Pain Free for Women: The Revolutionary Program for Ending Chronic Pain

Over 3 years ago I had constant shoulder, back, and hip pain. I had already invested in over a dozen books and had come to the conclusion that nothing was ever going to help me - chronic pain was a part of growing older. I also had a difficult time doing the Taijiquan (a martial art) form I was working on because my back was overly curved. On the advice of a friend, I got Egoscue's first book, Pain Free.After doing the exercises (30 minutes each day) for a few months, wonder of wonder, my curved back relaxed and I was able to sink into the Taijiquan postures I'd been trying to achieve for ten years. But best of all - the pain disappeared. For the first time in years, I didn't wake up to daily pain in my joints!!!Unfortunately, almost a year ago, I got into a car accident that is still causing me a great deal of pain in my neck and back. I had been doing those same Pain Free exercises from before, but they didn't seem to be doing much.I decided to purchase this newer book anyway - since it was written specifically for women. I actually didn't think it would help much and prepared myself for disappointment.Oh MY!! After just a few weeks, once again, I was amazed at the difference. The exercises in this book (and yes, they do take much longer than the simple Pain Free book) were so helpful that I was able to change from a narcotic pain reliever to a non-narcotic pain reliever. Believe me, for someone trying to function- that is a BIG difference.Egoscue is a genius. I have seen many doctors, including so-called pain specialists, and the only thing that has significantly helped me so far is Egoscue exercises. I now do them every day, and can feel the difference in my neck, back, shoulders, hips, knees, ankles, and feet.Even better - this book explains in much more detail than the Pain Free book exactly what's going on in my muscles and body - so that I can really tell why the exercises are working (or not). Now that I can feel the difference, I can tell when to stop doing one phase and move on to the next.I felt compelled to write this review because I noticed a few negative reviews. The only thing that I can postulate is that1. The people writing were not committed to the exercises for long enough for them to work, or...2. The people did not really have chronic pain to begin with and therefore no motivation, or....3. The people have something personal against Peter Egoscue (I have never met him, so I wouldn't know).All I can say is -- this book changed my life. I only wish I had read it BEFORE my accident - I suspect that I wouldn't have gotten so hurt had I been in better "functional" shape prior to getting rear-ended.This book is about prevention, about taking control of your body and making it work the way it was designed to work. If you are a women in chronic pain - believe me - if you do these exercises, you will change your life for the better. Don't let others disuade you from doing the most that you can for yourself.

This book is preventative for women's issues at various points in their life. It does not target current pain you have. Pain Free by Pete Egoscue helped my back so much. I was getting frequent flare ups that were so painful I was puking from the pain. I got an MRI and nothing was wrong. I did the exercises for an hour per day for a month and the pain has diminished so much. I have only had one flare up and it wasn't as bad. I can exercise without pain now.

I found a copy of one of Peter Egoscue's books in the waiting room of a alternative health practitioner and evaluated it thoroughly before I that one from Amazon. I was looking for something to help my son who is having a bout of excruciating back pain that mostly radiates into his ankle. He's had the steroid shots and is doing better, but he wants to avoid further problems and perhaps eventualy surgery. I bought The Egoscue Method of Health Through Motion for him.I hope it will help him, I believe this one, also by Peter Egoscue will help me too, especially as I continue to build a habit of doing these extemely easy, no cost exercises to teach my body to re-alighn itself. Anyone can do it and this book also explains how much physical activity in childhood adds to strength and health in late adult life. Mr. Egosque says that older people have a better chance of recuperating using his techniques than younger ones who have been sedentary in childhood. He speaks of the bones, joints, ligaments, and also the organs which are dependent on physical activity from childhood on. I'd love to see mothers read it as well.

The exercises in this book seem to be good, and I have no doubt that they bring many people relief from back pain. However, the author is more than a little crazy. He seems to believe, among other things, that drug-resistant epidemics of TB could be cured if we all just had better posture...because good posture will improve your immune system, and then you can fight off TB... This is beyond silly.In Egoscue's philosophy, everything from C-sections to cancer to ADD could be eliminated if we all just stood up straight and didn't walk with our toes pointing out. He also has a strangely rose-tinted view of the past. He constantly talks about how much better everything was 50-100 years ago when women did more house-work and such. He ignores the fact that lifespans have increased, that fewer women die in childbirth, that people in our grandparents' generation also wrestled with chronic pain and some of them didn't make it. He focuses on people who lived long lives, ignoring the fact that many people didn't.Egoscue does kick up the occasional insight or good point, but it's so obscured by logical fallacy and bad science that his prose is painful to read. Skip to the exercises and see if they help you. Ignore the rest.

Good instructions for exercises geared to age and activity levels. Some quick ways to make a back feel better. Very gentle. Over time the results can be surprising. Most of this would help men, too. Pete Egoscue videos well worth watching on Youtube.

I went to an egoscue person for back and neck pain and they really helped me but sessions are expensive. I'm pregnant and was recommended this book. It's great because it has different chapters on each trimester and a postpartum one too. This book goes from literally babies to older people with everything in between including loss of muscle tone in middle age. The particular book I got has pages falling out which was disappointing but the content of the book is great. If you're really bad I would suggest going to an actual egoscue person so they can assess your needs but this book is good for the minor aches and pains and problems us women go through. These exercises are the only reason I can sleep because I do them before I go to bed and they eliminate my pregnancy back pain so I can sleep. If you really want this to work you have to be faithful and do it every day.

I thought this would be similar to the author's earlier book, Pain Free, but with specific emphasis for women. It isn't a book for women in pain - the author refers the reader to Pain Free for that! It is more an exercise program for various stages of life and the only thing that is specific to women is the pregnancy exercises section. It does contain useful information, especially about the importance of allowing babies and children to play freely, without shoes and without so-called 'aids', like baby bouncers and all-supporting carriers, so that the musculoskeletal system develops correctly. At the over-50's section I got the impression that the author thought you were past it and there was little hope of regaining full function. The first exercise is 'standing up against a wall'. That's it. I'm over 50 and felt quite insulted by that. Perhaps I'm not typical.Anyway, I gave it 2 stars because it didn't help me. Pain Free and Pain Free Living did. I recommend those rather than this one.

If people would read this and become more aware of their own bodies and how it works the incidence of ' arthritis' would be cut by 99.9%.

I bought this for my wife and she has found it really useful. The exercises do seem to have worked for her.

Great, thank you

good read