According to statistics compiled by clinical researchers at Boston University, one in every five individuals around the world suffers from chronic pain. In the United States, the National Academies of Science estimates that the number of Americans who live with this condition could be as high as 100 million; however, many people who struggle with chronic pain don't necessarily realize that their pain is caused by a particular disorder, so this number could actually be higher, and it is easy for us to agree with these figures because of the numerous chronic pain patients who come to our chiropractic clinic.

Many people with chronic pain live with it for years without any significant relief. Unfortunately, this condition can affect your quality of life and limit your ability to do certain things. While chronic pain is not supposed to be a life-threatening condition, it can worsen to deleterious levels that make patients feel as if their lives are being eroded. It is not uncommon for chronic pain patients to feel despair because that is how they perceive their lives: Limited, overwhelming, out of control, and generally unpleasant. One of the many problems with chronic pain is the state of mind it generates among many patients; it is not conducive to good health, and it can derail everything from careers to relationships.

Pain is the common denominator in most adverse health conditions. If you ask chiropractors to come up with a collective description of chronic pain, the answer would be along the lines of it being a condition that usurps the lives of patients; it takes the enjoyment away and replaces it with discomfort and frustration. This is not a drastic statement at all: Some of the patients who come to our clinic with debilitating pain that does not go away actually blame themselves; they start asking introspective questions such as:

• Do normal people suffer from chronic pain?
• Why did I let this happen?
• Why did my life get away from me?
• Why does this pain not go away?

These are not the kinds of questions that you would expect a person who has never suffered a disability or illness to ask themselves. On the surface, these questions do not make sense coming from patients whose only health complaint is centered on stubborn pain, but they illustrate how terrible it can be to those who live with this condition.

Understanding Chronic Pain

From a clinical point of view, chronic pain is one of the most challenging conditions encountered by health professionals because of its unpredictability and lack of uniformity. Colloquially speaking, pain is the result of nerve signals letting you know that something is wrong. Let's say you twist your ankle while playing a friendly match of tennis; if you feel a sharp pain when shifting your weight onto the affected foot, your body is letting you know that connective tissue around the ankle has been sprained, and this should prompt you to seek adequate treatment. If the pain goes away after a few days of ice packs, rest, and medication, the normalized nerve signals are letting you know that the treatment has been effective. This is typical pain.

With chronic pain, the nerve signals do not go back to normal; they may persist even after enjoying some relief, but they will not necessarily let you know that something is wrong. Continuing with the ankle sprain example above, if the sharp pain gives way to dull aching or burning that seems to radiate from the ankle, we could classify it as chronic pain if it meets the following characteristics:

• Lasts for 12 or more weeks.
• Feels strange and awkward.
• Causes headaches.
• Does not correspond to existing medical conditions.
• Impacts quality of life in unexpected ways.

Long-term suffering and unexplainable pain are the most common symptoms of this chronic condition. You may heal from the ankle sprain after a few days, but if pain and discomfort linger once you get back on the tennis court, this could be a sign that chronic pain is developing.

Some individuals may feel as if there is no hope for a cure because the pain is so severe that the body begins to feel numb or indifferent towards it. However, chronic pain is not just something that affects people in an emotional way; it can also be a physical symptom that may lead to serious long-term health issues. If the nerve signals that give us pain are continually overloading a certain part of the body, the tissue that provides strength around the nerve will not have a chance to rest. This lack of opportunity for rest results in muscle degeneration and reduced flexibility, which can cause even more muscle imbalance, pain, and inflammation. Many people who experience chronic pain are diagnosed with arthritis as a result of this chain of events.

Types of Chronic Pain

The American Society of Regional Anesthesia and Pain Medicine places chronic pain into two major categories:

• Musculoskeletal
• Neuropathic

Ankle sprains are an example of a condition that falls under the musculoskeletal pain category. There is a benefit provided by this kind of pain: It hurts to let you know that rest and limited mobility are required in order to heal. Neuropathic pain, on the other hand, does not provide benefits; it makes you feel as if there is something wrong, but it may just be a matter of abnormal nerve function. Either pain category can turn chronic, but neuropathic pain is far more likely to persist on a long-term basis. Chiropractors can treat both musculoskeletal and neuropathic pain; their care is often sought by patients who present the following:

• Strong headaches triggered by musculoskeletal pain from injuries that should have healed.
• Neck and lower back pain.
• Pain that travels down extremities.
• Spondylosis or joint arthritis without visible inflammation.

Neuropathic pain does not cancel out musculoskeletal pain or vice-versa. Many patients who suffer injuries start out with myalgia, which is pain that involves muscle as well as connective tissue, before feeling the effects of neuralgia, which suggests nerve damage or irritation. It is possible to simultaneously experience neuralgia and myalgia; chiropractic treatment can help to alleviate both.

Why Chiropractic Care is Recommended to Chronic Pain Patients

Chronic pain is one of those medical conditions that force many patients to suffer in silence, particularly when there is an absence of injury, or when they assume to have fully recovered. suffer in silence, particularly when there is an absence of injury, or when they assume to have fully recovered. The latter assumption is often made when healthcare professionals do not fully consider the possibility that the patients may have another condition that does not fit the primary diagnosis.

Let's say a middle-aged woman recovers from a painful shingles episode caused by a herpes zoster flare-up on her back; if after taking antiviral medication along with painkillers she still feels pain in the dorsal region even when the shingles are gone, chances are that she has developed an unrelated neuropathy. This patient is a good candidate for chiropractic assessment and treatment.

The first step in figuring out a treatment plan for chronic pain is to establish the causes. In the case of the aforementioned woman with chronic back pain following a recovery from shingles, the chiropractic assessment will invariably consider referred pain, which is when it is felt in a spot different from the affected area. Shingles should not cause lingering lower back pain; this could be an issue related to the central nervous system because of a misalignment, inflammation, blockage, compression, or some other unfavorable condition putting pressure on nerve endings or clusters. Many patients who constantly suffer from neuropathic pain are not aware that factors such as spinal subluxation can complicate their lives with pain that never seems to go away.

One of the major goals of chiropractic care is to promote pain relief through the restoration of musculoskeletal health through various techniques. Our muscles, tendons, ligaments, joints, and spine play a major role in pain management; they are all parts of the anatomy that connect to the central nervous system, and they are often involved in chronic pain situations. Depending on your condition, you may benefit from spinal adjustment, traction, therapeutic massage, and physical therapy routines. A lifetime of painkillers is not a viable answer to chronic pain, especially when the central nervous system can be alleviated with the non-intrusive therapy provided by chiropractors.