We went as a team to Sarah Hopfinger’s performance in Glasgow called ‘ Pain and I ‘ on 8th Nov 2023. At West End Physio we are really interested in the lived experience of someone who has chronic pain. This performance was another learning event for us, but this time from a different angle.

Sarah’s bold and intimate exploration into her pain experience was certainly thought provoking once we got our head’s round the fact that she was completely naked!

It was confusing and stimulating. Raw and uncomfortable. It was shocking at times. Her use of repetition in her performance was akin to a throbbing pain. Nothing predictable. She managed to express the extremes of emotions, total confusion and absurdity that is chronic pain. For example at one point she repeated over and over again sentences such as ” I cant see you, I can’t forget you, I can’t forgive you, I cant’ see you……” This was so relentlessly powerful.

Sarah’s expression through dance and words was a stark reminder that pain is not visible and it’s something we can’t understand unless we have lived with pain chronically ourselves, but this went some way to help us see the suffering that comes with pain through a different lens and help us learn more about what people living with chronic pain might actually be feeling or thinking.

Thank you Sarah Hopfinger.