Pain: The Science of SufferingPain is one of medicine's greatest mysteries. When farmer John Mitson caught his hand in a baler, he cut off his trapped hand and carried it to a neighbor. "Sheer survival and logic" was how he described it. "And strangely, I didn't feel any pain." How can this be? We're taught that pain is a warning message to be heeded at all costs, yet it can switch off in the most agonizing circumstances or switch on for no apparent reason. Many scientists, philosophers, and laypeople imagine pain to operate like a rigid, simple signaling system, as if a particular injury generates a fixed amount of pain that simply gets transmitted to the brain; yet this mechanistic model is woefully lacking in the face of the surprising facts about what people and animals do and experience when their bodies are damaged. Patrick Wall looks at these questions and sets his scientific account in a broad context, interweaving it with a wealth of fascinating and sometimes disturbing historical detail, such as famous characters who derived pleasure from pain, the unexpected reactions of injured people, the role of endorphins, and the power of placebo. He covers cures of pain, ranging from drugs and surgery, through relaxation techniques and exercise, to acupuncture, electrical nerve stimulation, and herbalism. Pain involves our state of mind, our social mores and beliefs, and our personal experiences and expectations. Stepping beyond the famous neurologic gate-control theory for which he is known, Wall shows that pain is a matter of behavior and its manifestation differs among individuals, situations, and cultures. "The way we deal with pain is an expression of individuality." |
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abnormal action activity acupuncture amount of pain amputation analgesia analgesic anesthesia animals anxiety appear aspirin attack attention become blood vessels body brain brainstem called cancer cause chapter chemicals cognitive common condition cope cortex damaged tissue depression Descartes described detect disease disorder doctors doses drugs dualism emergency example expectation experience fear fibromyalgia headaches heart hospital hypnosis inflammation injection injury input intensity invented learned limb located mechanism medicine mental migraine mind morphine motor movement muscles narcotics needle nerve cells nerve fibers nerve impulses nocebo normal obvious occur operation pain-producing patients percent person phantom limb placebo effect placebo response postoperative pressure problem produce react reaction recovery sensation sense sensory analysis sensory nerve sensory nerve fibers side effects signal skin spinal cord stimulus suffering surgeons surgery tender thalamus therapy thinking tion tissue damage treatment trial trigeminal neuralgia trigger victim words wounded