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The Model Health Show · May 25, 2026 · 1h 23m

66% of Chronic Back Pain CURED: The Groundbreaking Study Changing Medicine – With Dr. Howard Schubiner

Dr. Howard Schubiner

Dr. Howard Schubiner discusses his groundbreaking research on chronic pain, revealing that 66% of chronic back pain patients achieved lasting relief through Pain Reprocessing Therapy (PRT). The episode explores how the brain generates pain signals independent of structural injury, the role of neuroplasticity in chronic pain conditions, and practical tools for distinguishing between neuroplastic pain and true structural damage. Schubiner explains the Boulder Back Pain Study results and how understanding predictive processing can transform pain treatment.

This summary was generated from show notes and public descriptions, not from a full transcript review. Details may contain inaccuracies.

Curious

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Pain Reprocessing Therapy (PRT): Retraining the Brain's Threat Response11:48
Pain Reprocessing Therapy is a structured intervention that helps patients recognize pain as a protective brain output rather than a signal of tissue danger, allowing them to reprocess the threat signal and reduce pain.
ClaudeChatGPTGemini
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Predictive Processing: How the Brain Predicts Pain Before It Happens22:50
The brain uses predictive processing—a model-based system that predicts future states based on past experiences, beliefs, and perceived threat—to decide whether to generate pain. Pain occurs when the brain predicts danger, not when tissue is actually damaged.
ClaudeChatGPTGemini
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Neurocircuits Can Be Learned and Unlearned33:09
Pain neurocircuits—the brain networks that generate pain signals—are learned patterns that can be unlearned through repeated practice and cognitive reprocessing. Neuroplasticity allows the brain to rewire these patterns.
ClaudeChatGPTGemini

Novel

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The Boulder Back Pain Study: 66% Remission Through Pain Reprocessing8:37
A landmark study showed that 66% of chronic back pain patients achieved sustained pain reduction and improved function through Pain Reprocessing Therapy (PRT), a psychological/neuroplastic intervention.
ClaudeChatGPTGemini

Highlights

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Pain Is a Brain Output, Not a Tissue Signal3:04
Pain is generated by the brain as a protective output, not a direct signal of tissue damage. The brain can produce pain without any structural injury present.
ClaudeChatGPTGemini
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MRI Findings Don't Predict Pain or Prognosis14:09
Structural findings on MRI scans—herniated discs, degenerative disc disease, bulges—show poor correlation with pain severity, disability, or long-term outcomes. Many people with significant structural changes have no pain.
ClaudeChatGPTGemini

References

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Unlearn Your Pain — Dr. Howard Schubiner — Explores neuroplastic causes of chronic pain and assessment/treatment methods

Misc

✧66% of chronic back pain patients achieved sustained relief—a paradigm shift in pain treatment
✧Pain is fundamentally a brain output, not a signal of tissue damage
✧The Boulder Back Pain Study challenges the structural/anatomical model of pain
✧MRI findings (herniated discs, degenerative changes) don't correlate with pain severity or prognosis
✧Neuroplastic pain can feel completely real while having no structural cause
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