US Pain Foundation

What would I do with my life if I wasn’t afraid of facing judgment because of illness? Just thinking about this is saddening to me. I live my life in virtually constant pain due to amplified musculoskeletal pain syndrome (AMPS). Because my pain is something people can’t see, I am often in situations where misunderstandings [...]

The debate over pain medication is a dominant topic in our current medical society. We hear constant news stories about opioid overdoses, people illegally selling pills and blatant misuse of medications to manage pain. In the current political and medical climate, it is no wonder that doctors are hesitant to write prescriptions for pain medication. [...]

For the longest time, I always thought you only grieve someone who has passed away, but in reality, there are so many reasons people grieve. There is no right or wrong way to grieve and there is no time limit on how long you can grieve. Two months after I graduated college, my life changed [...]

I was with my pain doctor on the same medication for 20 years when the medications that control my chronic pain were stopped without my consent. On that day in April 2017, I arrived at my doctors office for a routine follow-up when a doctor I had never seen before walked in. He told me [...]

Trigeminal neuralgia (TN) is regarded as one of the most painful conditions known to mankind. While it is regarded this way, there is unfortunately little awareness about it. Most people who have this severe form of facial pain had never heard of it prior to being diagnosed. Their families, friends and colleagues had also never heard of it. [...]

For the past three weeks, my kids and I have been anxiously counting down the days to attend our first Wizard World Comic Con. Truth be told, I was the one having a difficult time containing my excitement. It might have had to do with the fact I was going to have the opportunity to [...]

For the last few months every doctor’s appointment, meeting with health professionals, assessments and any conversation I’ve had about my health always ends with the phrase “You’re very complex.” Of course, I don’t need to be told this – after all, one of my conditions is called complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS). But, in my opinion, [...]

When we talk about people with chronic pain, we often use the term “pain warrior.” But what does that mean? What makes someone with chronic pain a “warrior?” The answer is obvious to anyone who lives with chronic pain themselves: Because so often, getting through the day with chronic pain requires a fight. A fight [...]

I want to go to a movie theater. I want to have a date night out with my husband, eat popcorn dripping with artificial butter, and spend two and a half hours watching a fast-paced action movie on a screen so large I become immersed in the story. My last movie theater outing was four [...]