pain

Addiction-Pain Syndrome

Chronic Pain Treatment

For Families

The Goal of Treatment

Download Pain Rehabilitation Brochure

Mission Statement
Las Vegas Recovery Center's Chronic Pain Rehabilitation Program is dedicated to working with individuals who are afflicted with chronic pain and co-occurring addiction to mind- and/or mood-altering drugs. We are committed to providing comprehensive individualized care utilizing an interdisciplinary team approach. Our goal is to simultaneously treat the addictive disorder, the pain disorder, and the addiction-pain syndrome to replace a self-image of disability with one of wellness. We work in a compassionate and caring way to restore health and function, as well as freedom from active addiction.


What Is Chronic Pain?
Chronic pain, by definition, is a complex disorder (like addiction) with biological, psychological, and spiritual components. It is pain that has outlived its usefulness. Unlike acute pain, which immediately signals the nervous system that something is wrong or needs attention and is relieved once the cause of pain has been addressed, chronic pain persists for more than six months and usually stems from a source or condition that may not have an obvious cause, making treatment confusing and frustrating.

With over eighty-six million people in the United States suffering from chronic pain today, it is easy to see how this is becoming a major health concern to many within the medical community. And with over seventy billion dollars spent on treating this pain, it is not hard to understand why the general public considers chronic pain a threat to living a full and vigorous life.

Part of the challenge many chronic pain clients face is finding balanced treatment that encourages healing and restores function without developing into a dependence on medications. Initially, pain-suppressing medicines offer pain relief and clients enjoy a brief reprieve from suffering, but often it is the use of these painkillers that becomes the problem. Soon —and usually quite subtly—chronic pain clients are trapped within the hopeless cycle of chaos caused by drug dependence. The pain has engulfed their life, and the search for relief has created an addiction to drugs.

Addiction-Pain Syndrome
Historically, pain disorders and addictive disorders have been treated separately. Pain centers may do a good job treating chronic pain clients, but often fail to address addiction. Traditional addiction programs can be effective in treating addictive disease, but usually do not provide appropriate treatment for clients with chronic pain and/or chronic pain syndrome. Experience has shown that both approaches are necessary to provide successful treatment for clients with chronic pain and addictive disease. At LVRC three key areas will be attended to concurrently in order to achieve an outcome that results in recovery. These focused areas of treatment are the addictive disease, chronic pain, and the addiction-pain syndrome. The addiction-pain syndrome consists of the physical and psychosocial problems associated with both addiction and chronic pain, and develops a life of its own.


Chronic Pain: Complex and Confusing
Chronic pain treatment philosophies differ vastly among treatment practitioners. Many addiction counselors believe the solution lies in complete abstinence from medications, while a number of mental health providers see the solution in psychotherapy, and pain management providers feel that medication solves the problem. No wonder chronic pain clients are faced with the challenge of finding appropriate treatment and long-term recovery, not only from pain but also from their dependence on medications used to treat the pain.

At Las Vegas Recovery Center, our skilled physicians, addiction counselors, and mental health practitioners employ the latest methodologies for treating clients with chronic pain. After an extended time of experiencing chronic pain, clients often start to confuse physical pain with emotional pain. They fear they will suffer if not medicated. We do not dismiss clients' pain—rather, we educate them to the many aspects of the causes of their pain, helping them to understand the myriad physical and emotional interactions that contribute to making the pain worse and how they can address them.

Families Hurt Too
We do not try to convince clients entering Las Vegas Recovery Center's pain program that they are addicts; however, ongoing opiate or other pain-suppressing medication often sets the stage for dependency and can lead to a dangerous pattern of addictive use. As a result, many clients may develop symptoms associated with addiction. These symptoms can sometimes be subtle, as the web of destruction entangles not only the person suffering from chronic pain, but family and loved ones as well. Our team will work to educate our clients and their families so that everyone can arrive at the same goals: a successful treatment outcome and improved quality of life.


Taking the First Step
The Chronic Pain Rehabilitation Program at Las Vegas Recovery Center offers clients the opportunity to participate in a collaborative effort of discovery and recovery. Individuals eighteen years and older, with an addiction or drug dependence resulting from or together with chronic pain, will find compassionate and flexible treatment options that incorporate research-based, best treatment practices and principles.

Treatment at LVRC's Chronic Pain Rehabilitation Program starts with a call to our admissions department. After potential clients are given basic facts about the addiction-pain syndrome, they are asked specific pain program questions as the final step in the screening process. The information gathered from these questions is then given to the pain program intake staff who complete an in-depth intake assessment and present it to our Medical Director for approval of admission. If necessary, the intake staff will refer the prospective client to an appropriate provider/facility if LVRC's program does not meet the needs of the client.

The Chronic Pain Rehabilitation Program
Our program is expressly designed for those whose lives are so compromised by pain that they have been unable to manage without medication. It begins with a comprehensive multidisciplinary assessment as part of a medically supervised detoxification, when indicated, and stabilization. Upon completion of detoxification, an individualized treatment plan is developed for a structured residential treatment program. To complete the program, the minimum length of stay is four weeks after detoxification.


What to Expect
All clients receive a complete physical and functional assessment by the Director of Physical Medicine to address the chronic pain and begin the process of improving the client's general condition. Our holistic approach often can help reduce the pain clients experience by improving their flexibility, strength, and endurance.

In addition to chiropractic care, physical therapy, and massage therapy, clients will perform morning warm-up and stretching exercises and attend a mid-morning class of exercise designed to improve energy and enhance overall health. These classes are geared toward small groups as well as individuals. A certified professional will lead the class and assess the clients' goals, while promoting the importance of movement in their daily lives.

Afternoon exercise is geared specifically toward the individual client's needs. Some clients will participate in additional physical therapy while others will benefit from core strengthening or a personalized exercise program. Clients will receive a reevaluation and an updated physical activity treatment plan on a weekly basis. Exercise groups may also include yoga, Chi Kung, and Tai Chi.

A Focused Treatment Plan
During the second week of the program, clients will receive a second functional assessment by a physical therapist who will develop a treatment plan with weekly updates and ten individual physical therapy sessions in a fully equipped, off-site physical therapy facility to help restore function and decrease chronic pain.

Clients will also attend lectures and group therapy with LVRC's other chemical dependency clients. To address the addiction-pain syndrome, LVRC has developed a four-week curriculum that treats the emotional components of chronic pain. Clients will learn and develop skills to better manage stress and anxiety, and therefore reduce pain. These skills are acquired through individual and group counseling as well as educational lectures and assignments.

Committed and Compassionate Care
Las Vegas Recovery Center's Pain Rehabilitation Program is fully committed to providing an individualized treatment experience through a wide variety of treatment modalities. We work with clients to find the combination that works best for their situation. Different people respond differently to the various methods we employ, and our team will develop a plan that is specific to the client's needs. Some of these options may include:

• Acupuncture
• Massage
• Chiropractic
• Biofeedback
• Reiki
• Meditation
• Yoga
• Hypnosis
• Pilates
• Physical Therapy
• TENS
• Muscle Stimulation
• Twelve-Step Recovery Meetings
• Psychotherapy
• Relapse Prevention Therapy
• A Variety of Exercise and Movement Groups

Ongoing Communication
Because of our commitment to ensuring that clients receive the best treatment possible, we will coordinate and/or exchange information with the client's primary care physicians if appropriate and the client so wishes. Some clients may have worked with other practitioners prior to coming to LVRC, and we believe it is important to maintain communication with their physicians/practitioners so that all options are considered.


Staying the Course
Finally, one of the most crucial components necessary to ensure a successful treatment outcome is the development of a recovery plan that includes stringent relapse prevention measures. Leaving the insulated treatment environment with a well-developed discharge plan gives clients an opportunity to apply what they have learned in treatment to the challenges they will face in everyday life. We help clients examine those triggers that often lead to a relapse, which we define as returning to using addictive medication inappropriately. It is vital that clients continue with the program learned in treatment so that they can prevent pain from returning to an unmanageable level.

The primary goal of LVRC's Chronic Pain Rehabilitation Program is to empower clients to take back their lives. Our multidisciplinary program and team approach give clients the strength not only to explore the many facets of recovery, but also to discover long-term abstinence through effective problem-solving and taking minimal medication when absolutely necessary. We offer clients hope as they learn how to reduce pain and suffering using alternative, holistic methods of addressing their pain. All of our program options lead to the same destination: learning to live and enjoy life free from the confines of addiction or drug dependence.