Living with chronic pain is often a deeply isolating experience. Even with supportive family and friends, it can be hard for others to fully understand what day to day life with persistent pain actually involves. This is part of why group based pain programs, bringing together people who are all navigating a similar experience under the guidance of a multidisciplinary team, have become such a well established part of pain management in Australia.
This article looks at what a group pain program actually involves, why the group format itself is part of what makes these programs effective, and what the evidence says about outcomes.
The Scale of Chronic Pain in Australia
Chronic pain affects a substantial proportion of Australians. The Australian Institute of Health and Welfare reports that one in five Australians aged 45 and over live with persistent, ongoing pain, and that people with chronic pain are considerably more likely than those without it to also experience depression, anxiety, sleep disturbance and fatigue. Painaustralia reports that almost 45 per cent of people living with chronic pain also experience depression or anxiety, and that for the majority of Australians with chronic pain, their pain restricts the activities they are able to do day to day.
Despite this scale, access to specialist, multidisciplinary pain care remains limited relative to demand, and referrals to pain specialists occur in a relatively small proportion of GP consultations where pain is being managed. Group programs are one practical way of extending access to evidence based, multidisciplinary pain care to more people.
Why a Multidisciplinary Approach Matters
Chronic pain is now widely understood through what is known as the biopsychosocial model, meaning it is shaped not only by physical or biological factors but by psychological and social factors as well, including mood, stress, beliefs about pain, and the level of support a person has around them. A Painaustralia fact sheet on multidisciplinary pain management notes that this approach, addressing the physical, psychological and social dimensions of pain together, is a key recommendation of Australia’s National Pain Strategy and is endorsed internationally by the International Association for the Study of Pain. The same fact sheet specifically notes that patients may benefit from joining a pain support group, and that this should be actively encouraged as part of a broader management plan.
This reflects an important shift in how chronic pain is treated. Pain is not simply a signal to be eliminated with medication alone. Psychological strategies that help a person change their relationship with pain, reduce pain related fear and avoidance, and rebuild confidence in daily activity are now considered a core, evidence based part of effective pain management, not an optional add on.
Why the Group Format Specifically Helps
Group treatment brings something that individual therapy alone cannot fully replicate. Research into group based pain programs has identified specific therapeutic elements that appear to drive positive outcomes, including universality, the recognition that a person is not alone in their experience, group cohesiveness, and interpersonal learning from others facing similar challenges. Group pain management programs delivered as a structured package, compared with no treatment or usual care, have been associated with improvements across pain experience, mood, coping, outlook on pain, and activity levels.
For many people living with chronic pain, simply being in a room with others who genuinely understand what persistent pain feels like, without needing to explain or justify it, is itself part of the therapeutic value. Shared experience can reduce the sense of isolation that so often accompanies chronic pain, and hearing how others have found ways to manage flare ups, fear of movement, or the frustration of an invisible condition can be genuinely motivating in a way that is harder to achieve one on one.
This has also been demonstrated even where in-person attendance is not possible. A study evaluating a telehealth delivered group pain program for people in rural and remote Queensland found that participants reported meaningful connection and a shared health experience with other group members, alongside improvements in overall function, mood and physical activity, even when the group was delivered entirely online across multiple sites.
Understanding Persistent Pain, a group program at CK Health and Wellbeing
This is exactly the kind of support now running locally. Understanding Persistent Pain is a 4-week psychology group for adults living with persistent pain, led by Sally Christopherson, Registered Psychologist. The group combines contemporary pain science with practical psychological strategies to help participants understand pain, help the nervous system feel safer, and reconnect with life.
This group may be a good fit if you:
- Have been living with pain for more than three months
- Feel like you've tried everything but are still struggling
- Worry that movement or activity might make your pain worse
- Feel frustrated, misunderstood or limited by pain
- Want practical strategies to improve your quality of life
What a Psychological Group Pain Program Typically Involves
A well structured group pain program usually draws on evidence based psychological approaches such as Cognitive Behavioural Therapy and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, adapted specifically for a chronic pain context. Rather than focusing solely on reducing pain intensity, these approaches help participants build pain self-efficacy, the confidence that they can manage their pain and continue engaging in meaningful activity despite it, alongside practical strategies for pacing activity, managing flare ups, and reducing the unhelpful cycle of pain related fear and avoidance that can gradually shrink a person's world.
Sessions typically combine psychoeducation about the biology of chronic pain, structured skills practice, and facilitated group discussion, allowing participants to learn from a clinician and from each other simultaneously. Programs are generally delivered over a set number of sessions, giving participants both immediate strategies and an ongoing sense of progress and community across the length of the program.
What the Evidence Shows About Outcomes
Evaluations of multidisciplinary pain programs in Australian primary care settings have shown meaningful improvements in participants’ confidence in managing their own pain. One evaluation of a primary care based multidisciplinary chronic pain program found substantial improvement in Pain Self-Efficacy Questionnaire scores between the start and end of the program, alongside improved alignment with recommended pain medication guidelines. These findings reflect a broader pattern seen across the pain management literature, that structured, multidisciplinary programs incorporating psychological support tend to outperform single discipline or unstructured approaches.
It is worth being clear that a group pain program is not a cure for chronic pain, and outcomes vary from person to person depending on the underlying cause and complexity of their pain. What the evidence consistently supports is that these programs can meaningfully improve how well a person is able to function and cope alongside their pain, which for many people is the more realistic and, ultimately, more valuable goal than pain elimination alone.
Who Tends to Benefit Most
Group pain programs tend to suit people who are ready to take an active role in managing their pain, rather than those seeking a purely passive or medical solution. This includes people whose pain has become associated with reduced activity, low mood or anxiety, as well as those who feel isolated in their experience and would benefit from connecting with others facing similar challenges. As with any psychological intervention, readiness and fit matter, which is why an initial assessment to understand a person’s individual pain history, goals and current functioning is an important first step before joining a group program.
Where To From Here
Anyone living with chronic pain who feels they have exhausted purely medical options, or who is looking for practical, psychologically informed strategies alongside the connection of shared experience, may benefit from a group pain program as part of their broader care. This sits alongside, not instead of, ongoing medical management from a GP or pain specialist.
Understanding Persistent Pain: Program Details
- Led by: Sally Christopherson, Registered Psychologist
- Format: 4 weekly sessions, 60 minutes each
- Group size: 4 to 8 participants
- Cost: $110 per session (commitment to all 4 sessions required)
- What you’ll gain: A better understanding of persistent pain, practical skills to calm the nervous system, strategies for pacing and managing flare-ups, mindfulness and body awareness practices, and connection with others in similar situations
- Rebates: Medicare rebates may be available with a valid Mental Health Treatment Plan. Workers Compensation and Chronic Disease Management referrals are also accepted.
Ready to find out more or book your place? Get in touch with us
More detail on Sally Christopherson’s approach and areas of interest, including group pain program offerings, is available on her Health Hunter profile.
References
- Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. Chronic pain in Australia, Summary. https://www.aihw.gov.au/reports/chronic-disease/chronic-pain-in-australia/summary
- Painaustralia. Painful Facts. https://www.painaustralia.org.au/about-pain/painful-facts
- Australian Government Department of Health. The National Strategic Action Plan for Pain Management. https://www.health.gov.au/resources/publications/the-national-strategic-action-plan-for-pain-management
- Scriven H, Doherty DP, Ward EC. Evaluation of a multisite telehealth group model for persistent pain management for rural/remote participants. Rural and Remote Health, 2019. https://www.rrh.org.au/journal/article/4710
- Turning Pain into Gain: Evaluation of a Multidisciplinary Chronic Pain Management Program in Primary Care. Pain Medicine, 2019. https://academic.oup.com/painmedicine/article/20/5/925/5240598
