Diving Into the “Why” of Pain.
Sometimes - pain and injury can seem straightforward. Someone sprained their ankle and they have ankle pain - makes sense!
Other times, pain is much more abstract and confusing. Someone bent over to pick up a dog toy from the ground - same as they have everyday - but today they have immense back pain and cannot move.
Having pain that is confusing and “out of proportion” is super frustrating and can be frightening. The good news is, you are not crazy, you aren’t making it up, and you can get better.
People, doctors, surgeons, physical therapists - often attribute pain to the musculoskeletal system. The bone or muscle hurts, so the bone or muscle must be the cause of the pain. Of course this is partially true, as tissues of the body can definitely be overloaded, injured, and then cause pain. But, every other system in our body can contribute to how we experience pain too.
Some of these “other systems” contributions are easy to explain - stress and anxiety can worsen perception of injury and pain. While the actual mechanism may be complex, the idea that stress and anxiety makes things worse is relatively easy to understand.
What about the endocrine system? How do hormones contribute to pain? Some endocrine disorders have clear relationships with pain. But should you worry about the endocrine system function for a seemingly unrelated pain?
It is easy to see how confusing this could be - and why it is easier to blame everything on muscle weakness, immobility, etc. Although, it isn’t helpful either to get lost in the weeds trying to decipher each system’s exact contribution to pain. Instead of worrying about all that, I want you to do your best to take the following steps:
Be aware that the pain might not be coming just from muscle or bone (or ligament, tendon, capsule, etc.)
Do your best to take care of your whole body
Hydrate
Eat often
Be kind to yourself
Sleep
Address any other condition or disease you may have with your Primary Care Provider - and keep your physical therapist updated too!
Take care of the big things! But don’t be afraid to ask questions about the small things. Understanding pain is a lifelong journey, so keep an open mind and keep learning!
