UNDERSTANDING PAIN - PAIN PROTECTS
If you have had an injury or an operation, then pain is a useful protective signal. If you’ve broken your leg then it tells you to protect the injured part & not to jump up & down on it! This can be called ACUTE PAIN.
If the pain carries on after everything has healed, this is called PERSISTENT OR CHRONIC PAIN. This is often diagnosed after you have had pain for 3 Months, but we now know that the changes in the nervous system that amplify the pain and can make it more persistent can happen very quickly. In persistent or chronic pain - pain usually protects you too much - even from things that don't cause you any damage - like sitting in one place or gentle touch or pressure.
Understanding how pain works in your nervous system can really help you to manage the pain - to reduce how much pain you have and to be able to get back to doing the things that are important to you.
This video gives an overview -
To find out more - click HERE - for people with pain, those that care for them AND for healthcare professionals and students
Follow this link to the Introduction to Pain Management Group session slides
