Venting the Pain

At least once a week I am asked some version of the following question: “My doctor says I have to learn to live with my pain. Does this mean I’m making it up?”

As reassuring as I would like to be, I cannot give a short or simple answer to this heartfelt question. A doctor’s advice to learn to live with the pain generally comes after many medication trials, physical therapy, various procedures, perhaps acupuncture, and even surgery, all of which have been unsuccessful in providing lasting pain relief. By the time a person in severe pain hears that nothing new can be tried and this is the best it can be, he or she is exhausted, discouraged, and anxious about the future. It is at this point that pain patients are referred to behavioral medicine specialists, psychotherapists who not only deal with the emotional aspects of living in pain but also teach specific pain management techniques. When they are finally referred to us, pain patients ask if the pain is all in their heads.
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Too many people have had the experience of recovering from an injury or an operation still experiencing severe pain. They have been assured that they are fully healed and that there is no physical reason for their continuing pain. Yet their experience of pain is very real and debilitating. Such continuing pain lasting longer than six month has only recently been labeled a disease in its own right. It is estimated that the disease of chronic pain afflicts 30-50 million Americans.

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