Pain seems like a fairly straightforward experience - you get hurt and
it, well, hurts. But how would you describe it? By the number of broken
bones or stitches? By the cause - the crowning baby, the sharp knife,
the straying lover? What does a 7 on a pain scale of 1 to 10 really
mean?
Pain is complicated. But most of the time, the way we treat pain is
superficial - we seek out states of perfect painlessness by avoiding it
at all costs, or suppressing it, usually with drugs. This has left us
hurting all the more.
Through in-depth interviews, investigation into the history of pain and
original research, Ouch! paints a new picture of pain as a complex and
multi-layered phenomenon. Authors Margee Kerr and Linda McRobbie
Rodriguez tell the stories of sufferers and survivors, courageous kids
and their brave parents, athletes and artists, people who find healing
and pleasure in pain, and scientists pushing the boundaries of pain
research, to challenge the notion that all pain is bad and harmful. They
reveal why who defines pain matters and how history, science, and
culture shape how we experience pain. Ouch! dismantles prevailing
assumptions about pain and that not all pain is bad, not all pain should
be avoided, and, in the right context, pain can even feel good.
To build a healthier relationship with pain, we must understand how it
works, how it is expressed and how we communicate and think about it.
Once we understand how pain is made, we can remake it.
