New insights into chronic pain and illness
News & Events
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Curable App - 6-week Free Trial Now Available!
2 March 2024
Living Proof is delighted to now be able to offer a 6-week free trial of the Curable app! As we recommend this pain-recovery app so frequently, we decided to establish an affiliate relationship with the folks at Curable. This means you can access the app for 6 weeks for free, then get a 50% discount on your first year's subscription (cancellable at any time) - and we get US$15 each time somebody signs up - all of which will directly support our activities as a not-for-profit organisation. It's a win-win!
The Curable app allows you to access research-backed pain-science education and recovery practices in your pocket. The app combines bite-sized lessons on pain science
with a range of neuroplastic techniques designed to support recovery, including meditations, visualisations, expressive writing activities and brain-training practices. Even if your symptoms are non-pain-related, the science behind Curable can still help you - as it has helped us. Many of us here at Living Proof used Curable in our own recoveries from chronic conditions - including fibromyalgia and ME/CFS, and we genuinely believe it is one of the best resources out there.
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To access your 6-week free trial, click here.
How To Find Freedom from Chronic Pain & Illness - the Neuroplastic Way
In-Person Workshop, Saturday 2nd March 2024, 2-4pm, Dundee
Have you been struggling with chronic pain, fatigue or other ‘unexplained’ symptoms which have not responded to conventional medical treatment? Feel you’ve tried everything and nothing works? Or maybe your doctors simply can’t find anything wrong – but you know there must be an answer out there.
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Come along for this afternoon workshop generously hosted by V&A Dundee to look at the latest science and practices behind chronic pain and other ‘unexplained’ chronic illnesses, which are now helping thousands around the world recover from such conditions.
Delivered by facilitators who have themselves recovered from years of debilitating chronic illness with this science, the workshop will provide informative presentations, practical experience of the tools you can use to treat your symptoms to enable you to take those first steps to recovery. There will also be plenty of opportunity for questions and discussion.
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Tea and coffee will be available. The venue is fully accessible.
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More info and bookings here.
'Stories of Hope' Live Event, 6.30pm, 16 Jan 2024, Dundee
An informal evening hearing real-life recovery stories from chronic pain and ME/CFS – conditions that we are often told are ‘untreatable’.
Following Living Proof's hit success event at the 2023 Edinburgh Fringe, Dr Barbara Phipps, Edinburgh-based GP and Living Proof medical advisor, will host an evening of real-life stories of recovery and hope from chronic pain and illness. Like many GPs, Dr Phipps struggled for decades with her 'difficult-to-treat' cases, chronic conditions for which modern medicine does not offer effective solutions. But in the last couple of years, she has discovered a new scientifically-backed approach which is helping thousands to recover from such conditions outside mainstream medicine. Three such people will each share their recovery stories from chronic pain and ME/CFS (chronic fatigue syndrome), along with an overview of the science that enabled them to regain their lives.
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Generously hosted by V&A Dundee, and supported by SIRPA, this event will be informal, 'chat-show' style, with plenty of time for questions from the audience. £10/£8 unwaged.
More info & tickets here (price includes refreshments after the event, where participants will be available for further conversation.)
Announcing Our Inaugural 'Mindbuddy Online' Peer Support Course
6-session online course, Sept-Nov 2023, £60
Mindbuddy Online is a 6-session virtual course for UK-based people using a neuroplastic (mindbody) approach to treat chronic pain and other persistent symptoms which haven’t responded to conventional medical treatment.
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The aim of the course is to provide a friendly and supportive space for peer-to-peer sharing, conversations and encouragement. This format is based on the principle that discussing together and supporting each other is a great way to help you learn and to help rewire your neural pathways towards wellbeing and away from pain and illness.
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Each session will include a brief presentation on an aspect of the neuroplastic approach to recovery - and content will build across the 6 sessions. The rest of the session will be devoted to small-group discussions and sharing.
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The course will be hosted on Zoom and will be facilitated by Living Proof recovered volunteers with a good understanding of the science, theory and practice of the neuroplastic approach.
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Please see our Eventbrite page for more information on dates and eligibility, and to book your place.
Dani Fagan, mytmsjourney.com
PLEASE READ THE ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS CAREFULLY BEFORE BOOKING A PLACE.
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*Medical disclaimer: The facilitators of the Mindbuddy groups are not medically trained, and information from this course should not be taken as formal medical advice. The neuroplastic approach is not intended to treat recognised conditions that have clear diagnostic tests, such as multiple sclerosis, diabetes, heart conditions, organ damage or failure, rheumatoid arthritis, cancers, or infections.
Living Proof Live at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival!
A first for all of us – we are hosting a live show at this year’s Edinburgh Fringe Festival! Dr Barbara Phipps, Living Proof Medical Advisor, will be chatting with Louise McAllan, Penny George and Carolyn Neeson, who between them have recovered from a range of conditions including chronic pain, ME/CFS and fibromyalgia. They will share their experiences of recovery and their hopes in sharing this incredible science with others. Show running for one night only, Wed 9th August at 7pm. Come along and tell all your friends! More info and booking here: https://tickets.edfringe.com/whats-on/living-proof-stories-of-hope-and-recovery-from-chronic-pain
Launching Mindbuddy Online Support Groups
28th June 2023
We are delighted to be launching Mindbuddy Online, a zoom-based peer-to-peer support forum for UK-based people who have an understanding of the neuroplastic (mindbody) approach and and are working to shift chronic pain or other symptoms.
Mindbuddy Online’s launch session will take place 6-7.30pm on Wednesday 28th June, and will be hosted by Penny George, Living Proof director, and Sarah Howarth, Living Proof ambassador – both of whom have experienced their own full recoveries from chronic conditions. The aim is to provide a safe space for people at similar stages of their recovery journey to support each other with ideas, advice and encouragement. Penny and Sarah will act as moderators to keep the conversation on track and to offer additional pointers if needed.
Up to 12 spaces are available, with a requested donation of £5-£10. All income will directly support future Living Proof activity. To be eligible to join, you must have an understanding of the basics of the neuroplastic approach e.g. by having familiarised yourself with at least one of the resources listed on the Living Proof website; and you must be at least 50% convinced that your symptoms are neurophysiological (mindbody) in nature. Before booking, you will also be asked to read and sign up to a set of simple ‘ground rules’, to help us make sure we create the right kind of space to support people. If this all sounds like you, please click here to book your spot!
Following the launch session, we anticipate running a series of six sessions – more info to follow on those in due course. If there is sufficient demand, we may continue Mindbuddy Online beyond this as well.
We can’t wait to see you there and to hopefully help you along on your journey towards full health again.
Mindbuddy Groups
Living Proof launched in-person 'Mindbuddy Groups' in December 2022. These are informal meet-ups for people who have recovered, or are on their way to recovery, via the mindbody approach, with a good understanding of the approach and some solid results so far from applying the techniques.
The groups offer a space for recoverees with shared experience of successfully applying these techniques to support each other to help keep their minds and bodies in good health, and where they can make some new like-minded friends!
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Details below for upcoming meet-ups in Fife and London - and get in touch if you would be interested in setting up a new group!
First Mindbuddy Scotland meeting on 10 December 2022
Mindbuddy London
Thursday 18th May 2023, 7-9pm, in central-ish London. To find out more or book a spot, please contact Charli.
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Mindbuddy Scotland
Saturday 10 June 2023, 12.30-2.30pm, in Dundee. For more info, please contact Penny. Future meetings will be in different locations around the central belt, so if you can’t manage this one, keep your eyes peeled for the next one.
(Please note, we anticipate launching Mindbuddy Online later in 2023 - online facilitated peer-to-peer support sessions specifically for those who are still struggling with symptoms. Sign up to our newsletter here to hear the latest.
Launch of Living Proof
24 September 2022
We were incredibly excited to have the opportunity to launch Living Proof at the Royal Society of Medicine in London on Saturday 24 September 2022, as part of the SIRPA Conference on Chronic Pain: Cutting Edge Research and Its Clinical Applications.
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This was a great day with many of those who have been involved in our work meeting in person for the first time, due to covid restrictions in recent years. We were privileged also to be able to share our second short film at the conference, telling Fiona's story of recovery after 14 years of ME/CFS. The film went down a storm, and we have been delighted with the incredible feedback since then - our main hope being that it has started some people on their journey out of this crippling condition.
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The photo shows many of the Living Proof team including co-founders
Penny and Dan, film 'stars' Charli and Fiona, film creators Umisha and Onkar, and one of our medical advisors, Dr David Clarke.
