The Way Out

A Revolutionary, Scientifically Proven Approach to Healing Chronic Pain

By: Alan Gordon, Alon Ziv

Narrated by: Alan Gordon

Length: 4 hrs and 50 mins

Publisher's summary

A groundbreaking mind-body protocol to heal chronic pain, backed by new research.

Chronic pain is an epidemic. Fifty million Americans struggle with back pain, headaches, or some other pain that resists all treatment. Desperate pain sufferers are told again and again that there is no cure for chronic pain.

Alan Gordon, a psychotherapist and the founder of the Pain Psychology Center in Los Angeles, was in grad school when he started experiencing chronic pain, and it completely derailed his life. He saw multiple doctors and received many diagnoses, but none of the medical treatments helped. Frustrated with conventional pain management, he developed Pain Reprocessing Therapy (PRT), a mind-body protocol that eliminated his own chronic pain and has transformed the lives of thousands of his patients. PRT is rooted in neuroscience, which has shown that while chronic pain feels like it's coming from the body, in most cases it's generated by misfiring pain circuits in the brain. PRT is a system of psychological techniques that rewires the brain to break out of the cycle of chronic pain.

The University of Colorado Boulder recently conducted a large randomized controlled study on PRT, and the results are remarkable. By the end of the study, the majority of patients were pain-free or nearly pain-free. What's more, these dramatic changes held up over time. The Way Out brings PRT to listeners. It combines accessible science with a concrete, step-by-step plan to teach sufferers how to heal their own chronic pain.

©2020 Alan Gordon and Alon Ziv (P)2020 Penguin Audio

Critic reviews

"The Way Out is a groundbreaking approach to the treatment of chronic pain that gives hope to those who were thought to be incurable. All chronic pain patients owe it to themselves to read this book. (Andrew Weil, MD, number one New York Times best-selling author of Spontaneous Healing)

“With straightforward and practical wisdom, The Way Out presents a sophisticated yet simple approach to understanding and healing chronic pain - an approach grounded in advanced science and proven clinical experience.” (Gabor Maté MD, author of When the Body Says No

"At long last, a successful treatment for chronic, disabling pain. The Way Out provides valuable information about the ailment of pain, and many helpful suggestions on how to heal." (Aaron Beck, MD, founder of cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), emeritus professor of psychiatry, University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine)

These Methods are Already Starting to Work for Me!

I am in awe of this book and the work behind it, so much so that I believe this is my first book review. In a book that is short but so sweet, Alan Gordon lays out (clearly with the help of his knowledgeable and insightful co-author, Alon Ziv) "the process" for ending chronic pain. It's already starting to work for me, and while it takes time and effort, they make it easy. The book is an easy read, easy to understand (aided by the anecdotes that make otherwise-challenging concepts turn into aha moments), compassionate, and humorous. Net effect: a truly elegant solution to one of mankind's worst plagues: chronic pain. I first bought the Audible version, then wanted the hard copy for easy reference. Alan's voice is so soothing & encouraging, that it helps the concepts sink in. I've been using related methods (including mindfulness & meditation, an app for chronic pain, Alan's tell me about your pain podcast produced in conjunction with that app, and others) for some time, and each new approach adds help & benefit. But in my opinion, Alan Gordon's methods taught here are for me the icing on the cake, and (pending publication of his peer-reviewed study with Tor Wager, a neuroscientist specializing in pain and Dr. Howard Schubiner, a physician specializing in treating pain with mind-body methods) apparently the most successful evidence-based approach for treating chronic pain. What a great listen! If you don't want the hard copy, buying the Kindle version and then the Audible (so as to use WhisperSync), might be an awesome alternate way to get the most out of this work.

Potentially life-changing book

I have suffered from chronic pain for over six years, and can already tell improvement in my pain as a result of reading this book. It is well written, well performed, and simple to follow. Alan Gordon’s voice is calm and reassuring, and I especially appreciate his sense of humor, which adds lightness to what otherwise could be a rather heavy topic. The inclusion of examples of patient experiences helps to keep the book relatable. The book’s concepts are informed by the latest scientific understanding of pain, the brain, and how pain pathways develop. The suggested steps for overcoming chronic pain that is “neuroplastic” (not due to current structural physical disorders), if followed faithfully, could prove life-changing. For anyone suffering from or attempting to treat chronic pain—patients and practitioners alike—I highly recommend this book.

Eye opening - this is how chronic pain should be taught

As a healthcare provider myself, and a new one at that, and as one that has been dealing with a chronic pain issue for 2 years, this book is one of the most eye opening things I’ve ever heard.

If you do with unrelenting chronic pain like I have, especially those that have tried every trinket and have seen every specialist, I urge you to listen to this book. It will reshape how you think about pain and who knows it could cure yours or at least turn it down a few food notches.

game changing! after 12 years, I am out of pain!

can't say more, this approach has me pain free. great listen! it works! and it's easy to follow and learn how to stop chronic pain once and for all.

encouraging read

I found this book to be very encouraging and to have a unique approach to pain. I like the reader's voice who is the author actually he is very sympathetic. I'm still dealing with pain after having read this the second time but still hopeful and not worse. my rheumatologist said that I was doing well.

A must read for anyone suffering in chronic pain

Comforting voice of Dr. Gordon with in-depth review of chronic pain appeal to me most, let alone the case scenarios which resonate with many suffering in chronic pain. Strategies suggested might not work for everyone but certainly worth trying.

Eye-opening!

I can’t wait to dive into trying this pain reprocessing therapy! It makes so much sense and is explained clearly and with compassion.

Good information

I really enjoyed the helpful information in the book about somatic tracking. I just wished he spent more time on actual techniques and not stories of his ex patients. Also wish he had more variation in his examples. There was none with IBS or any stomach issues.

this really is the way out

this book may very well be a single most important book I read in my entire life. I have been suffering from chronic migraines and pain for over 20 years and though I have already discovered some mind-body approaches and began to work with them over the past 5 months, the way this book is written and the simplicity and encouragement involved in the process have helped me immensely. I really enjoyed how Alan Gordon and Alon Ziv simplified everything. the steps that are needed, the sweet little vignette stories that illustrate points, etc. for someone with overwhelming pain during much of the day, it's easy to feel overwhelmed by too much information. this book instead made me feel like I was able to put all of the pieces into place. and since reading it I've had many corrective experiences that I'm sure I wouldn't have had without the wisdom from these pages.

I never thought I would get better!

After hurting my back in a yoga class 7 years ago, and enduring the countless procedures, 2 surgeries, way too many pills, and being stuck in bed 90% of the time, I truly thought I was stuck like this forever. In the few days it took to listen to this book, I am already noticing a huge difference and finally have hope of a full recovery.

Also, to the minority of reviewers upset about the simplicity of the book, you missed the point - the beauty is that it IS simple, and it works. Feel free to keep on feeling miserable and popping pills; I’ll just be over here feeling awesome. Truly a miracle of a book!