Definition
Sensorimotor retraining is the deliberate re-education of the nervous system’s sensory and motor integration after injury, pain, or dysfunction. It draws on modern pain neuroscience and motor learning.
Why it matters
This is where Collection 8 (pain) and Collection 23 (movement) meet in the clinic. Sensorimotor retraining includes mirror therapy, graded motor imagery, tactile discrimination training, and body-illusion techniques.
The Science
Graded motor imagery (Moseley) reduces chronic pain in CRPS and phantom limb pain. Mirror therapy and body-illusion approaches show measurable effects on cortical representation and pain.
The NSI Perspective
NSI holds sensorimotor retraining as one of the most elegant clinical applications of neuroplasticity.
Clinical Implications
Skilled sensorimotor retraining is legitimate, evidence-informed care.
Practical Application
How your body is mapped in your brain is not fixed. Careful retraining can update the map — and change the pain.
References
- 1.Moseley GL. Graded motor imagery is effective for long-standing complex regional pain syndrome. Pain. 2004;108(1–2):192–198.