Pain Lives Here

Chronic Pain Australia

Pain Lives Here is a podcast by Chronic Pain Australia sharing honest conversations and extraordinary stories from people living with chronic pain, their carers, clinicians, researchers and advocates. Hosted by Melinda Smylie, mum of Cooper, a teenager living with CRPS, each episode explores the places pain lives that people don’t always see — in families, schools, workplaces, relationships and everyday life. Because pain lives here. But hope lives here too.

Episodes

  1. 1d ago

    Pain Lives Here - S3 - Ep 2 - Kimberley Grima on the Power of Peer Support & Lived Experience in Chronic Pain

    Pain doesn’t just live in the body. It can live in the long wait for answers, the struggle to be believed, the cost of accessing care, and the isolation that so many people living with chronic pain carry quietly. In this episode of Pain Lives Here, host Melinda Smylie sits down with Kimmi Grima, a proud Wiradjuri woman, CRPS advocate, peer mentor and Chronic Pain Australia’s Peer Mentor Coordinator. Kimmi shares her raw and powerful journey through injury, Complex Regional Pain Syndrome, delayed diagnosis, regional healthcare barriers, mental health impacts and the moment that changed everything: being believed. This conversation explores what it means to live with pain that others cannot see, and why validation, trauma-informed care and peer support can be life-changing for people who have felt dismissed, isolated or alone. Kimmi also shares the story behind the peer support groups she facilitates for women in the Illawarra, including women living with pain alongside trauma, domestic violence and sexual assault. Through her work, Kimmi has helped create spaces where people can walk in carrying fear, isolation and uncertainty — and leave feeling understood. This episode is about pain, but it is also about purpose. It is about the power of community, the importance of culturally safe and person-centred care, and the quiet strength it takes to keep going. Because pain lives here. But connection lives here too. Help us make Pain Count - sign the petition: painliveshere.org.au For more info on Chronic Pain Australia support services visit: https://chronicpainaustralia.org.au/support-services/

  2. 1d ago

    Pain Lives Here - S3 - Ep 3 - People Before Products with Zea Relief Co-Founders Hayden & Jade

    In this episode of Pain Lives Here, host Melinda Smylie speaks with Jade and Hayden, the founders of Zea Relief, about the story behind their Tasmanian-born brand and the native Kunzea plant that inspired it. This conversation explores what it means to build a purpose-led pain relief brand with people at the centre — from listening to thousands of Australians living with arthritis, muscle pain, joint stiffness and chronic conditions, to choosing the harder path of evidence, certification and responsible product development. Jade also shares her own lived experience of pain and why this work is deeply personal. This episode is not about one product being the answer. It is about where topical products may fit as one tool within a broader pain management plan, the importance of listening to people living with pain, and why innovation in this space must be grounded in safety, evidence and care. Because pain lives in the body. But people, purpose and possibility live here too. Do you want to give Zea Relief a try? Hayden & Jade have generously provided our listeners a promo code to celebrate National Pain Week: Code: CPAIN1515% off all products$50 minimum spendOne use per customer (no total redemption cap)Can be stacked with other offersValid for 30 days from launch Help us make pain count, sign the petition at painliveshere.org.au

  3. 1d ago

    S3 - Ep 1 - Pain Lives Here - Nicolette Ellis Addresses Australia's National Pain Gap

    To launch Pain Lives Here, Chronic Pain Australia’s new podcast, host Melinda Smylie sits down with Nicolette Ellis, Chair of Chronic Pain Australia, for a powerful first conversation marking National Pain Week. In this episode, Nicolette unveils the results of the National Pain Report 2026 and unpacks what they reveal about the reality of living with chronic pain in Australia - from delayed diagnosis and dismissed symptoms, to financial strain, mental health impacts, workforce exclusion, family pressure and the ongoing fight to be believed. The episode explores the National Pain Gap: the space between how many Australians live with chronic pain, and how poorly pain is still recognised, measured and prioritised across health systems, policy, workplaces and communities. Help us make pain count - sign the petition at painliveshere.org.au

  • 3 Episodes

About

Pain Lives Here is a podcast by Chronic Pain Australia sharing honest conversations and extraordinary stories from people living with chronic pain, their carers, clinicians, researchers and advocates. Hosted by Melinda Smylie, mum of Cooper, a teenager living with CRPS, each episode explores the places pain lives that people don’t always see — in families, schools, workplaces, relationships and everyday life. Because pain lives here. But hope lives here too.

Information

  • Creator
    Chronic Pain Australia
  • Years Active
    2022 - 2026
  • Episodes
    3
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Chronic Pain Australia
  • Show Website
    Pain Lives Here