Opportunities for chronic pain self-management: core psychological principles and neurobiological underpinnings
Vase, L., Wager, T. D., & Eccleston, C.
In one sentence. Reviewed core psychological principles and neurobiological mechanisms underlying chronic pain self-management, synthesizing evidence on psychological interventions and a rapid review of neuroimaging studies of pain-focused psychotherapies such as CBT and pain reprocessing therapy.
Abstract
One in five of the population lives with chronic pain. Psychological interventions for pain reveal core principles that can be used to create opportunities for chronic pain self-management in primary practice, across health-care settings, and at home. We highlight the different types of chronic pain and illustrate the psychoneurobiological mechanisms involved. We review core principles for psychological pain management, evaluate the evidence, and illustrate the underlying neurobiology involved. We provide practical advice for how to facilitate pain self-management in clinical practice. Finally, we discuss scientific caveats and practical obstacles to improvement, suggesting possible pathways to implementation.
Keywords
Citation: Vase, L., Wager, T. D., & Eccleston, C. (2025). Opportunities for chronic pain self-management: core psychological principles and neurobiological underpinnings. The Lancet, 405(10491), 1781–1790. https://doi.org/10.1016/s0140-6736(25)00404-0