Episode 19: Putting It All Together: A Case Study of Conscious Clinical Practice

In this episode, Monika shares a case study to illustrate integrating the principles of emotional intelligence, trauma-informed, and patient-centered care. It's a story we're all familiar with: a man with chronic low back pain. 

He was in the midst of a prolonged flare-up when they started working together and had seen many physical therapists before. She realized that she would have to do something different if they wanted a new result. 

With this in mind, we discuss how Monika:

• Prepared herself mentally and emotionally for a different approach
• Shifted her focus from “fixing” to collaborating 
• Listened closely
• Managed her own emotional reactions 
• Confronted her own biases about injections
• Challenged his fear-avoidance beliefs (gradually)

Tune in to hear his story and her behind-the-scenes thought processes. We hope this inspires you to reflect on a case and share it with a conscious clinician!

Note: Some details have been omitted and/or changed in order to maintain patient privacy. The patient consented to share this material. 

Highlights from our conversation in Episode 19

• (1:41) Case introduction 
• (5:18) Patient-centered history taking 
• (12:06) The power of preparing for patient care 
• (13:49) Trauma-informed care in action 
• (16:46) The ripple effect of conscious clinical practice 
• (19:30) How did follow-ups go?
• (25:24) Injections, nocebo, and self-awareness 
• (28:58) A major turning point in autonomy 
• (34:50) Planning for the future 
• (38:56) Reconciling your identity with chronic pain
• (40:39) Wrap up and final thoughts 

Thank you for listening to The Conscious Clinician! If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe and write a review for the podcast to grow our community. Keep the conversation going by following The Conscious Clinician on Instagram and Facebook. 

Resources for Episode 19

• (5:18) Episode 6: History Taking Pearls & Pitfalls
• (10:15; 26:02) Episode 12: Our Words Have the Power to Heal and Harm 
• (12:17) Episode 15: The Power of Understanding Patient Beliefs with Mike Nelson, DPT 
• (13:20) Episode 4: The Fixer
• (13:49) Episode 9 Dr. Brie Robertori, PsyD on Vicarious Trauma in Healthcare and Episode 8: Dr. Krystyna Holland on Trauma-Informed Pelvic Health Practice

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