Ingela Thuné-Boyle, PhD
International Health Coach 
Online Practice

After many years working as a psychologist specializing in health psychology, behavioural medicine, chronic illness, and pain, I have made the decision to evolve my practice and transition to a coaching model. This is not a move away from the work I care deeply about. Rather, it's a new chapter that allows me to continue supporting people living with chronic illness, persistent symptoms, chronic pain, and major life transitions in a way that is practical, collaborative, and a

In this video, I explore what we mean by “medical gaslighting” and why people can sometimes leave healthcare appointments feeling dismissed, unheard, or even questioning their own experience. When symptoms are persistent, complex, or difficult to explain, being told that tests are normal or that stress may be contributing can leave people wondering whether something has been missed, or whether they are somehow imagining what they are experiencing.

Conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, multiple sclerosis, Crohn's disease, and ulcerative colitis involve genuine immune dysfunction and inflammation, and appropriate medical treatment is an essential part of managing them. But the immune system doesn't operate in isolation. It is closely connected to the nervous and hormonal systems, which means that psychological stress can have very real physiological effects.

In this video, I use the simple Lemon Test to demonstrate how the brain can create real physical sensations and physiological responses through thoughts, memories, and mental imagery alone. Even imagining something as ordinary as biting into a juicy lemon can cause your mouth to water, your facial muscles to respond, or your body to react as though the lemon were actually present.

In this video, I explore what it means to “teach the brain safety again” when chronic pain and persistent physical symptoms have become established through neuroplastic processes. The brain and nervous system are constantly learning and adapting, and just as they can learn patterns associated with danger and protection, they can also learn patterns associated with safety, flexibility, and recovery.

In this video, I explore Dr. Howard Schubiner's concept of the Seven F's - Fear, Focus, Fighting, Figuring Out, Fixing, Frustration, and Forlornness - and explain how these common and entirely understandable reactions to chronic pain and persistent physical symptoms can sometimes unintentionally contribute to keeping symptoms going. While these responses are natural attempts to cope with distressing symptoms, they can also reinforce the brain's perception that the body remain

For many years, people assumed that the brain functioned rather like a camera. Information from the body and the outside world was thought to travel to the brain, where it was accurately interpreted and experienced. If you felt pain, the assumption was that pain signals had travelled from injured tissue to the brain. If you felt dizzy, fatigue, or breathless, those sensations were assumed to directly reflect what was happening in the body.

In this video, I explore why very real physical symptoms can sometimes persist even when medical tests show little or no ongoing tissue damage or disease. While many people assume that symptoms are simply direct signals from the body, modern neuroscience suggests that the brain and nervous system play a much more active role. Rather than simply detecting damage, the brain is constantly interpreting information and deciding whether a protective response is needed. I discuss ho

Receiving a diagnosis can be a pivotal moment. For many, it brings long-awaited validation, a language for confusing symptoms, and a sense of being seen. It can reduce self-blame and open the door to appropriate treatment and support. In this sense, diagnosis can be profoundly helpful. However, there is a more complex side to this process that is less often discussed: the risk of fusing one’s identity with a diagnosis.

In this video, I explore why chronic illness is about far more than physical symptoms. While symptoms are often the focus of medical appointments, living with a long-term health condition can affect almost every aspect of a person's life. It can influence energy levels, daily routines, work, relationships, identity, confidence, and the ability to plan ahead, often in ways that remain invisible to others. I discuss how chronic illness changes the way people engage with the wor

In this video, I explore why communication between patients and healthcare professionals can have such a profound impact on the experience of chronic illness and persistent symptoms. For many people, one of the most difficult aspects of living with a long-term condition is not only the symptoms themselves, but the challenge of trying to explain them, make sense of them, and feel heard within the healthcare system.

One issue that is rarely discussed in depth within the literature on hypermobile Ehlers-Danlos syndrome (hEDS) is the question of diagnostic drift. Diagnostic drift refers to the gradual expansion or loosening of diagnostic boundaries in clinical practice, whereby a condition begins to include a broader and more heterogeneous group of patients than those originally defined by formal diagnostic criteria. In the context of hEDS, this is not a minor technical issue. It has impor

While neuroplastic processes may influence symptom expression, severity, and persistence in individuals with hEDS (as they may in any chronic condition), this does not change the underlying classification of hEDS itself. This is not simply a matter of academic disagreement or terminology. It reflects a fundamental distinction between a diagnosed connective tissue disorder and explanatory models of symptom persistence. Ideas about classification matter because they shape clini

In this video, I explain what mind-body syndromes are, and just as importantly, what they are not. This is a topic that is often surrounded by confusion and misunderstanding, which can leave people feeling dismissed, invalidated, or uncertain about what is happening to their bodies. I explore how very real physical symptoms can develop and persist through changes in the nervous system, even when there is no ongoing tissue damage driving them. We look at the role of the brain

In this video, I explore what chronic pain is and why persistent pain cannot always be explained by ongoing injury or tissue damage alone. Many people are told that if pain persists, there must be something structurally wrong with their body. However, research over the past few decades has shown that chronic pain is often far more complex, involving changes in the nervous system, pain processing, and the way the brain interprets signals from the body.

I recently found myself reflecting on a chapter in Dr. Howard Schubiner's book Unlearn Your Pain, in which he places hypermobile Ehlers-Danlos syndrome (hEDS) within a neuroplastic category of conditions. This raised some important questions for me, both as a psychologist who works with chronic illness and chronic pain, and as someone with lived experience of hEDS. Before going any further, I want to acknowledge that I have great respect for Dr. Schubiner's contributions to t

I’m pleased to share that I have launched a YouTube channel dedicated to many of the topics I work with every day in my practice, including chronic illness, chronic pain, persistent physical symptoms, mind-body syndromes, medical trauma, stress, grief, and the emotional challenges that often accompany long-term health conditions.

I have recently been reading Dr. Howard Schubiner's new book, "Unlearn You Pain," and found myself reflecting on his discussion of the biopsychosocial model. As I understand his argument, he is concerned that the model may inadvertently encourage some people with neuroplastic pain to continue searching for a structural explanation for their symptoms. This raises an interesting question: is neuroplastic pain theory fundamentally different from the biopsychosocial model, or is

Living with a chronic illness often involves a prolonged and unpredictable journey that tests the body, mind, and spirit. While medical treatments address physical symptoms, many individuals turn to spirituality to discover deeper meaning, inner strength, and emotional resilience. Spirituality is a highly personal concept, ranging from organized religion to a personal sense of connection, purpose, or transcendence, and its influence on the experience of chronic illness is inc

Life is filled with transitions, some anticipated and others sudden. We plan for many of them such as graduations, careers, marriage, parenthood, and retirement, but some transitions come without invitation, disrupting the balance of our lives. Chronic illness is one of those. It can arrive suddenly or develop slowly, but regardless of how it begins, it creates a distinct sense of before and after.