5.2 Introduction to Pain

Almost everyone has experienced the physical sensation of pain. You may have felt a headache, a backache, pain from a paper cut, or a burn from touching a hot surface.

Consider the last time you experienced pain. What did it feel like? How did it affect you? (e.g., physically, emotionally, socially). Was there tissue damage? These questions help us understand the nature of pain and how it affects each person.

Pain is a complex phenomenon, so we need to understand how it is conceptualized and classified, and know the various types of pain. All of these components influence best practices related to pain assessment. The American Nurses Association details the definition of pain and the role of nurses in their 2018 position statement The Ethical Responsibility to Manage Pain and the Suffering It Causes.

Let’s begin by exploring the phenomenon of physical pain.