This week on Calling in Sick, I'm sitting down with Alec Bradbury, FNP — the provider you've probably seen on socials making chronic pain feel a whole lot less terrifying, isolating, and lonely. He's a nurse practitioner doing street medicine for the unhoused in Orange County, he teaches the next generation of providers about chronic pain, AND he runs a 1:1 coaching program. Basically, a badass.
We get into what providers are actually taught about pain in school… and the rude awakening Alec had when he started practicing and hit the bottom of the "toolbox" over and over again. If you've ever been told your scans look "fine" while you're in very real pain, this one is FOR YOU.
We're diving into:
🧠 How pain is really taught in school — and why that framework fails chronic pain patients
🔬 "Real and biological" — central + peripheral sensitization, and why neuroplastic pain is NOT "all in your head"
🩻 The MRI myth — why disc degeneration shows up in people with zero pain (96% of 80-year-olds!), and why we're "treating imaging, not patients"
🤝 Mind AND body, not mind OR body — the biopsychosocial approach, PRT, and the trauma of being dismissed
🗣️ How to actually be heard at appointments — bring a buddy, lead with curiosity, and make them document the rationale
And of course… reach out to us with any questions!!!
xx, Alex
💬 Comment: what's a time you felt dismissed at an appointment — and what did you do?
🎧 New to PRT? Go back to our December 2024 episode with Vanessa Blackstone for the full download on pain reprocessing therapy.
Timestamps: 00:00:00 Welcome back to Calling in Sick!
00:02:10 Alex's Picks of the Week
00:03:40 Meet Alec Bradbury, FNP — street medicine, teaching + coaching
00:07:15 Rapid fire: fact or fiction about chronic pain
00:11:00 How chronic pain is taught in school (and why it falls short)
00:15:00 Why new pain research isn't reaching the clinic yet
00:18:15 The moments Alec started questioning the toolbox
00:22:30 Rabbit holes: John Sarno, mind-body medicine, PRT
00:27:30 Mind AND body — and the trauma of "it's all in your head"
00:34:00 What actually changes in the nervous system (sensitization)
00:38:30 The MRI myth — degeneration in pain-free people
00:44:30 Treating imaging vs. treating patients + meeting people where they are
00:50:30 Why Alec started posting online (his 1-year anniversary!)
00:55:00 Communication that works: feel understood first
00:58:30 Your patient toolkit: bring someone, top 3 concerns, curiosity, documentation
01:03:00 Duvet day pick: anime, Frieren + Studio Ghibli
01:05:30 Thank you for listening!
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Produced by: Alexandra Wildeson — https://www.instagram.com/alexandrawildeson/
Find Alec: https://www.instagram.com/alecbradburyfnp/
Alex's Picks of the Week:
Since we're talking pain, here are my two favorite pain management tools 💊
✨ CBD Living Topical CBD — THC-free, nano-sized CBD for better absorption + a menthol cooling effect. The ONLY topical that's ever given me real relief (note: not pregnancy-safe, sadly) — https://go.shopmy.us/p-54591626
✨ Salonpas Lidocaine Patches — pregnancy-safe, ~$10/pack, lasts about a month. Always in my purse, hospital go-bag, and chemo bag — https://amzn.to/4wfu3X5
#ChronicPain #ChronicIllness #PainManagement #NeuroplasticPain #MindBodyConnection #PainReprocessingTherapy #ChronicPainAwareness #InvisibleIllness #MedicalGaslighting #PatientAdvocacy #BiopsychosocialPain #ChronicPainWarrior #AlecBradbury #CallingInSickPodcast #AlexWildeson
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