Pain

Pain is the body's warning signal that something is wrong and action must be taken—whether it's exiting a dangerous situation, resting an injury, or avoiding something that has caused damage before. Pain is subjective and can have many causes, including injuries, arthritis, fibromyalgia, and stress. It can also occur without a known, specific cause.

The body's equipped to respond quickly to acute pain: In response to stimuli such as heat and intense pressure, nerve endings called nociceptors detect those sensations and send electrical signals to the brain, which are interpreted as pain. Without pain signals, we're far more likely to get injured—or killed—as seen in individuals born with a rare congenital insensitivity to pain.

Almost a quarter of American adults suffer from chronic pain, with 8.5% of US adults reporting chronic pain that frequently limits life or work activities. Such pain can be difficult to treat and may be experienced more intensely at night when there are fewer distractions for the brain.

Cutting-edge research to alleviate pain includes virtual reality treatments, mindfulness-based cognitive therapy, psychedelic treatments, and Journavx, a recently FDA-approved, non-opioid pain reliever that aims to blunt pain by targeting a pain-signaling pathway in the peripheral nervous system.