About Dr. Peter Abaci
I don’t think anybody grows up saying ‘I want to be a pain doctor.’ I doubt many go to medical school with the goal of spending their careers sitting in front of people each day who suffer from chronic pain. Yet, somehow, I wandered upon that journey, presumably willfully. Why would I do that? Sometimes I wonder that myself.
—Peter Abaci, MD
P eter Abaci, MD, is certified in anesthesia and pain management by the American Board of Anesthesiology. He serves as the Medical Director of the nationally recognized Bay Area Pain and Wellness Center, located in Los Gatos, California, which he cofounded with Dr. John Massey. Dr. Abaci received his bachelor’s degree and graduated magna cum laude from UC San Diego, attended medical school at the University of Southern California, and performed his specialty training in pain management at UC San Francisco. A widely respected expert on chronic pain management and a highly successful chronic pain sufferer, he is the author of Take Charge of Your Chronic Pain: The Latest Research, Cutting-Edge Tools, and Alternative Treatments for Feeling Better. Dr. Abaci also serves as an expert and weekly contributor for the Chronic Pain Community on WebMD.
Dr. Abaci began his quest to radically change conventional chronic pain thinking and treatment after dealing with the agony of his second anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) tear. His mission is to help transform the way medicine treats pain and to restore hope for healing and optimum long-term health. Dr. Abaci focuses on developing alternative solutions to treating chronic pain by drawing on neuroscience research, evidence-based medicine, ancient healing remedies, stress management techniques, nutrition principles, exercise programs, art therapy, and real-life lessons.
See Dr. Abaci’s Approach to Fighting Chronic Pain: VIEW VIDEOS
Get Your Own Copy of Take Charge of Your Chronic Pain: BUY BOOK
Visit the Bay Area Pain and Wellness Center: VISIT SITE
Blog & Tips
Overcome Your Fear and Conquer Your Pain
If you are reading this post, you are probably already well-versed in how chronic pain can interrupt your own — or a loved one’s — ability to perform simple activities and function on a day-to-day basis. You may even start off your day dreading the thought of just trying to get through it. When we hurt, we tend to shut down physically and even emotionally. It is our natural tendency to protect a part of our body that has been injured or is uncomfortable. If our right leg hurts, then we naturally shift our weight to our left leg. This basic, inherent guarded behavior pattern can be considered protective at times of acute injury. When we first sprain our ankle, staying off of it for a few weeks helps it heal.
Unfortunately, this behavior pattern loses its protective benefit once the condition lingers and/or the pain becomes more chronic. In fact, this
avoidance behavior is generally believed by many pain experts to significantly contribute to the severity of chronic pain symptoms. The medical term for this is
fear-avoidance, and it defines a thought process in which an individual fears the presence or potential exacerbation of pain to the point of avoiding.......
Read More
Blog Archive
