Are you living...or are you just existing? If you suffer chronic pain, pursuing a fulfilling life can be a challenge. But there are positive steps you can take right now to direct the course of action pain has on your life and purpose. Neck, back, joint, and other pains and inflammation all can respond to an overhaul of your current way of life and thinking. I call this process the 3Rs.

1. RECOGNIZE the connection between mind and body. How does your thinking about your pain hinder your progress or bring relief?
   
   Verbalizing negative thoughts manifests negativity in our actions. Believing in the negative creates negative results. Once established, the cycle of increasing negativity is hard to break.
   
   I have patients who come into the office saying they feel stuck, defeated, and angry with their situation.
   
   
   • "Just fix it."
   • "I've tried everything and nothing helps."
   • "It will never get better."
   • "Changing my eating and schedule is too hard."
   
   Do YOU find yourself saying these things? If so, you have work to do, starting with learning to think about the negative situation in a more life-affirming way.
2. REFRAME your thoughts and actions to bring best results. Take responsibility for incorporating the steps that can bring relief.
   
   Looking at your condition holistically means addressing the many components to your well-being. All must be addressed in order to achieve a balanced state of health and a more pain-free existence. These areas include changing your thinking, exploring many different forms of healing, looking at food as medicine, and taking action to remove stress. Put together, they are the foundation of a strong body.
3. RECLAIM the health that you deserve. Your life is ready to be lived to its fullest--pain and all.
   
   Your state of health is with you day and night, everywhere you go, in every situation. It is one of the few things that only you can claim and only you can embrace. Consider this: Even people in poor health have good days. So make a point of seizing the positive and making it yours.

For now, start by making one critical decision: Are you ready to do the work to move past your pain and have a more fulfilling life? Cement your new resolve by saying this aloud: "I am making a conscious decision to enact change in my life."

Enough talk--let's get to work. It's time to take charge of your health. You can take that first step today by putting the 3Rs to work. To review:
- Recognize one negative thought that goes through your mind.
- Reframe that thought in terms of positive options.
- Reclaim your health, ease pain, and know that you are taking responsibility for YOU.