‘Chronic’ merely refers to how long your pain
has persisted, not how long it will last'
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I am an Occupational therapist, pain coach, author and speaker devoted to supporting adults living with persistent pain becoming successful self-managers of their condition. I bring a compassionate, creative and wholistic approach to the challenges of understanding and living with pain. I have a special interest in Fibromyalgia and have completed post-graduate studies in interdisciplinary pain management.
About Me
I'm Helen Roome.
I'm an Occupational therapist.
I love being an Occupational Therapist! I chose OT because of its whole-person-centred focus and creative and practical approach to helping people with a variety of health challenges.
I graduated as an OT from the University of the Witwatersrand in 1996 and worked for many years in the public and private health sectors in South Africa. Amongst other things during my OT career, I have lectured at undergraduate level and completed a diploma in Practical Labour Law through UNISA Business School.
During a career hiatus, when I worked as a Pastor of a local church, I also completed a Masters’ degree in practical theology (Tabor College, Australia). I cultivate my curiosity and consider myself a life-long learner – so my learning will never stop!
Although I have almost 30 years experience working with adults with a wide range of both physical and mental health challenges, I developed a special interest in chronic pain a number of years ago that led to completing a Post-Graduate Diploma in Interdisciplinary Pain Management through UCT.
I have now devoted the past decade of my life and practice to supporting people needing to manage the daily challenges of their chronic pain.
My unique range of past life experiences and cross-silo learning has also allowed me to do my best work of enlightening and empowering others in diverse ways and sectors, so that my career portfolio includes speaking, training, writing and content creation.
I enjoy sharing transformative ideas and frequently present to the public and other practitioners on pain, supporting pain self-management and mental health topics through webinars, workshops, conferences, radio and podcasts.
I have partnered with other healthcare practitioners and people living with pain to create programmes and platforms that educate and empower, like R&R pain solutions and FibroHub.
I am currently registered with the Health professions Council of South Africa (HPCSA) and the Occupational Therapy Association of South Africa (OTASA). I am the past-chairperson of the OT Pain Management Group (OTPMG) of South Africa; a member of the council of PainSA (the SA chapter of the International Association for the Study of Pain); and a past member of the Allied subcommittee of the South African Society for Sleep and Health (SASSH).
I also really try to practice what I preach! So, in my down-time you will find me with family and friends, in the garden, on a hiking trail, buried in a book or holding a paint brush!