Pain is defined by the International Association for the Study of Pain (IASP) as “an unpleasant sensory and emotional experience associated with, or resembling that associated with, actual or potential tissue damage”*. In everyday terms, pain is the body’s way of telling us that something might not be right. It can feel sharp, dull, throbbing, burning, or aching — and everyone experiences it differently.
Pain doesn’t actually come from the body’s tissues themselves. Instead, it’s part of a complex communication system that involves nerves, immune cells, and chemicals working together. These signals are sent to the brain, which then interprets them to produce the feeling of pain. How we feel pain can be shaped by things like our memories, emotions, and what we’re paying attention to at the time.
In the end, pain is there to protect us. It encourages us to notice, react, and make changes to keep our bodies safe and help us heal.