How Netflix Is Getting The Problem Of Teen Pain All Wrong

April 2, 2024 / Thomas Cohn, MD

netflix An analysis of popular shows on Netflix found that the streaming giant isn’t offering an accurate portrayal of the problem of teen pain.

“Media is one of the most powerful engines of influence on children’s development and could be harnessed to address pain and suffering in the world. Stories matter,” said Dr. Melanie Noel, PhD, principal investigator and professor of clinical psychology at the University of Calgary. “Youth learn by watching and fictional stories can matter more in some cases than real life stories.”

Netflix And Teen Pain

For the study, researchers analyzed 60 hours of Netflix content including popular shows and movies like Spiderman: Homecoming and Stranger Things. Their analysis found that media oftentimes depicted teen pain arising from violence and injuries, not from more common sources of real world pain like medical issues or chronic pain conditions. They also found that this pain was mostly represented in boys and white individuals, as they noted a lack of accurate pain representation in girls, gender diverse people and people with racialized identities.

“If we’re not showing the types of pain that adolescents might typically experience like back pain and menstrual pain, then we’re trivializing pain,” said Dr. Abbie Jordan, PhD, co-author and senior lecturer at The University of Bath. “We’re not doing a great job of enabling them to think about how to manage pain, how to talk about pain and how to show empathy when other people experience pain.”

Researchers noted that adolescence is a developmental period where chronic pain oftentimes emerges, affecting as many as one in five youth. They believe that changing the narrative about the problem of pain on screen could help real world teens going through actual pain issues.

“I believe understanding how pain is portrayed in popular media- the societal and cultural narratives about pain- is among the most powerful influences on children’s developing understanding of not only their pain experiences, but how they show up for others who suffer,” said Noel.

While it’s clear that not every television series or movie will be rooted in actual real-world problems, the study does offer a unique perspective on how teen pain is being portrayed to a large scale audience. Not only could there be some benefit from talking about issues that more commonly affect teens in the real world, but how these characters respond to on-screen pain problems could help teens become more empathetic to those in real life who are battling their own pain issues. It’s certainly some interesting food for thought, and we’ll be more mindful of how pain issues are portrayed the next time we fire up our streaming services.

In the meantime, if you or someone you know needs help overcoming a pain issue of their own, reach out to Dr. Cohn and his team today at (952) 738-4580.

Chronic Pain Incredibly Common Among TBI Survivors

January 4, 2024 / Thomas Cohn, MD

New research shows that upwards of 60 percent of people living with a traumatic brain injury are affected by a chronic pain condition.

The study found that chronic pain affects a large portion of TBI survivors, even up to 30 years after their initial head injury. The research was published in The Journal of Head Trauma Rehabilitation, and it involved over 3,800 respondents who had previously been hospitalized with a moderate to severe TBI. Most respondents were white (77%) and male (75%), with an average recovery time since injury of five years (between 1-30 years).

For the study, researchers surveyed participants about their head injury and other current health issues they are facing, like chronic pain, which was defined as “persistent or recurring pain that lasts longer than three months, including headaches or pain anywhere in the body, which occurs more than half of the days over a three-month period.”

Study Results

After looking at the data, researchers uncovered some concerning statistics about the connection between TBIs and chronic pain onset. They found:

46 percent said they were currently living with a chronic pain condition.
14 percent said they previously dealt with a chronic pain condition.
40 percent reported no chronic pain symptoms now or since their TBI.
32.5 percent of participants with a current chronic pain condition reported constant pain.
Compared to those with no chronic pain, patients with a current chronic pain condition had severely worse scores on three outcomes measured in the survey – the Functional Independence Measure, the Disability Rating Scale and the Glasgow Outscore Scale.

Another concerning finding from the survey was that medications were the most common form of chronic pain treatment. Medications were used by more than 91 percent of patients with a current chronic pain condition and by 90 percent of patients with a past chronic pain condition. As we’ve always said, it’s not that medications aren’t an effective part of a comprehensive treatment plan, but they cannot be your main or only form of treatment. You need to pursue active interventions, like exercise, diet, weight loss, cognitive behavioral therapy or relaxation/deep breathing techniques in order to get the most out of any medication regimen.

The study stopped short of explaining the specific connection between head trauma and chronic pain onset, but it stands to reason that damage in the brain can affect nerve relays throughout our body. Nerve damage can cause our pain signals to be fired when no painful stimuli is felt, or it can cause your brain to interpret a normal sensation as a painful one. It should come as no surprise that patients with a moderate to severe head injury ended up having some neural connection issues even long after the trauma. It speaks to the importance of working to overcome the totality of the TBI so that symptoms don’t manifest later down the road.

If you’re struggling with chronic pain and believe it may be tied to a previous head injury, reach out to a pain specialist in your area like Dr. Cohn. We can work to pinpoint the source of your chronic pain issue and get you set up on the road to recovery. It’s never too late to take the first step towards less chronic pain. For more information, or for help with a different pain issue, reach out to Dr. Cohn and his team today at (952) 738-4580.

Millions Battling Chronic Pain And Concurrent Mental Health Condition

October 5, 2023 / Thomas Cohn, MD

New research from the University of Arizona Health Sciences and published in the journal PAIN found that nearly five million Americans experienced the co-occurrence of chronic pain and a mental health condition like anxiety or depression, leading to functional limitations in their daily life.

As we’ve mentioned on the blog in the past, it’s not uncommon for chronic pain and a mental health condition to develop alongside one another because chronic pain can have a significant effect on your physical, mental and emotional health. If you are forced to miss social events, your career aspirations are limited or you simply find it hard to pull yourself out of bed in the morning because of physical pain, your mental health will also take a hit. For some, that manifests in the form of anxiety or depression.

In a review of data from 31,997 people who participated in the National Health Interview Survey, researchers found that that roughly 38.1 million Americans are dealing with a chronic pain condition, 9.6 million are dealing with a diagnosed mental health condition, and 4.9 million are dealing with co-occurring chronic pain and a mental health condition. Additionally, adults with chronic pain were roughly five times more likely to report anxiety or depression compared to adults without chronic pain.

“The study’s findings highlight an underappreciated population and health care need – the interdependency between mental health and chronic pain,” said the paper’s lead author Jennifer S. De La Rosa, PhD, director of strategy for the University of Arizona Health Sciences Comprehensive Pain and Addiction Center, which funded the study. ”This work is so exciting because it offers the opportunity to use team-based interdisciplinary approaches to medicine, leveraging what is known across disciplines to meet the needs of these individuals.”

Chronic Pain And Mental Health Conditions

Other important findings from the study include:

Nearly 70 percent of people with co-occurring symptoms reported limitations at work.
More than 55 percent of people with co-occurring symptoms reported difficulty taking part in social events
Nearly 44 percent of people with co-occurring symptoms said they had difficulty running errands alone
Among all U.S. adults living with unremitted anxiety or depression, the majority (55.6%) are people who also have chronic pain.

This study only further emphasizes the idea that you can’t simply focus on treating the physical aspects of a chronic pain condition. Pain weighs heavy on your mind, and if you’re only focused on the physical pain, you may find that your mental health is suffering.

Even if you don’t believe your mental health has been affected by a chronic pain, you need to be aware that you’re at a higher risk of certain mental health disorders. You need to trust your care to a provider who will give you the comprehensive care you need to tackle all aspects of your chronic pain condition. Dr. Cohn and his team have done that for years for other patients, and we’d be more than happy to put our experience to work for you. For more information, or for help with a different chronic issue, reach out to Dr. Cohn and his team today at (952) 738-4580.

Empathy Can Help Reduce Chronic Pain Sensations

July 20, 2023 / Thomas Cohn, MD

empathy We always recommend that you surround yourself with a support system that is empathetic to your chronic pain condition, but new research shows that empathy can actually help to decrease pain sensations.

According to research published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, researchers found that patients exposed to empathetic remarks from a physician experienced decreased levels of pain compared to a control group when exposed to the same stimuli.

For the study, researchers used a functional MRI to scan the brains of 20 patients living with chronic pain. During the scans, patients were exposed to stimuli on their legs that ranged from painless to moderately painful, and patients recorded their perceived pain intensity using a standard pain scale. 10 of the patients were subjected to the painful stimuli while alone, while the other 10 were exposed to the stimuli while in the presence of a physician. Of the 10 that were exposed while with a physician, half of those patients had spoke to the physician before the evaluation, while the other five had not had any prior interaction with the physician in the room.

Empathy And Chronic Pain Intensity

After looking at the responses, researchers found some interesting data points. According to the study:

Patients who were alone during the testing reported greater pain sensations than those who were in the presence of a physician.

Patients who had already spoken with the physician in the room felt that the physician was empathetic and understood their pain, and physicians were better able to estimate the pain their patients experienced.

During the functional MRI, researchers noted that there was greater activity in certain areas of the brain that react to pain in the patients who had previous spoken to a physician. They believe this brain activity shows the real-world impact of having an empathetic doctor in your corner when dealing with chronic pain.

While there will certainly be more studies on how empathy and other traits can impact the chronic pain experience, this study highlights how chronic pain can be harder to overcome if you believe you are battling the issue by yourself. Chronic pain is certainly an individualized and oftentimes isolating experience, but you need to surround yourself with friends, family and physicians who believe you and want to help your condition improve.

Now more than ever, it is important to empathize with our patients and show them that we care, and that can be difficult when physicians are tasked with seeing as many patients as possible each day. In order to empathize with the patient and show them that you really care, you need to give them the time of day they deserve, and many hospitals would be smart to remember that the quality of care is much more important than the quantity of care. We always strive to empathize with out patients because we know first hand just how debilitating and frustrating a chronic pain condition can be.

So if you feel like just another patient to your care provider, look elsewhere for care. Dr. Cohn will give you the time and attention you deserve, and you may notice that this attention has positive implications for your chronic pain condition. For more information, or to set up an appointment with Dr. Cohn, give his office a call today at (952) 738-4580.

Study Finds Antidepressants Oftentimes Ineffective For Chronic Pain Treatment

May 12, 2023 / Thomas Cohn, MD

A large review of 176 trials involving nearly 30,000 patients found that there was “insufficient” evidence to suggest that antidepressants are an effective treatment for chronic pain.

The study, published in the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, took a closer look at whether or not antidepressants like amitriptyline, fluoxetine, citalopram, paroxetine, sertraline, and duloxetine could be effective in treating certain chronic pain conditions. Millions of people are prescribed anti-depressants to help treat their chronic pain issue, and while many chronic pain conditions involve physical, mental and emotional aspects, it doesn’t necessarily mean jumping on an anti-depressant regimen is helpful.

After conducting the meta-review, researchers were quick to question the efficacy of anti-depressants to treat chronic pain.

“Our review found no reliable evidence for the long-term efficacy of any antidepressant, and no reliable evidence for their safety for chronic pain at any point. Though we did find that duloxetine provided short-term pain relief for patients we studied, we remain concerned about its possible long-term harm due to the gaps in current evidence,” said lead author Professor Tamar Pincus from the University of Southampton.

The two-year study was the largest-ever assessment of anti-depressants currently recommended by the Food and Drug Administration and the UK’s National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE).

Anti-Depressants And Chronic Pain Management

So while there is some clear doubt about the effectiveness of common anti-depressants for chronic pain management, you shouldn’t just stop your current medication regimen if you are on an anti-depressant. You should always consult with your physician before altering your medication schedule, because stark changes can actually lead to more issues.

Additionally, the review isn’t meant to suggest that you should never take an anti-depressant if you have chronic pain. As we mentioned above, chronic pain is rarely just physical, so it is important to care for your mental health as you work through a physical pain issue. That said, anti-depressants should not be your sole treatment plan. Anti-depressants may play a vital role in a comprehensive treatment plan, but they are unlikely to be a great stand-alone option.

Paired with treatments like physical therapy, dietary changes, sleep improvements and cognitive behavioral therapy, it’s certainly possible that anti-depressants may be helpful for your specific situation. Again, their use needs to be evaluated on an individual basis, and it should not be the treatment that you put the most energy towards. There are many other treatments that have been found to be much more effective at treating chronic pain conditions, and we’d be more than happy to help find the right treatment for you.

For more information, or to work with a pain management provider to find a treatment plan that’s right for you, reach out to Dr. Cohn and his team today at (952) 738-4580.