Chronic pain is closely linked to emotional distress and patients suffering from both problems are worse off than individuals with only one of the entities. Emotion regulation has been proposed as a core transdiagnostic process which may explain the high levels of comorbidity between pain and emotional complaints. One way of regulating pain and negative emotions is in the presence of others. By sharing your personal experiences, you may get emotional support which relieves suffering. However, it is important to know where, when and with whom to share; in other terms, to be context sensitive. The opposite, context insensitivity, has been related to prolonged and exaggerated emotional distress, for instance after the death of a beloved one (Bonnano et al., 2004). The theory, importance and potential clinical implications of context sensitivity in theare a of pain and emotional distress will serve the basis for the presentation by Dr. Ida Flink, and data from an ongoing project on this topic will be presented.
Ida Flink attended the conference and made the presentation.