Pain Management

Pain from a minor cut or bruise is often short-lived and easy to ignore. However severe pain or pain that lasts months and longer is a serious concern. Most pain is a result of nerve or tissue damage. Nerves carry pain signals up the spinal cord to the brain, and we feel different degrees of discomfort. Those who have unresolved pain find that the pain greatly affects their quality of life. Whether it is acute or chronic, pain is no small matter. Pain is the nation’s number one public health concern according to the American Academy of Pain Management.

Pain affects more Americans than diabetes, heart disease, and cancer combined. More than 40 percent of those who report pain have suffered with it for longer than a year, according to the American Pain Foundation. Severe pain significantly stresses the body and mind. Long-lasting pain can lead to decreased muscle strength and endurance; it can interrupt sleeping and eating patterns. It can keep you from working and engaging in simple daily life activities, and it can change your mood (leading to depression). Pain can keep you from being able to concentrate, and even rob you of the joys of personal relationships.