Chronic pain is pain that persists for longer than three months and is a condition that can affect everything from your mobility, sleep, mental health, and overall quality of life. Conditions include migraines, sciatica, arthritis, nerve pain, fibromyalgia, as well as shoulder, knee, elbow, and neck pain.

In some, this pain is caused by tissue damage—a muscle strain, ruptured disk, an inflamed or torn tendon—while the root cause of other conditions, such as nerve pain, is more difficult to diagnose. Chronic pain is stressful on your body and mental health, and constant discomfort can lead to anger and frustration with yourself and those around you.

More frequently, health care providers are focusing on reducing chronic pain with techniques and therapies that help build resilience and teach skills to help you manage chronic pain. If your pain is interfering with your daily functioning or affecting your mood, it’s important to talk to your family doctor or health care provider.

Early Awareness and Diagnosis

Common causes or diagnoses associated with chronic pain:

Living with Chronic Pain

Better Choices, Better Health – Chronic Pain

Free chronic pain management workshops, offered via Zoom, by Alberta Health Services.

Controlling Flare-Ups

Living with persistent pain can be like a rollercoaster ride; good, long-term planning will make it less bumpy.

Live Plan Be

An online self-guided program to help you develop practical strategies to cope with pain.

Living with Fibromyalgia

Learn about managing your symptoms, the benefits of exercise and nutrition, and using complementary and alternative medicine.

Understanding Pain in Less Than 5 Minutes

Video: Outlines current research about pain and how it affects the brain.

Medication and Treatment

Cannabinoids and Managing Chronic Pain

Helpful information if you are considering cannabinoids to help you manage chronic pain.

Pain Calculator

Online tool that shows the potential benefits and possible harms associated with different treatments.

Pain Management

Information on tests and treatments, reasons to control pain, and when to call your family doctor.

Safe Use of Long-Acting Opioids

Learn more about these medications, including safety tips and potential side effects.

How ASEBP Supports You

ASEBP’s Extended Health Care benefits provide coverage for a range of medications and therapeutic treatments to manage your pain and improve your quality of life. Extended Disability Benefits may be an option for covered members with chronic or severe pain that impairs the ability to perform their daily living and work duties.

If you have ASEBP's Employee and Family Assistance Program (EFAP), you also have access to four cost-free hours of counselling or health coaching each calendar year. Get support from mental health professionals, registered nurses, dietitians, and other practitioners to help you manage your pain and the ups-and-downs of living with a chronic condition.

You can also register for Tranquility by Inkblot, a cognitive behavioural therapy (iCBT) program that teaches positive coping strategies and skills. This online program is available to all covered members and dependants with ASEBP’s EFAP.

Get in Touch

Your ASEBP benefit plan covers a range of health and wellness services.

For more information, email benefits@asebp.ca or call us at 1-877-431-4786. You can also schedule a phone, video, or in-person meeting with a benefit specialist at asebp.ca/contact-us.