Standard BATHE or Positive Bathe Managing Difficult Emotions versus Chronic Pain Dan Blocker MS

So you had a Bad Day….. Background ”What’s going on in your life?” Affect “How do you feel” or “What has your mood been like” Trouble “What about the situation troubles you the most" Handling “How can you handle that” Empathy “This must be very difficult for you”

When to Use it Collecting psychosocial history (Stuart & Lieberman, 2002) Managing emotional issues or concerns (Shiner, 2011) Benefits the anxious patient that may need structure to guide the conversation Benefits the depressed patient who may not know where to start

What about the Patients that you see Chronic Pain or Just Never Seem Happy? Often they seem to be drowning in negativity and this is the only thing that matters Due to this narrowed focus, they cannot see any lifelines The best thing you can do is to help them see a lifeline

Positive Bathe Best “What is the best thing that happened this week?” Affect “How did that make you feel? Thankful “What does this make you thankful for?” Happen “How can you make this happen more often?” Empowerment “I know that you can do this!”

How you know when you are working harder than the patient VS.

summary Standard BATHE POSITIVE BATHE Background Best Affect Trouble Thankful Handle Happen Empathy Empower