The Pain Habit Method
The Pain Habit began with a curiosity about persistent pain — and has continued to change as I have.
Over many years of working with people in pain, I’ve become increasingly interested in the moments that don’t always fit neatly with the explanations we already have.
Why does something sometimes hurt differently from one occasion to another? What happens just before a difficult movement? What else is happening around an experience of pain? And what might we notice if we don’t rush to explain it?
I don’t think these questions always need immediate answers.
The Pain Habit is a place to explore them — through clinical experience, stories, observations and ideas — while leaving room for your own experience to be exactly that: your own.
The person behind The Pain Habit
Meet Drew Coverdale
Chartered Physiotherapist
MSc BSc MCSP
Where it began
The Pain Habit grew out of my work as a physiotherapist and a longstanding curiosity about persistent pain.
After years of working with people whose experiences didn’t always fit neatly into simple explanations of injury, damage, or recovery, I found myself paying closer attention to the details.
The things people noticed. The things they expected. The occasions when something changed — and those when it didn’t.
That curiosity eventually became a book, a website and an ongoing body of work.
My thinking has continued to evolve since then.
These days, I’m increasingly comfortable not needing to explain everything. I’m more interested in creating space for people to notice their own experience and decide for themselves what, if anything, feels useful.
About Me
I’m Drew Coverdale, a Chartered Physiotherapist, former professional footballer and author of The Pain Habit.
I qualified in 1997 and have worked across the NHS, private practice and education. My background in professional football and elite performance also informs my understanding of physical demands, injury and rehabilitation.
I’ve completed Pain Reprocessing Therapy (PRT) training and am a recognised SIRPA Practitioner. These approaches sit alongside nearly 30 years of physiotherapy experience in my work with persistent pain.
In our consultations, we consider your symptoms, movement, previous treatment and the wider circumstances that may be relevant. We explore what might help, try practical steps together and review what changes—without assuming one explanation fits everyone.
I offer individual consultations online and at Norton Physiotherapy Centre in Stockton-on-Tees.
Away from work, I’m married to Jenny and we have four children. I love music, swimming, cold-water dips and dancing with Jenny. Helping people return to what matters in their own lives is central to my work.
The Pain Habit book
The book is where many of these ideas first came together.
My thinking has continued to evolve since I wrote it, but it remains an important part of The Pain Habit's story.
What people have shared
““The treatment has been life changing. Can’t begin to explain how i now feel.”
— Anne Rookes
“We tried to put our finger on what was the most important subjective question in the assessment - what else was going on in life at that time? The emotional link was so obvious that we couldn't understand why no-one else was talking about it - and now everyone is so that's great!”
— Carol Robertson
“Thank you for offering me a lifeline with regards to helping me reduce my pain.”
