“It’s Like Drowning and You Can’t Get Out”; the Influence of Intimate Partner Violence on Women With Chronic Low Back Pain

Abstract

As intimate partner violence (IPV) can have a long-term impact upon physical pain and psychological distress, the lived experiences of six women with chronic low back pain (CLBP) who survived IPV were studied in order to deepen the understanding of how they have experienced CLBP and IPV. Two superordinate themes were identified from the findings; “psychological interface of IPV and pain” referring to the psychological impact and “pain as a symptom of IPV” reflecting the physical trauma responses that the women identified. This article identifies clinical implications for counselling psychologists to consider when providing therapy for people withCLBP. This study suggests that if issues associated with the trauma are not identified, treated or supported, pain experiences may be impacted, which could compromise therapeutic treatment. Questions need to be askedabout trauma history when assessing for CLBP, and management treatments need to incorporate strategies for understanding and coping with the impact of IPV. Counselling psychologists need to be at the forefront of delivering training to medical colleagues who may not consider the significance of trauma upon CLBP experiences and responses.