pain

[jamey2k9]

what is pain its a way for your body to tell you its hurt but if thats it a warning how come some people feel pain easier then others

[insane_alien]

not everybody is created equal(regardless of what the huggy-feely crowd want you to think) is how.

 

some people naturally have a higher tolerance for pain than others and some will have built up a tolerance for pain over time.

 

they'll still feel pain, their brain is just able to override the signal and function unperturbed until the pain signal is higher.

 

regardless of this, somethings will hurt everyone equaly, such as stubbing your toe, standing on lego and paper cuts.

[Psycho]

 

regardless of this, somethings will hurt everyone equaly, such as stubbing your toe, standing on lego and paper cuts.

That isn't strictly true, it is based on the density of the receptors in a certain area of the skin and i'm sure that that isn't the same for everyone.

[iNow]

Also, the response to pain can be attenuated. There is a section in the spine through which all pain signals travel, and that area can be prevented from sending signals to the brain (IIRC).

 

Further, you can condition yourself to be okay with the pain. We did some pretty scary things in kung fu after I got my black belt, and the pain was unbearable. However, it trained my mind to displace focus away from the pain. We trained, for example, to strengthen our toes and to be okay with the pain of stubbing them.

 

Pain is just another piece of information being presented to the brain. You can find ways to interpret it differently (unless, of course, you're unfortunate enough to have congenital analgesia).

[insane_alien]

That isn't strictly true, it is based on the density of the receptors in a certain area of the skin and i'm sure that that isn't the same for everyone.

 

you're obviously missing a few receptors around your humour gland.

[Edtharan]

Pain an Injury are not the same thing.

 

I suffer from a permanent chronic pain condition (about the level of a sprained join 24/7) caused by an injury (I dislocated my shoulder and it has caused more damage than typical).

 

As part of my rehabilitation process I have had to learn how to manage my pain and how it is different to injury.

 

Basically, Pain is the perception of an injury but not directly caused by the injury. But, as with any perception, it can be "tricked".

 

There is (as iNow said) a place in your spinal chord (can't remember the name of it though) where the nerves that carry the "injury" signal are mediated. With training it is possible to reduce the strength of injury signals coming in (but over use can also cause strengthening of the injury signal - so this "training" needs to be managed by a trained specialist).

 

This is not the only place where pain can be managed.

 

Just knowing that pain is not the same as an injury can help. Next time you are in pain, remind yourself that the pain you feel is only your awareness of that injury.

 

Pain, is a bit like an annoying child that wants your attention. When you ahve an injury, it alerts you by nagging at you for attention. However, if you can distract your attention from it, you won't feel the pain as much.

 

Experiments where they placed people's feet in buckets of cold water (which can be painful) and timed their limit for the pain found that people could stand to be immersed in the buckets for longer if they had something to distract them (playing computer games).

 

Part of pain management is to acknowledge the "pain" signal but then to put it to one side and not pay attention to it.

 

We do this sort of thing all the time (even with injuries and pain). When you are in a noisy room, it is still possible to talk to other people despite the noise in the room. We can selectively pay attention to one set of stimulus and ignore others. Learning to do this with pain (and specific pain as well) is part of pain management.

 

Lastly you can also get pain caused not from injury, but from how your body perceives itself in the mind.

 

Our brains have a map of the body's sensory systems in it and the expected sensations from that part of the body. Even if there is no input from those parts of the body (say they have been amputated) this "map" can still cause pain in the body.

 

There is a new way of treating this kind of pain, called the "Mirror box" ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mirror_box ). This works because your body adjusts this map all the time. When a limb is removed (or even if the nerves are damaged) there is no signal to the brain for it to update the map with.

 

Many people who have had an amputated limb have had to live with the limb that has been badly damaged and this has sent constant injury signals to the brain. When the limb is removed, the Map remembers that these signals were coming in, and in the absence of any information counter to this, it keeps replaying these signals.

 

The mirror box allow the patient to "see" their missing limb, and this can be enough for the brain to readjust its map so that the missing limb is not sending those injury signals.

 

There is a good video on TED by the Doctor that discovered the Mirror Box treatment ( http://www.ted.com/talks/lang/eng/vilayanur_ramachandran_on_your_mind.html )

[iNow]

Many people who have had an amputated limb have had to live with the limb that has been badly damaged and this has sent constant injury signals to the brain. When the limb is removed, the Map remembers that these signals were coming in, and in the absence of any information counter to this, it keeps replaying these signals.

Nice post, man. Just wanted to supplement it by letting people know that this thing you refer to above is known as phantom limb syndrome.

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phantom_limb

[Edtharan]

Nice post, man. Just wanted to supplement it by letting people know that this thing you refer to above is known as phantom limb syndrome.

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phantom_limb

 

It is not just phantom limbs. Even people with fully intact limbs, with no damage (or even history of damage - although much more rarely) can still get this effect from the brain not properly correcting its Map of the body.

[jamey2k9]

i am actually capable of stopping feeling pain all together by process of calming the body down and stopping all pain receptores (although doing this for to long is very bad) for a start to long can stop your heart killing you you can get ridiculous amounts of pain in the back and head and if you are injured you dont know about it ect.

 

plus ive heard of a condition were you carn't feel pain altogetheris this true

[iNow]

plus ive heard of a condition were you carn't feel pain altogetheris this true

 

Yes. See the last two words of post #4.

[Edtharan]

i am actually capable of stopping feeling pain all together by process of calming the body down and stopping all pain receptores (although doing this for to long is very bad) for a start to long can stop your heart killing you you can get ridiculous amounts of pain in the back and head and if you are injured you dont know about it ect.

 

plus ive heard of a condition were you carn't feel pain altogetheris this true

Pain, and the beating of your heart are not controlled by the same systems in your body, so I don't see why one would cause the other to be disrupted.

 

The disease Leprosy, contrary to popular view, does not cause part of the body to drop off. What occurs is that the bacteria that cause the disease attacks the nerves in the limbs and prevents the body from detecting any sensations from them. These injuries, because they are not being reported, go untreated and other diseases can take hold, like gangrene. It is these secondary diseases that cause the limbs to "fall off".

 

Bit it is due to lack of pain (and other sensations) that ultimately case these problems. So pain is an important sense in our survival, without it we would not know how much punishment the body can take before becoming injured, or if an injury does take place, pain allows us to protect the injured site until it can recover.

 

But, things can go wrong, and this is when chronic pain sets in, or the opposite like in leprosy where sensation is blocked.

[jamey2k9]

i never said it did i said you calm the body and then try to block out pain technically a good way to describe it would be ignorance is bliss as really your just ignoring the pain to point were you dont dont really feel it

[dr.syntax]

area of your body that has sustained or is sustaining cellular/tissue damage. A cut or a burn, etc.. Of course it is more complex than that. There is what can be called emotional pain. The very young are especially vulnerable to this type of pain. They are totally dependant on others [ usually thier parents ] for thier survival. Infants are born with a very strong need for closeness and comfort on an ongoing basis from someone. Hopefully a loving mother. Often these needs are not met adequately.When these needs are not adequately met the child developes ways of blocking and repressing the pain resulting from unfullfilled need and becomes what is known as a neurotic. Neurosis can manifist itself in numerous ways. Each person comes up with thier own methods of blocking repressed pain wich is constantly changing and ajusting as the neurotic moves on in time. Many of these ways are common and shared among the neurotics. They often form groups with common unreal belief systems. Different religious groups are an example. Or perhaps a group who share a belief system built on the belief that the ability to block pain is a vurtue,things like that. The Greek spartans are famous for that one. It is important to note that such warrior cultural beliefs can and often do benefit the social group these warrior types belong to. But it is also important to note that it can be very harmful and often fatally to the individual adherants to such systems. History is in many respects a record of these different groups fighting it out with each other. To be a good soldier the ability to block pain is a positive attribute. At the same time it is damaging to the individual soldier. There is a heavy price to pay for blocking pain and repressing feelings.These repressed feelings exert a very harmful force upon the entire body. These blocked feelings are always excreting stress hormones such as cortisol and adrenaline into our systems. Not a good thing. There is an answer to neurosis and it is called Primal Therapy. If you wish to look into that here is a link : http:http://www.primaltherapy.com/SEO/primal_theory_overview.shtml . ...Dr.Syntax