I have been trying to find a phrase that encapsulates what I do especially with regard to chronic pain. I’m a physio by trade and tend to start with evidence and the scientific method. But with chronic pain there often isn’t any information to go on – other than, “I am in pain”. All the testing in the world turns up nada, zilch, nil, zip, zero – absolutely no “objective” signs for us to manage.

Many people know this, especially if you’re in chronic pain. You may have been passed around various services in the NHS – no doubt a few physios too and no-one can find anything “wrong” so you get discharged.

So, where do I start. I think it is intuitive. Is this chronic pain or just pain? How do I know? I don’t know how I know – but I know. In fact we all know when we know. Its a very human trait.

Where do we go from there? I was thinking; do I just end up working with people with whom I have a rapport – a chemistry? And the answer is simply no. With one exception (he knows who he is) I tend not to “bond” with my patients but there is something – a certain, “je n’ais c’est pas”. This is the alchemy. We don’t become friends but we develop a mutual understanding and trust. We have to for the process to work.

So this, I call Intuitive Alchemy.