In the news

This watercolour painting, "Pain Waves", was my entry last week for the 2025 Art Awards of the Canadian Pain Society (CPS). The CPS is a national organization of healthcare professionals and researchers who study and treat both acute and chronic pain, along with health sciences students, post-doctoral fellows, and other trainees who are learning about or researching pain. There are also a number of Patient Partners within the CPS, like myself, involved in different projects and serving on various CPS committees.

The annual Art Awards, held since 2021 with a new theme for each edition, are open not only to CPS Members and to Patient Partners but also to the public.
The theme for this year's Art Awards is "What do I do for pain?", requiring a brief essay (of up to 150 words) on how a submitted artwork replies to this question.  There's also space for up to words for a description of the techniques used in the artwork. For my description of "Pain Waves", I took the opportunity to send an additional message to viewers: "This semi-abstract watercolour painting features a limited palette of the 3 primary colours (blue, red, and yellow), reflecting the limited resources of chronic pain treatment and pain research across Canada."
For the submission essay itself, I wrote:
"What do I do for pain? For my own pain, I try to adapt! When I’m experiencing waves of CRPS pain, I try to metaphorically surf through them. My metaphorical surfboard might be any – or all – of my pain-management tools, including my art practice, being with family and friends, cuddling with my husband, cycling and other exercise, mindful meditation, singing (badly) or humming along to music, and spending time in nature.
And for others' pain I'm significantly involved in chronic pain advocacy, awareness-raising, education, research, and support, and am a Patient Partner for several groups and projects.
My #ArtDespitePain initiative, meanwhile, encourages others living with persistent pain to try creative pursuits as a brain-plasticity or neuro-plasticity tool for their pain."
This watercolour painting was created specifically as a concept piece to reflect the kinds of 'pain flares' or 'pain waves' that I experience due to CRPS, and I'm now working on a series featuring waves as representations of perseverance and resiliency in the face of pain.