For kids, learning about pain can help them develop more coping skills, less fear and more resiliency around pain.”

Dr. Jen Reynolds

A Barrington resident is hoping the video she helped create will prevent children from abusing opioids later in life.

Dr. Jen Reynolds, a doctor of physical therapy, created a video that explains pain neuroscience education using metaphors and illustrations that kids can understand — research has shown that when a person understands how pain works, they can make choices on how to treat their pain, as opposed to turning to medication.

"This all started out of learning how to treat chronic pain without opioids," Dr. Reynolds said during a recent interview.

Educating boys and girls about how pain works and how to manage their pain gives them power over their pain, Dr. Reynolds said. That is the first step toward avoiding opioid abuse.

"For kids, learning about pain can help them develop more coping skills, less fear and more resiliency around pain," Dr. Reynolds wrote in an email.

Dr. Reynolds, who has received advanced certification to be a therapeutic pain specialist, partnered with the East Bay Regional Coalition and the Rhode Island Department of Behavioral Healthcare, Developmental Disabilities and Hospitals, with a goal focused on reducing or eliminating opioid abuse. Research shows that even taking opioids as prescribed can make a teenager 33 percent more likely to misuse opioids later in life.

Dr. Reynolds received a federal government grant to create the video and accompanying lesson plan. Initially, the hope was for her to visit students in Barrington schools and share the information, but that has not been possible because of restrictions in place due to the pandemic.

"So, we got creative and made a video and lesson plan that can be used in the schools either within the health class or science class. Really, wherever the teachers feel it fits," Dr. Reynolds wrote.

Dr. Reynolds said she has communicated with the principals at Hampden Meadows School and Barrington Middle School, and is hopeful that the information will be shared with local students in the near future.

Dr. Reynolds said the video and lesson plan are geared for students in grades four through seven. That might seem early for the subject matter, but it is important to offer students the building blocks to make the right decisions in the future, Dr. Reynolds said.

"Let's start here and give them the tools to understand this," she said.

Educators who would like to use this video lesson should contact e.bayprevention@gmail.com.

Pain facts:

• Pain comes from your brain and not the injured body part

• No two brains will interpret signals the same way, and two people with the same injury may have very different pain levels

• Opioid pain relievers may reduce pain by masking symptoms but they do not treat the source of the pain

• There are several ways to reduce pain aside from using prescription opioids, such as moderate exercise, meditation and mindfulness, and pain neuroscience education

• Learning about pain, retraining your brain, can help reduce pain levels

• Chronic pain is not only a physical problem — stresses, fears, and losses all play a role in chronic pain and its effects on a person’s life