Meeting Complexity with Compassion: A Perspective on Chronic Pain and Medicine Assisted Therapy

By Dr. Devon Christie, MD, RTC

CMAT Co-Founder & Medical Director

For millions of people, chronic pain is more than just a physical sensation—it’s a life-shaping experience. It interferes with daily functioning, relationships, and emotional well-being, often persisting despite numerous treatments. As a physician trained in both conventional and integrative approaches, I’ve seen how frustrating and disheartening this journey can be.

At the Centre for Medicine Assisted Therapy, we approach chronic pain from a systems-level lens—one that recognizes pain not just as a symptom in the body, but as an expression of complex interactions across the nervous system, immune system, emotional history, and environment. Rather than asking, “What’s broken?” we ask, “What’s happening in the whole system?” This broader view opens new doors for healing.

What Makes Chronic Pain So Complex?

Unlike acute pain—which signals injury or danger and typically resolves as we heal—chronic pain persists for months or even years, sometimes without a clear physical cause. Research now shows that in many chronic pain conditions (like fibromyalgia or neuropathic pain), the brain and nervous system remain in a sort of “alert mode,” even when there’s no ongoing injury.

Pain scientists call this phenomenon central sensitization, where the nervous system becomes more reactive over time. This can be shaped by early life stress, trauma, persistent emotional strain, and even societal factors like isolation or invalidating healthcare experiences. In short, chronic pain isn’t just “in your head,” but it is shaped by the brain—especially when stress, emotions, and unprocessed experiences feed into pain circuits.

A Systems View: Pain as an Emergent Experience

Imagine your pain as the result of dozens of interconnected systems—your stress response, immune function, memory, emotions, beliefs, and habits—all influencing one another. Sometimes these systems become stuck in rigid loops, making it hard for your body and brain to return to balance. In science, we call this a complex adaptive system—and chronic pain may be an emergent property of that system being out of sync.

So, what does that mean for treatment?

Traditional approaches often try to "fix" a single part of the system—targeting inflammation, nerve signaling, or muscles. These are valid and often helpful. But what if the solution isn’t to fix one part—but to help the whole system reorganize?

How Might Medicine Assisted Therapies Help?

This is where Medicine Assisted Therapy—particularly with psychoactive medicines —may offer new promise. While research is still emerging, psychedelic therapies are being studied for their ability to loosen rigid patterns in the brain and body. They don’t just mask symptoms; they seem to temporarily disrupt entrenched beliefs, behaviors, and neural networks, offering a window for deep change.

Think of the mind as a snowy hill. Over time, sleds (our habits, thoughts, pain responses) carve deep tracks into the snow. It’s hard to take a new path once those grooves are set. Therapeutic Medicine Assisted experiences—when guided safely and intentionally—can act like a fresh snowfall, giving the system a chance to make new tracks.

This doesn't mean that these psychoactive medicines are a miracle cure by themselves. But in combination with therapy, body-based practices, and intentional integration, they may help rewire how the brain interprets pain signals, how the body responds to stress, and how people relate to themselves and their experience.

Mind, Body, and More

At our clinic, we also value approaches like mindfulness, somatic therapy, and movement practices, which have shown benefits for people living with chronic pain. These methods help improve interoception—your ability to sense and interpret what’s happening inside your body—which often becomes disrupted in chronic pain conditions.

When combined with the neuroplastic potential of psychedelic medicines, these approaches can reinforce healthier patterns of body awareness, emotion regulation, and cognitive flexibility. In other words, we support not just pain relief, but resilience.

A New Path Forward

We’re still learning. High-quality clinical trials are underway around the world. But, what we know so far, suggests that Medicine Assisted Therapy may offer something conventional medicine struggles to provide: an integrative, biopsychosocial approach that meets pain in its full complexity.

If you’d like to explore this topic further, I invite you to read the open-access, peer-reviewed article I co-authored:
➡️ Chronic pain as an emergent property of a complex system and the potential roles of psychedelic therapies (Frontiers in Pain Research, 2023)

And for those who want a structured introduction to these ideas, consider enrolling in the free online course which includes a module that I teach:
➡️ Introduction to Psychedelics for Chronic Pain

Curated by the Psychedelics and Pain Association, this self-paced course offers an accessible overview of the science and therapeutic potential of psychedelics in chronic pain care—designed for patients, caregivers, clinicians, and the curious alike.

At the Centre for Medicine Assisted Therapy, we are committed to thoughtful, compassionate, and evidence-informed care. If you or a loved one lives with chronic pain and are curious whether Medicine Assisted Therapy may be a good fit, we invite you to book a free information call.

You are not broken. Your system is doing its best to adapt. Sometimes, with the right support, it just needs a new path.