Chronic Pain and Trauma: ACT, MI and More to Enhance Client Outcomes

Credit

Program Information

All members of the PESI, Inc. planning committee have provided disclosures of financial relationships with ineligible organizations and any relevant non-financial relationships prior to planning content for this activity. None of the committee members had relevant financial relationships with ineligible companies or other potentially biasing relationships to disclose to learners.  For speaker disclosures, please see the faculty biography.

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Canada Credit - *

NOTE: Tuition includes one free CE Certificate (participant will be able to print the certificate of completion after passing the online post-test (80% passing score) and completing the evaluation). Instructional methods will include PowerPoint, didactic lecture, and others.

Continuing Education Information:  Listed below are the continuing education credit(s) currently available for this non-interactive self-study package. Program content is reviewed periodically per accrediting board rules for currency and appropriateness for credit. Credit approvals are subject to change. Please note, your licensing board dictates whether self-study is an acceptable form of continuing education, as well as which credit types are acceptable for continuing education hours. Please refer to your licensing board's rules and regulations. If your profession is not listed, please contact your licensing board to determine your continuing education requirements and check for reciprocal approval. 
For other credit inquiries not specified below, please contact info@pesi.com or 800-844-8260 before purchase.

Materials that are included in this course may include interventions and modalities that are beyond the authorized practice of your profession.  As a licensed professional, you are responsible for reviewing the scope of practice, including activities that are defined in law as beyond the boundaries of practice in accordance with and in compliance with your profession's standards.  

For Planning Committee disclosures, please see the statement above.  For speaker disclosures, please see the faculty biography.

 

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Canada Credit - ---

Earn up to 6.25 CE hours. Please see below, for more details, as credit amounts vary by jurisdiction and profession. 

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Canada Credit - Canadian Counsellors and Psychotherapists

PESI, Inc. is approved by the Canadian Counselling and Psychotherapy Association to offer continuing education for counsellors and psychotherapists. PESI, Inc. maintains responsibility for the program. This self-study activity is approved for 6.0 credit hours.

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Canada Credit - Social Workers - National ASWB ACE

PESI, Inc., #1062, is approved as an ACE provider to offer social work continuing education by the Association of Social Work Boards (ASWB) Approved Continuing Education (ACE) program. Regulatory boards are the final authority on courses accepted for continuing education credit. ACE provider approval period: January 27, 2026 - January 27, 2029. Social workers completing this course receive 6.25 Clinical continuing education credits.

Course Level: Intermediate Format: Recorded asynchronous distance. Full attendance is required; no partial credits will be offered for partial attendance.

 

Canadian Social Workers: Canadian provinces may accept activities offered by providers approved by the ASWB ACE program for ongoing professional development.

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Canada Credit - Other Professions

This self-study activity qualifies for 6.25 continuing education clock hours as required by many national and local licensing boards and professional organizations. Save your activity advertisement and certificate of completion, and contact your own board or organization for specific requirements.

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US National Boards - Addiction Counselors - NAADAC

This self-study course has been approved by PESI, Inc., as a NAADAC Approved Education Provider, for educational credits. NAADAC Provider #77553. PESI, Inc. is responsible for all aspects of their programming.

This self-study course offers 6.0 continuing education contact hours in the Counseling Services skill group. Full attendance is required; no partial credit will be awarded for partial attendance.

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US National Boards - Nurses, Nurse Practitioners, and Clinical Nurse Specialists – ANCC

PESI, Inc. is accredited as a provider of nursing continuing professional development by the American Nurses Credentialing Center’s Commission on Accreditation. Nurses completing these self-study materials will earn 6.25 contact hours. Expires: 09/23/2026.

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US National Boards - Occupational Therapists & Occupational Therapy Assistants

 

PESI, Inc.  is an AOTA Approved Provider of professional development. Approved provider # 3322. This Distance-Learning Independent activity is offered at .625  CEUs Intermediate , OT Service Delivery; Foundational Knowledge. The assignment of AOTA CEUs does not imply endorsement of specific course content, products, or clinical procedures by AOTA.   Full attendance at this live activity qualifies for 6.25 contact hours.

 

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Handouts

Speaker

Benjamin M. Keizer, PhD, ABPP Related seminars and products

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Benjamin M. Keizer, PhD, ABPP, is a board-certified clinical health psychologist with extensive post-doctoral training in clinical health psychology at the San Antonio Uniformed Services Health Education Consortium. He serves as the head of Health and Human Performance Psychology at the Center for the Intrepid (CFI), Brooke Army Medical Center, San Antonio, Texas where he provides care for military service members who have sustained serious injuries (e.g., amputation, limb-salvage, multi-trauma, major surgery). In this capacity he serves as both a provider and program director for the Functional Restoration Program for chronic pain and a provider and program manager of the Special Operations Performance and Recovery (SPaR) program. He has been awarded an Army Systems of Health Innovation Grant as a result of excellence in creating novel interdisciplinary programs, and his leadership resulted in a 2018 and 2022 Best of the Best Specialty Care Clinic award from the military and Army Health Systems.

 

Speaker Disclosures:
Financial: Benjamin Keizer has employment relationships with the San Antonio Military Medical Center and Wilford Hall Ambulatory Surgical Center. He receives a speaking honorarium and recording royalties from PESI, Inc. He has no relevant financial relationships with ineligible organizations.
Non-financial: Benjamin Keizer has no relevant non-financial relationships.

Additional Info

Program Information

Access never expires for this product.

For a more detailed outline that includes times or durations of time, if needed, please contact cepesi@pesi.com.

Visit our FAQ page at https://www.pesicanada.ca/faq or contact us at https://www.pesicanada.ca/contact-us.

Objectives

1. Evaluate the relationship between trauma and chronic pain for utilization when providing psychoeducation to clients.
2. Assess pain and related comorbid mental health symptoms to inform treatment interventions.
3. Apply at least two interventions to decrease risk of suicide in clients with chronic pain and trauma.
4. Use at least one values clarification intervention with clients with chronic pain and trauma.
5. Utilize intentional questions and appointment framing to assist clients with goal-setting.
6. Determine the impact of various cultural factors on the prevalence and treatment of chronic pain.

Outline

Trauma and Chronic Pain: The Nervous System as Common Denominator

• Pain as a threat system and why it matters
• The trajectory of acute and chronic pain
• Relationship between ACEs, PTSD, and chronic pain symptoms
• Mutual maintenance and shared vulnerability models
• Principles of pain: nociceptive, neuropathic, and nociplastic
• Pain intensity versus pain distress
• The hidden benefits of pain

Getting Started and Foundations: Assessment, Case Conceptualization, and Safety Planning

• The effect of pain on clients’ sense of self
• How to help clients identify and challenge pain-related myths
• Assessment of pain and related comorbidities
• Essential health and well-being assessments
• Case conceptualization when your traumatized client has chronic pain
• When pain itself is a reminder of the traumatic event
• Identify and shift vicious cycles of maladaptive coping strategies
• Risk management and safety planning
• Help clients get the rest they need – sleep, trauma, and chronic pain
• Case study: 25yo Black female with chronic pain after ACEs

Chronic Pain Treatment Toolbox: Emerging Strategies and Complimentary Approaches

• Why psychotherapy for pain?
• Help clients rethink how they view pain: Pain neuroscience education
• Values, present moment awareness, and other ACT strategies
• Solution-Focused Brief Therapy (SFBT) to construct solutions versus focus on problems
• How to pose the “miracle” question for pain and other targeted techniques to enhance coping
• Motivational Interviewing techniques to optimize engagement and outcomes
• Pleasant activity scheduling to improve mood and pacing behaviors
• Mindfulness and yoga for pain reduction
• Hack the glymphatic system - treat chronic, low-grade headaches with behavioral & nutritional interventions
• Quiet the nervous system with relaxation strategies and breathing techniques
• Harness the power of green space
• Case study: 37yo White male with PTSD and chronic pain

Clinical Considerations

• Integrating strategies for chronic pain into trauma processing
• Cultural factors and integration of cultural humility into practice
• Special populations: children, elderly, military/veterans/first responders
• Effective collaboration with medical providers
• Involvement of family members in treatment
• Rapport and alliance when the client has chronic pain and the therapist does not
• Pain-related health disparities and social determinants of health
• Limitations of the research and potential risks

Target Audience

• Social Workers
• Psychologists
• Marriage and Family Therapists
• Counsellors
• Addiction Counsellors
• Case Managers
• Psychiatrists
• Physicians
• Physician Assistants
• Nurses
• Nurse Practitioners
• Occupational Therapists
• Occupational Therapy Assistants
• Physical Therapists
• Physical Therapist Assistants
• Art Therapists