Nothing is worse than experiencing constant pain 24 hours a day. Did you know that more than 2 million Dutch people suffer from chronic pain? Are you also 1 of those 2 million people? If so, it probably has a huge impact on your quality of life and daily functioning. Do you have pain that is present for more than three months? Then we speak of chronic pain. Some common examples are: chronic back pain, chronic headache, phantom pain, oncological pain (cancer pain) and reflex dystrophy.
How does chronic pain arise?
The nerves (nociceptors) signal the brain via the nervous system and via the spinal cord that there is damage. The brain alerts us using pain via that same nervous system with the aim of preventing more damage. The nervous system actually acts as an electrical alarm system. When the nerve has to transmit pain impulses for too much or too long, it can become overloaded. The nerve then thickens, so to speak. Because of this overload, the warning system no longer functions properly. It stays on, so to speak, and cannot be switched off: a person feels pain permanently (hyperalgesia). Some people with pain also become sensitive to stimuli that are not harmful at all: like a feather or a shower spray, for example (allodynia). When this pain exists for longer than might be expected given the cause, we speak of chronic pain.
When does chronic pain occur?
Chronic pain occurs in, among others:
