Everyone experiences pain at some point in their life. As a team of physical therapists in Superior, we talk about pain with many members of our community. For some people, pain is an “easy” recovery following an injury or surgery. For other people, pain can be a long journey. It can turn into chronic pain. Everyone has heard this term at some point in their life. Some of you may have experienced it, and everyone knows someone who has experienced it.
Studies show that 1 in 5 adults have experienced chronic pain in the past three months. Of those with chronic pain, more than 7% of people are limited from working or enjoying their daily activities. Another study has shown that chronic pain is affecting 116 million Americans. As a result, the annual national economic cost of chronic pain is estimated between $560-635 billion dollars.
That is a lot of people, and that is a lot of pain! At Center for Muscle and Joint Therapy we want to help you overcome your pain.
What is chronic pain? If you want a straightforward answer, chronic pain is any pain that you have been experiencing for longer than three months. For anyone who has experienced chronic pain, it can mean much more than that. Chronic pain that is untreated or mistreated can rule your life. It can swallow your mind and determine how you live your day-to-day life. It is a physical burden, as well as a mental burden. It changes how you work, how you play and how you think. It becomes your identity.
Some of you might connect with these descriptions, or it might make it seem more confusing to others. That is how chronic pain can be; confusing. You may even find yourself asking, “Why do I hurt?”.
The human body is beautifully designed. We have dextrous hands, adaptive eyes and magnificent brains. These are a few examples of the intricate systems that keep us moving.
One of the important systems of the human body is the pain system. Pain can be a burden and annoying, but this is not a “bad” system. The pain system is here to protect and inform us when we are injured. The pain system stops us from burning our hands on a hot stovetop, and alerts us when we step on something sharp. Without our pain system we would be living our lives with injuries from head to toe.
The pain system is more than just nerves travelling throughout our body. It is a complex system that starts and ends in our most complex organ; the brain. Our brain is a big factor in determining how we experience pain. Without our brain, pain would be similar to electricity traveling up a wire with nowhere to go. Our brain recognizes pain, processes it and, last of all, memorizes it.
When a pain signal reaches the brain through our nerves it travels to different areas of the brain to be processed. These different areas determine where it hurts and how much it hurts. In addition, our brain will start to shape our thoughts, emotions and memories as it relates to pain. This is how our brain and our body turns pain into chronic pain. The brain memorizes pain and sometimes it can’t forget it. With the right tools, you can rewire this system so you can feel better.
You’ve had your injury, you’ve had your surgery; maybe you have already tried physical therapy or other pain management techniques. But you still hurt. This is where our team of physical therapists comes into play.
We realize that chronic pain isn’t always an easy fix. Pain is a unique experience to each individual. There are many factors that create chronic pain, and as a result there are many different strategies to manage chronic pain. We WANT to talk to you about it and help you get back to living your life.
Again, this is a complex system. This is where we can help. As physical therapists we want to do more than rehabilitate you. We want to give you every possible tool to decrease your pain, and improve your life. We have the knowledge, the education and, most importantly, we have the time to give to you. Managing chronic pain can be a journey. We want to help you through your journey!
Kyle Johnson is a Doctor of Physical Therapy at the Center for Muscle & Joint Therapy, Inc.
