Why Do I Hurt?: A Patient Book about the Neuroscience of Pain

by Adriaan Louw

Pain is normal - living in pain is not. Chronic pain is commonly due to an extra-sensitive nervous system and how the brain processes information from the nerves. Understanding more about the neuroscience of pain has been shown to allow patients to hurt less, exercise more and regain control of their lives. "Why Do I Hurt?" teaches patients the science of pain in approachable language with metaphors, examples and images.

Genres: Nonfiction, Health, Science, Psychology

52 pages, Spiral-bound

First published February 18, 2013

Reviews

[Ashley Brown · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book reminds me of a quote I once heard : “Pain is not the enemy. It is a marker to get our attention. Pain is a teacher to our lives, a tutor — teaching us what to pay attention to.”

Science and Theology really match up. God is our protector, and He designed our brains with a built-in system to guard / protect our fragile bodies. Pain serves as a signal—but over time, our nervous system can become hypersensitive, intensifying and prolonging the pain we feel. This book was incredibly eye-opening, helping me see how understanding the science of pain can play a powerful role in healing from chronic pain.

This does not invalidate the pain I feel, but it does help me understand my body better & trust God with it!

[April · Rating 3 out of 5]

My mom has this book at work as a resource for talking with her clients/patients, so she let me read it because I struggle with some chronic pelvic pain. It was helpful for me to know that areas around the area where we perceive pain can also be affected, but not necessarily injured, and if we think about pain in a way where we understand our nerves are sensing things and other factors contribute to what we are feeling, the pain may diminish or we can take the edge off a little. The analogies were interesting, but I think some editing could be beneficial to clarify how things work a bit more.

"It's important to note that previous crime areas in your body, such as old surgeries, scars and previously injured areas, will definitely be checked out by the police." pg. 13

"Remember there are nerve sensors that will sense the immune molecules. Old aches and pains may show up again, but it's due to sensitivity, not injury." pg. 13

Book: borrowed from NEMS.

[K8 · Rating 5 out of 5]

A MUST READ for anyone experiencing chronic pain, post-surgical pain or recovering from an injury! After reconstructive wrist & arm surgery on my dominant hand, my occupational therapist told me to read this book. I was initially resistant because I have a strong background in anatomy & physiology. I didn’t think this short, quick read of a book would help me. It took me 30 minutes to read, and I will probably read it again. The analogies are so easy to understand. Complete reminder of perspective on how our brains interpret pain, no matter how educated you think you are on the subject. :)

[Melissa · Rating 4 out of 5]

This short booklet provides easy to understand information about how your body communicates and processes pain. It is meant to help people who experience chronic pain to have more control over their pain by understanding the purpose and function of it in their body. If you or a loved one suffer from chronic pain, this could be a great resource for better understanding it, which has been clinically shown to reduce the intensity of pain and empower patients to find relief.

[Tara · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have been struggling with chronic pain for 2 decades now. Even with all the research and all the medical doctors I have met with, I learned a lot from this. I had no idea so many of my chronic symptoms can be linked back to my chronic pain. I even understand now why my pain jumps around randomly. I always felt crazy and so did my doctors but this book explains it very well. Highly recommend, and it's an easy quick succinct read.

[Jennifer · Rating 4 out of 5]

I checked this one out from the library at my medical center. I love that they have so many resources available to patients, especially ones that aren't always easy to find at regular libraries. I read this one because I experience chronic pain to a degree that it's very difficult to function at times. I push through, and then hurt worse. I'm trying to retrain my brain's response to pain because I have a neuro system that overly sensitized. Sometimes just touch or heat or cold will send signals of intense pain. Is my body really in danger in those moments? No. But my brain's conditioned response is to put my nervous system on heightened alert. Small tasks like washing dishes, cleaning the bathroom, going shopping and outing away groceries will feel intensely painful.

This patient booklet is a good introduction and overview of how pain is perceived, how the nervous system works, and how the brain can be retrained to dial it down some, making activities tolerable and restoring more functionality. I would not purchase the book for me to own, but it's one I would borrow or hang out at the doctor's office longer to read. If you want to go more in depth, there are books and resources listed at the back of the book.

[Holly Micheletto · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very easy read, more like a pamphlet. This has great illustrations and breaks neuroplasticity down into layman's terms, imo. The book also touches on treatment for taking back your life. Again, as someone who lives with complicated pain and CRPS, this is very useful and as a Chronic Pain Management Coach, I know it will help in my practice, as well.

[Charlotte · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very good quick read about chronic pain and the connection with the central nervous system. As one who suffers with chronic pain, getting an explanation about why it "isn't all in your head" because it is "all in your central nervous system" was eye opening.

[Sarah · Rating 2 out of 5]

This would probably be useful for someone who's never been to therapy or done any basic reading on pain and how the brain works, etc. If you have though, definitely not worth the $18 (unless your physical therapist requires you to buy it too....).

[Diane · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this book for a paper I'm writing on pain neuroscience education and accidentally discovered it's on Goodreads and therefore counts toward my reading challenge!

[DMuse · Rating 2 out of 5]

It was okay, simplistic and expensive, not too impressed

[Kari Mccrory · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good, easily understandable explanation of neuroscience of pain.

[Katie R. · Rating 5 out of 5]

More of a pamphlet than a book, but quite helpful and well written in an easy to understand language.

[Terry Caldwell · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very interesting take on what happens in the brain with pain.

[Jessica Delaney · Rating 4 out of 5]

Short, clear, easy to understand

[L · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very short book. More of a big pamphlet. Will need to reread to keep it fresh. Maybe focus on one recommended item at a time.

[Cassandra · Rating 4 out of 5]

Made understanding the neuroscience of pain easy. Provided a ton of statistics from studies done to support each statement/topic as well.

[Marylee Raymond Diamond · Rating 5 out of 5]

Pain is a normal human experience. I liked the easy to understand explanations and descriptions.

[Joy Schmidt · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was recommended by my physical therapist to help me understand what pain is and how it works. Although it was written in pretty simple language, I'm still not sure how we are supposed to be able to manage chronic pain. The author talks about how pain is related to the nervous system and brain and believes that the more we know about pain the better off we'll be. I will need to do some more research on the topic.