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Podcast Episode

Are People With Chronic Pain Simply Just Malingering?!

The Chronic Pain Breakup·Dr. Alissa Wolfe | Pain Specialist·12 September 2026·1h 21m

About this episode

When “neuroplastic pain” becomes the explanation for every chronic condition, an approach intended to reduce fear can become another way to blame the patient. ✨ Ready for a more complete approach to complex pain? Apply to The Uprising: Complex Pain Academy → https://www.alissawolfe.com/program-application For years, people with chronic pain and chronic illness were told their symptoms were “all in their head.” But has the pain industry simply repackaged that same message using terms like neuroplastic pain, nervous system dysregulation, and Pain Reprocessing Therapy? In this episode, I’m joined by licensed professional counselor Destiny Davis, The Chronic Illness Therapist. Destiny specializes in chronic pain and chronic illness, trains other healthcare providers, and brings her own lived experience with chronic pain to this conversation. We talk about why patients are still forced to prove they’re sick before they can receive care, why it can take years—or even decades—to receive an accurate diagnosis, and why so many qualified providers are choosing to work outside the traditional insurance model. Then we take an honest look at Pain Reprocessing Therapy: what PRT actually is, what the research does and does not show, and what happens when findings from one specific group of people with chronic low back pain get applied to fibromyalgia, CRPS, EDS, long COVID, and nearly every other chronic pain condition. CONNECT WITH DESTINY DAVIS: Website: https://www.thechronicillnesstherapist.com/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/the.chronicillnesstherapist/ The Chronic Illness Therapist Podcast: https://www.thechronicillnesstherapist.com/podcast-episodes ____________________ WATCH THIS NEXT: Why Complex Pain Requires a Completely Different Approach - 3 Things Recovery Actually Requires: https://youtu.be/1q9YBO5NAKI  ____________________ APPLY TO THE UPRISING: COMPLEX PAIN ACADEMY AND WORK WITH ALISSA I personally review every application: https://www.alissawolfe.com/program-application ____________________ CONNECT WITH ALISSA: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/painreliefwithalissa/ Website: https://www.alissawolfe.com/uprising-complex-pain-academy