Hurt doesn't always mean harm

Pain is the body’s alarm system.  It’s designed to protect us from danger just like a home security system or a smoke detector.  It’s the body’s normal response to acute tissue damage or injury and heals in normally 3-6 months.
 
But what happens when pain doesn’t go away?
 
Once pain persists beyond the normal healing time, it becomes chronic - losing its warning function and becomes its own disease/condition.  It’s an abnormal response (with or without obvious pathology). 
 
Although all pain hurts, not all pain indicates damage. We know what to expect from our pain by the very nature of it being chronic or ongoing.  It’s not like getting burnt, twisting an ankle, or getting stung by a bee that needs protection until the injury has heals.  Of course, any unexpected new pain should be investigated.
 
Learn more

• Central Sensitization Syndrome (CSS) (22:19)
• Understanding pain & what to do about it in less than 5 minutes (5:00)
• A Tale of Two Nails
• How your brain creates pain – and what we can do about it
• Tame the Beast – It's time to rethink persistent pain (5:00)
• Are You Missing Two-Thirds of Your Potential Pain Treatment Plan?
• The Truth About Managing Chronic Pain (w/Dr. Rachel Zoffness) - ZDoggMD (1:39)
• Pain-related fear is more disabling than pain itself: evidence on the role of pain-related fear in chronic back pain disability
• Fear-Avoidance Beliefs and Chronic Pain