Blog Post #37: Pain.

There are a number of pharmaceuticals that will treat pain, especially acute pain. There are also a number of nonpharmaceutical interventions to treat pain. The International Association for the Study of Pain defines pain as "an unpleasant sensory or emotional experience associated with actual or potential tissue damage." Acute pain is usually transitory and resolves quickly. Pain that lasts a long time, usually 3 to 6 months, is called chronic or persistent pain. More people live with chronic pain than suffer from cancer, heart disease, and diabetes combined. According to one estimate by the National Institutes of Health, 116 million people suffer from chronic pain. Pain caused by cancer, neuropathic pain, and inflammatory pain, such as rheumatoid arthritis, are three major categories of pain.

The problem with defining pain is that pain may exist when there is no evidence of tissue damage or potential tissue damage. Pain is an individual response and may be unique to the person who is experiencing it. There is no way of measuring the severity of pain other than asking the patient to rate the pain, usually on a scale of 0 to 10, with no pain being a zero and the worst possible pain imaginable being a 10.

In addition to pharmaceuticals, there are a number of nonpharmaceutical interventions, many of which have existed for some time. These interventions include many of the cognitive behavioral strategies, such as the use of relaxation and mindful techniques, and include acupuncture, yoga, guided imagery, and hypnosis. Pharmaceuticals obviously play a major role in treating pain, especially acute pain, but the use of opioids in the treatment of chronic pain has proved to be far less effective. Patients often develop a tolerance to the medication after repeated use, and many become dependent upon the opioid for relief. They may also develop an increased sensitivity to pain, which compounds the problem. We'll talk more about pain and its treatment in the next few posts.

Ron Breazeale PhD

Building resilience.com him him him