The Purpose of Pain
Why We Avoid Pain in the First Place
Most of us want to avoid discussing the purpose of pain by avoiding any kind of pain in the first place! Pain attracts bad press. We think of it as something that merely causes suffering, or as something that inconveniently creates havoc regarding schedules with work, family and friends or as something very expensive. We fumble between trying to understand pain and more oftentimes, realistically, doing almost anything to rid ourselves from even the slightest involvement with its existence.
We think if we live with no pain whatsoever, then we must be experiencing the epitome of health.
Billions of dollars are spent each year to diagnose the source of pain, and then to render appropriate treatment to ameliorate its presence. When it comes to pain – regardless of its cause, we want to completely excise it from our lives using the fastest remedy available. Essentially, we will do whatever it takes to get the best results to relieve pain, hoping to avoid any more discomfort than feasible.
Pain as a Gift to Mankind
When examining the purpose of pain, let’s start with the understanding that a totally pain-free life does not equate to good health. Without argument, pain is an essential warning system to normal life. Our pain network is divinely-designed and its usefulness is finely handcrafted by creative genius. It knows exactly how to warn us more so against existing damage to any of our body systems. Without having the benefits of pain, like those who suffer from leprosy or advanced diabetes, we would consistently be in grave danger of losing both external and internal body parts. In this regard, pain is an awesome gift to mankind.
The Benefits of Acute Pain
As Dr. Schneider, MD writes, “Acute pain results from some trauma to the body – an injury, an operation, or an illness. It usually resolves when the underlying injury has healed or the cause has been treated. Although it is uncomfortable, acute pain serves a useful function: It signals there is something wrong and motivates the person to get help…Acute pain is beneficial.” In essence, acute pain prevents our bodies from undergoing any further damage than necessary. It is our safeguard against unwanted attacks. It adequately prepares our bodies for the natural healing process.
In conclusion, total health is not about the absence of pain. Inasmuch as we want our bodies to welcome proper responses to acute pain when we get injured, undergo surgery or sustain illness, we also want to embrace the notion that our body will accordingly stop responding to pain when appropriate. The optimal response of acute pain during impending danger and its retrieval underscores the value of holistic fitness.
Philosophical Thoughts About Pain
Have you ever heard the expressions, “Life is better in sets of two,” or “Opposites attract?” Consider these philosophies when studying the relationship between the body and the brain in light of the purpose of pain. Many neural pathways modulate both pain signals and also dispatch similar messages of pleasure throughout the body. In other words, both pain and pleasure are transmitted along the same nerves.
During some of our greatest moments in life, we experience both pain and pleasure. One does not coexist without the other. In his book, “My Country and My People,” Lin Yutang writes, “To be dry and thirsty in a hot and dusty land – and to feel great drops of rain on my bare skin – ah, is this not happiness! To have an itch in the private part of my body – and finally escape from my friends and to a hiding place where I can scratch – ah, is this not happiness!” To appreciate times of happiness, we need appropriate doses of pain to make us fully relish our times of satisfaction.
Simply, pain provides value against imminent threat to our wholeness. Its defensive nature alerts us to make immediate changes for the better, and secondarily, helps us to fully appreciate the highs of deserved celebration.
For more on the purpose of pain and living with chronic pain, please continue to explore this site. Thank you for stopping by…