Pain is most often thought of as physical pain, which can be separated into two types of pain – acute and chronic.
Acute pain results from surgery, injury, inflammation, or disease. This type of pain generally comes on suddenly, for example, after trauma or surgery. The cause of acute pain can usually be diagnosed and treated, and the pain is confined to a given period of time and severity.*
Chronic pain is widely believed to represent disease itself. It can be made much worse by environmental and psychological factors. Chronic pain persists over a longer period of time than acute pain and is resistant to most medical treatments.*
Pain is not always physical, both acute (short term) and chronic (ongoing) pain can lead to emotional suffering.
Emotional and spiritual pain may include sleep problems, sadness, anger, frustration, anxiety, and depression. The many losses your pain may be causing, including the loss of control over your own life, may result in emotional and spiritual pain. Being in pain can change your thoughts, motivation, relationships and daily activities. Pain replaces the past focus of your life (family, work, fun) without your permission! Chronic, persistent pain is debilitating and can be frustrating to live with, both for you and for the people near you. Because chronic pain is such a personal experience, it’s difficult for anyone else to understand exactly what you’re feeling and going through since no one knows your pain like you.
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