TED Radio Hour Pain Relief: New approaches to how we live with pain
Jun 7, 2024
Equestrian Kat Naud shares her journey towards Olympic dreams. Guests discuss rethinking pain as more than just a symptom and the evolution of pain management. Innovative approaches to pain relief explored, including acupuncture and exercise. Chronic pain challenges and opioid addiction addressed with multi-faceted solutions.
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Pain As A Survival System
- Amy Baxter reframes pain as a survival system that can be ignored when it ceases to serve us.
- She argues we don't have to let pain define or rule our lives.
Pain-Free Messaging Fueled Overprescribing
- The 1990s campaign for 'pain-free' care and aggressive opioid marketing reframed care into prescribing.
- Amy Baxter links that framing to widespread prescribing that fueled addiction and harm.
Opioids' Early Reward Then Rapid Adaptation
- Opioids trigger strong dopamine reward early but the brain adapts, hiding receptors and increasing risk after about 72 hours.
- That adaptation raises dependence risk and can increase pain sensitivity over time.