Chronic pain is defined as being persistent or long-term pain that continues beyond the standard time taken for tissue to heal after being injured. It is estimated that between a third and a half of the UK population suffer from chronic pain.
While the purpose of acute pain is for your body to alarm your brain that tissue may have been damaged, chronic pain serves no such purpose. When pain is felt in the body, it is the result of the brain interpreting signals from the central nervous system that tissue may be injured and creating a pain sensation in response. However, chronic pain may occur when the brain misinterprets signals from the central nervous system, thereby creating a feeling of pain when there is no injury or harm.
There are a number of conditions that are known to cause chronic pain such as fibromyalgia, complex regional pain syndrome, and arthritis.
Chronic pain symptoms are often misdiagnosed, are not always relieved by medicine, and can result in many day-to-day challenges. In the videos below, people with lived experience talk about what it’s like to have chronic pain. Please be aware that some videos contain mention of suicide.