You suddenly wake in the middle of the night, feeling like your stomach's been hit by a specially rusty jungle knife. When you finally went to the doctor the next morning, you are diagnosed with a cancerous growth. Fortunately for you, you managed to catch it in time, thanks to the pain.

You are walking down the road when suddenly, the window above shatters in a thousand crystal pieces. Everyone manages to get away except you. At the hospital, you are told that several ligaments in your right hand have been torn, possibly maiming you for the rest of your life. However, there is still hope; as long as you can still feel pain in your hand, it means that the nerves are still functioning and the ligaments can still be reattached.

The two examples above illustrate the paradox of how pain is one of the most feared but, at the same time, most useful sensations of the human body. It is also one of the most exploited, with people commonly turning to it to influence someone, usually through threats. It is one of the most documented sensations in human history, playing a very important role in the actions of prominent people across the centuries. Almost everyone experiences it more than once in their lives, and it has become so important that it is one of the very few sensations which is used to describe not only the physical, but the other aspects as well.

A Pain In The...

Pain can have different meanings, depending on where it is used, but in a broadest sense of the term, it is defined as an individual's basic aversion associated with a threat of harm or harm itself. These threats can either be physical, emotional, or mental. Pain comes in all degrees of intensity; it can be mild, or it can be very intolerable. The International Association for the Study of Pain (IASP) defines it as “an unpleasant sensory and emotional experience associated with actual or potential tissue damage, or described in terms of such damage.”

In medicine, pain is usually associated with the physical kind, and is usually a very valuable tool in a doctor's diagnosis. Diagnosis for pain depends on its characteristics: the duration, the intensity, the location, and the type, among others. When the pain goes away after simple treatments or just letting it be, it is called an acute pain. In this type, the pain is usually just a symptom of something else and goes away after that something else has been treated. However, when the pain has ceased to become a symptom and is instead the illness itself, then it is called a chronic pain. In the United States alone, it is the single most frequent reason for physician consultations, with half of all Americans seeking medical care annually for it.

Despite its bad reputation, pain is a very important part of the existence of every living thing, not just humans. In fact, it is very vital to a creature's survival. Pain encourages the organism to stop association with whatever is it that's causing the pain stimuli. Pain can also be a preliminary sign of an imminent harm or threat, such as when a part of your body aches due to an impending disease or injury. Pain also causes the organism to protect the injured part of their body, expediting the healing process.

Classifications of Pain

There are two general groups of pain, and how it is treated is dependent largely on which group that particular pain falls under. To sum, they are:

1. Nociceptive pain. In this kind of pain, the body's pain receptors and the nervous system are working properly. There is an identifiable source of pain such as a broken bone or a cut, and the system that tells the brain that an injury is present starts working. The information is then passed to the brain,which processes it, and the person is aware that they are hurting.
2. Neuropathic pain. In neuropathic pain, the body's nervous system is not working properly. There is no obvious source of pain and yet the body still tells the brain that there is an injury.

Aside from this, pain is also classified in two types:

1. Acute pain. Acute pain often has a readily identifiable and reversible cause. It may only require simple or basic treatments for it to go away, which almost always involves the correction of the underlying problem. It can be severe while it lasts but it will always go away.
2. Chronic pain. Chronic pain, as opposed to acute, persists or progresses over a certain period of time. It is often persistent to standard or basic medical treatments. Oftentimes, it is related to several serious conditions such as cancer, diabetes, or arthritis.

Getting Rid of Pain

The relief of pain is generally called pain management. Since pain is a general concept, practitioners of this discipline come from all fields of medicine. However, you don't need to be a specialist in a medical field to get rid of your pain. Here are some general tips to help you you find relief from the pain you're experiencing.

1. Identify the source of pain and treat it.Unless it is chronic, you should be able to identify the cause of your pain even without the help of a doctor. It can be as simple as a splinter embedding itself on your skin to something a bit more difficult, such as a sudden stomach ache. If you still can't identify the source, then go to your doctor right away. It might be something more serious and the earlier it's found, the better. Once the source of the pain has been identified, take measures to treat it. That should also end the pain as well.
2. Use pain medications. There are many drugs that are specifically used to relieve pain; collectively, they're known as analgesics. They include acetaminophen, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), corticosteroids, and some narcotics. Like other medications, consult your doctor first before taking them.
3. Use an ice pack or anesthesia.In cases of external injury that causes pain, you can use an ice pack in order to numb the area; ice acts as a natural anesthetic that numbs the nerves that transmit pain. Doing so should temporarily alleviate the pain you're feeling.
4. Try to block out the pain. If the pain is not that intense, you can try some mental conditioning to block out the pain. Distract yourself, or relax. Do some mental imagery exercises. The mind is a strong weapon and it can overcome matter.
5. Go to a doctor or hospital.If the pain is too severe, then you have no choice but to be admitted in a hospital. The staff will be well-equipped to alleviate any feeling of pain you might be having.

Pain is not your enemy, unless it is the illness itself. However, that does not mean that you have to bear with it. Alleviation of pain is part of a creature's normal reaction. Humans are not an exception.