Chances are, right now, youre in some sort of pain.
Maybe your back aches, or arthritis is hurting your hands or knee pain is hobbling your walk.
Maybe youre dealing with something even more intense lingering, life-altering pain from diabetes or cancer.
And it hits older adults especially hard.
Chronic pain does more than deliver unrelenting aches, stiffness and tenderness: It shrinks your life, too.
But in the wake of all this despair, there may be real hope.
What is pain?
Touch a hot pan or stub your toe, and your body lets you know.
Climbing stairs, that telltale crunch makes you slow down.
But one of the biggest mistakes we make is that we think of pain as purely physical sensations.
It makes sense that your body wants you to take action to stop the pain.
Pain turns more complex when it becomes chronic, Warraich says.
Chronic pain is a combination of a physical sensation and an emotion that your body feels, he says.
Meaning, theres more than just physical damage; its emotional, social and psychological too.
Thats why attempts to throw opioids and other potent drugs at chronic pain conditions have failed spectacularly.
Understanding pain and appreciating its complexity has opened doors for new treatments.
And thats why were in such a better place to treat it.
Yourbrainonpain
Pain isnt simply a signal that the body zips to the brain that registers asouch.
When youre injured, your body becomes hypersensitive to pain.
This serves a purpose: You avoid walking on a twisted ankle, for example.
For any given person, figuring out the mix of those different things can be complex, Wager says.
Its not all in your spine or knee joint.
And its not all in your mind, either.
Discovering your personal pain quotient your tolerance and thresholdis the first step to healing.
