Explaining Context

When people ask “why does it hurt?” I’ll get around to stating that “… also, context of [your pain] is a factor in how it feels.”

Now this may make sense to you, the PTBT audience, but this is often not an idea that people have thought of. Most people only remember a politician saying his/her words were “taken out of context” so it may be important to explain context.

Here are two quick context stories I tell. Please use them, please make them your own…

1.) Context example… “So now let’s say you are walking in a spooky forest, it’s dark out, you’re by yourself, a bit creeped out and you feel this on your shoulder (lightly tickle the skin), what would your reaction be?” Often a patient will exaggerate looking back quickly or state “I would jump, think it was a spider or something”, etc.

Restricted Thoughts

 

Say a child doesn’t have the legal right to drive (we’re talking about an 8 year old). Ask the kid what they want to do, most of the time that task or activity will be restricted to their home. Some people may argue differently,and say, “that’s not true, my kid always wants to go the park.” (or fill in the blank with something else). Maybe that’s true. Maybe that child’s thought process involves things that are outside of his or her control, but maybe that child has an active and willing participant (i.e. the parent) who has made this thinking possible. The parent is actually asking the child what they want to do, taking into consideration the child’s opinion/desires for the best possible outcome for everyone.

What happens, however, when we turn this scenario? What if this is the parent who does not cooperate with the child’s desires? What if the parent is actually a really bad individual, who doesn’t really value what the child thinks? What if the parent has had a long day of driving and doesn’t feel like going back into the car? What if the parent doesn’t have a vehicle? And the biggest question of all, what if the parent does this consistently? Day after day, week after week, year after year? The child’s desires and thought processes are likely to change. They are likely to become narrowed. Instead of going to the movies, or going to get ice cream, or for a day at the park; the child will start only thinking of things to do at home. Like play outside, watch a movie, or read a book (…maybe that’s a stretch).

You can see this happening in real life. I wouldn’t be surprised if there was some bit of academic research on the topic. How children’s minds are shaped, and likewise their thought patterns, by the constraints or liberties placed on their actions. Some people may say, well that’s not a huge issue, especially if the child has a good home. They can stay and play at home all they want! Which might actually be true, but what happens if this scenario is turned into the healthcare field? Lets swap the child for a physical therapist/physio and the parent for the