96% of Drs Weren’t Taught About Pain: The Recipe for Relief with Dr. Rachel Zoffness
01 June 2026

96% of Drs Weren’t Taught About Pain: The Recipe for Relief with Dr. Rachel Zoffness

BETTER! with Dr. Stephanie Estima | Strength, Body Composition & Perimenopause

About

Dr. Rachel Zoffness is a pain psychologist, neuroscientist, and author of Tell Me Where It Hurts -- and she's here to dismantle the biggest lie medicine has sold us: that pain is a purely biomedical problem requiring a purely biomedical solution.

Dr. Rachel unpacks how trauma turns the nervous system into a pain megaphone, why the brain literally gets better at producing pain the longer it practices it, and why loneliness is as dangerous to your physical health as poor sleep or a bad diet.

This one is for every woman who did the surgery, took the pills, and still woke up hurting. The roadmap exists. You just haven't been given it yet.

Episode Overview:
(0:00) Intro/Teaser
(4:55) Why "Psychosomatic" Is a Dirty Word That Needs Retiring
(8:48) The Big Fat Lie: Pain Is Not Just Biology
(10:46) Biopsychosocial 101: The Three Ingredients of Every Pain Recipe
(13:48) Big Pharma, Back Surgery, and the $54 Billion Reckoning
(28:12) How Trauma Turns Your Brain Into a Pain Megaphone
(30:44) Central Sensitization: Why Your Brain Keeps Practicing Pain
(36:57) The Pain Recipe: How to Map Your Triggers and Take Back Control
(45:58) Loneliness Is a Pain Amplifier (Here's the Neuroscience)
(54:16) The Healing Science of Touch
(57:33) Emotions Need to Move: Swearing, Rage Rooms, and Trauma That Gets Stuck
(1:04:26) After Party: What Landed and Why I'm Getting Her Back

Resources mentioned in this episode: https://drstephanieestima.com/podcasts/ep471

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P.S. When you're ready, here are two ways Dr. Stephanie can help you:

Subscribe: The Mini Pause — My weekly newsletter packed with the most actionable, evidence-based tools for women 40+ to thrive in midlife.

Build Muscle: LIFT — My progressive strength training program designed for women in midlife. Form-focused, joint-friendly, and built for real results.


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