Everything Hurts: What do you know about pain?
Let's have a conversation
Jennifer Tirillo, MS, LAT, ATC, CSCS
Have you ever read a story in the news about some average Joe doing something extraordinary like this high school football player in 2019? According to ABC News 7, this young man lifting a car off of his neighbor when the jacks gave way leaving the man pinned. The article goes on to say that this hero suffered some broken ribs and plenty of scrapes on his face but ultimately he will recover. He saved the neighbor's life.
No doubt, some serious adrenaline kicked in for this young man, allowing him access to super strength, which brings me to my point that the human body is built for survival. I bet if I asked him to attempt this again, he would experience stress on his back, knees, and shoulders. I also bet that these signals of stress would ultimately cause him to stop before he injured himself. Again, SURVIVAL.
If I told you that there are ZERO pain receptors in the body, what would you think? Pain is a very personal experience, shaped by your previous encounters, levels of stress, state of the body at the time on onset. I know, you're thinking: "Jenn, what the heck am I feeling if something HURTS?!" Answer: Your body is equipped with specialized cells that detect changes in your body systems, and trust me your body does NOT like change. When one of those special cells are triggered, your body goes into that 'survival mode" to continue on in life. Chronic pain arises when this cycle of fight or flight becomes a sequel to the movie of Groundhog Day with Bill Murray. Can you stop the cycle? YES!!
