12 Jun Why do I feel pain?
When you hurt yourself, you feel pain. If you have ever wondered why you feel that pain, it is because pain is a signal that your body has been damaged in some way or something is not right. However, not all pain is the same.
Acute pain and chronic pain
There are two major types of pain –
- acute pain (short-term)
- chronic pain (long-term)
Acute pain refers to a severe or sudden pain that resolves as the injury heals. For example, when you twist your ankle, you experience pain. But it goes away as the injury heals.
On the other hand, chronic pain refers to pain that lasts 3 months or more, or longer than the expected healing time for an injury or illness.
Chronic pain may also be caused by a condition that causes damage. For example, osteoarthritis causes the joints to deteriorate, which causes pain. In some cases, the physical cause of pain is no longer there, but the pain is the same.
Pain specialists are trained and experienced in diagnosing and treating all types of pain. So, if you are experiencing pain, especially the type that doesn’t seem to go away, it’s time to see a pain specialist.