A disease which been described by patients as “noise” - chronic pain

John Glaser

“Aching, dulling, gnawing, burning, sharp, shotting, piercing…”, is how a chronic pain patient Sakay expresses chronic pain.

In the article “In Conversation: How to Understand Chronic Pain”, Sakay explains and reiterates the basics of chronic pain, including its triggers and what it feels like. Chronic pain becomes a small part of the patient’s life, every day without one day is not experiencing the pain. Sakay explains that chronic pain can be a symptom of a more significant problem or an illness.

Chronic pain is now classified into two categories according to the World Health Organization, chronic primary pain and chronic secondary pain respectively. Primary pain is chronic pain that cannot be found from another source, such as a mental issue or past illness. Secondary pain is chronic pain that stems from an underlying medical condition the chronically ill patient may have used to have or still has. Joel, an interviewee in the article describes chronic pain as “noise.” “I always have described it as noise because on the days when that pain is intense, my ability to absorb other information, deal with multiple things at a time, it’s just gone,” he said. “Joel also experiences chronic pain on a daily basis, but usually, it varies from good to bad and is not always the same” Sakay also added.

All in all, Chronic pain is actually a serious disease that should not be taken lightly. We should try to find better ways to recover from chronic pain and prevent it. There are many ways to prevent chronic pain, such as not doing risky motions or putting yourself in danger when there is no reason to. Besides, stretching can also relax muscles and cause muscles to have less rigid movements slightly helping prevent a person from getting chronic pain, while also soothing the pain of those who already experience chronic pain. The introduction from Sakay, helps people to understand more about chronic pain, including how it works, how it can develop, and what it feels like. Thanks to her introduction, helping people increase awareness of chronic pain