Explain Pain

One in five people experiences chronic pain. Every year, more than 40,000 tons of painkillers are used worldwide. Yet many people—including doctors—still rely on outdated ideas about what pain is and where it comes from.
• Pain does not always mean that tissues are actually damaged.
• Pain is not a “breakdown,” but a highly precise protective system of the body.
• The main goal is not merely to mask symptoms, but to stop perceiving pain as a threat and to stop being afraid of it.

This book helps you understand the nature of pain. Why can a paper cut be agonizing, while a serious injury sometimes feels almost nothing? How do thoughts, expectations, beliefs, and even the appearance of a pill affect treatment outcomes? What is phantom pain, and why does it appear? Here you’ll find answers to these questions and many others.

What you will learn:
• What causes pain, how it is “transmitted,” and why it can persist even after the injury has already healed.
• Why your body may hurt when there are no fractures or obvious injuries.
• How the brain creates sensations—and how to regain a sense of control over your body.
• How to reduce pain and gain access to your “virtual body”—the body map in the brain, meaning its neural representation (image) of your body and its individual parts.

Once you understand the principle behind these exercises, you’ll be able to invent as many of your own “virtual” training sessions as you like. Remember: some pain during exercise is acceptable. The key is to keep in mind that pain does not necessarily mean harm.

The book will be useful for doctors—to explain to patients in simple terms the origin of pain and the next steps— and for people with chronic pain, to break the cycle of limitations and avoidance and to put an end to endless specialist visits.