As we are talking about chronic pain in this series of blog articles, it is critical to talk about how our body chooses to move in response to pain. Let’s take an example of a sprained ankle. When someone sprains their ankle they may start to walk with their foot turned out to the side. Continue Reading »
Chronic pain involves changes in the peripheral nervous system (PNS) which conveys nociceptive information to the central nervous system (CNS). Over time, changes occur in the CNS that can cause continuation of the nociceptive information – even if the original stimulus has been removed! For instance, say someone has a very painful ulcer on theirContinue Reading »
The International Association for the Study of Pain (IASP) defines pain as an unpleasant sensory and emotional experience associated with actual or potential tissue damage or described in terms of such damage. By this definition, pain does not HAVE to be associated with observable tissue damage or have a detectable underlying cause. Pain is subjective. If describedContinue Reading »
When on a family vacation, my sacroiliac joint (near the tailbone) went out of place causing extreme pain down my right leg every time I stepped on my right foot. Which is a challenge when you are spending your days and nights walking around theme parks! During a meal break in the middle of ourContinue Reading »
Shoulder pain with reaching overhead is a complicated and often misunderstood issue. People will begin to compensate by using the other arm, changing where objects are located, or simply not trying to reach overhead. While these substitutions can be helpful during the initial painful phase, these are not solid long term strategies to live yourContinue Reading »
