Pain

to recognize that the outcomes of chronic pain are diverse for each individual and depend on a number of factors, including genetics, perception, characteristics, and other personal features. However, chronic pain sufferers commonly face numerous psychological effects that are similar across the board. The most mutual outcome for individuals, is a decreased quality of life as individual's pain holds them back and alters their lifestyle. Once chronic pain is present, individuals must adapt all…

in the years to come many people develop arthritis and oesteoarthritis, or as what is commonly known today as joint pain. This long term pain only progresses as the years go by. Joint pain is the interference of the joint due to injury, disease, inflammation and irritation. This interference causes a discomfort in the stipulated joint causing pain, aching and swelling. This pain is common in adults above the age of 30.…

The extensive recent research utilizing neuroimaging techniques to study pain in healthy subjects has many clinical implications for pain diagnosis and treatment. For the sake of brevity, this response will focus on fMRI (functional magnetic resonance imagining), a method that surveys changes in blood flow assumed to be reflecting alterations in neural activity and maps them to an anatomical representation of the patient’s brain (Borsook, Burstein et al. 2004). The culmination of several fMRI…

Chronic pain is defined as a long period of time where the pain persists and does not let down. Chronic pain is very different than acute pain as it is more than just a sensation that lets us know we may have a possible injury. This type of pain is usually due to a medical condition or damage to the body. Chronic pain can cause many different types of feeling and emotions such as hopelessness, anger, anxiety, etc. Some ways to treat chronic pain are through surgery, physical therapy,…

negatives that occur. Just like “Without pain, how could we know joy,” but what is pain? Is it the physical hurt upon your skin? Could it be the heartbreak from an old boyfriend? What about the pain you feel inside because a disease is literally picking at you until there is nothing left? According to Merriam webster’s Collegiate Dictionary the definition of Pain is: to make one suffer or cause distress. But this is not an accurate definition don’t you think. Pain can be described in multiple…

The pain began slowly, pricking me with its sharp needles only while doing barre in ballet once a week. I ignored it, believing it to be normal, common discomfort that would soon go away, typical thoughts of a dancer whose entire sport is centered around “good pain”. Six months later, it had escalated to the degree that every step I took felt like an arrow to my knee. Dancing had become impossible, and it was determined that I should be taken to the orthopedist. The bland, brown and beige lobby…

psychological process of pain unifies cultures across the globe. The specific pain of childbirth is a common and expected understanding amongst the women of the world and is defined by her cultural and educational background. Her levels of distress measured verbally or nonverbally, reach out to all mothers as they too have experienced the same pain. The perception of pain and women’s reaction to giving birth gives the purpose to the study titled, “Cultural and Educational Influences on Pain Of…

When distracted by pain, the last thing considered is how well the mind is feeling, but that may be more important than what scientists originally thought. Mental state has been found to affect humans, as a species, significantly more than what the average person may realize. It can affect how a person feels physically as well as emotionally. In recent studies it has been found that the psychological state affects pain specifically. It can even affect how a person will recovery from major and…

for the Study of Pain (IASP) defines neuropathic pain as pain caused by a lesion or disease of the somatosensory nervous system. Neuropathic pain can either be central or peripheral. Central neuropathic pain is caused by a lesion or disease of the central somatosensory nervous system, whereas peripheral pain is caused by a lesion or disease of the peripheral somatosensory nervous system (IASP, 2012). The management of neuropathic pain is challenging because many patients have pain that is…

Chronic pain is a widespread issue in the United States, with over 11 percent of Americans reporting that they suffer from daily pain that interferes with their life (cite NIH). Pain management is often impersonal and relies heavily on the use of prescription drugs, which can lead to long-term dependence and devastating side effects. In 2015, 3-4% of adults were given a long-term opioid prescription to manage their chronic pain (cite new England). Occupational therapy can play an important role…