Review of "The Pain Companion" by Sarah Anne Shockley

     I volunteered for the opportunity to read and review the book entitled THE PAIN COMPANION: Everyday Wisdom for Living with and Moving Beyond Chronic Pain by Sarah Anne Shockley. In exchange for reading an early copy of the book, I agreed to review it. As someone who lives with chronic pain myself (fibromyalgia primarily), I was excited to read a book that might help give me and others perspective as in how to address our pain, accept it, and hopefully move beyond it.

     The author, Sarah Ann Shockley, has been suffering with chronic pain for many years. She began her book as a journal just for herself, her feelings and her reflections as she dealt with her chronic pain disorder. She realized after writing these journal entries that these reflections could not only help herself but others also living with chronic pain. While our chronic pain diagnoses are different, I identified with a lot that she went through and appreciated the reason for the book. What I also really liked within the book was that at the end of each chapter, Sarah Anne shared an outline of a quick review of that chapter’s most important takeaways

     Another thing I really appreciated about Sarah Anne’s book in her persistence in making sure the reader knows that they are not alone in their suffering. People with chronic pain disorders, while they might have different disorders, can connect with the pain component alone. The way she addresses pain is different from most. As a coach for people with fibromyalgia, I can see some reading her book and jumping on the “I can do this!” bandwagon, and others feeling like they’ve gone through too much (even thinking they’ve done what Sarah Anne talks about in her book and aren’t interested in trying something potential new. I always encourage my clients to step out of their safe zone to address the things they need help with most and I see the author doing the same thing.

​     I would recommend this book to anyone living in pain, loving someone in pain, or has lost someone due to their pain. I think this book is written to address people living in different stages of pain as well. Kudos to Sarah Anne for sharing her own experiences and life lessons to help others!