Role of the brain in chronic pain

If you’ve lived with chronic pain for months or years, it can be tempting to think of your symptoms as a problem located entirely in the part of your body that hurts.

You may picture an injured disc, damaged joint, irritated nerve or tight muscle continuing to send pain signals to your brain. Modern neuroscience presents a more complex and nuanced picture.

Chronic pain is associated with changes in the nervous system, including alterations in how different brain regions communicate, how pain is processed, and how emotional and cognitive information influences the experience of pain.