PSYC 2301 Lecture Notes - Lecture 6: Pain Management, Phantom Limb, Nociception
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Monday, July 25th, 2016
PSYC 2301 – Pain and Its Management
Ch. 10: Learning Objectives
-Understand significance of pain, explain why pain’s difficult to study
-Identify clinical issues in pain management
-Describe techniques used to control pain, explain how chronic pain’s managed
The Significance of Pain:
-Some pain’s critical for survival – provides feedback for body functioning
-Pain = symptom most likely to lead individual to seek treatment
-Psychological factors affect pain
oFor ex. both depression & anxiety worsen experience of pain
-Research shows: patients fear pain most about illness & treatment
-Ppl w/ chronic pain 2x as likely to commit suicide compared to those w/o chronic pain
-Millions of dollars annually spent on remedies to temporarily alleviate pain in Canada
Beecher (1959):
-25% of wounded soldiers that he treated during WWII requested pain meds
-In contrast:
o80% of civilians requested pain meds
oBeecher concluded: diff meaning ascribed to pain
Soldier: alive & likely to be sent home
Civilian: interruption in daily life
-Pain influenced by context in which it’s experienced & by meaning attached to it
Why is Pain Difficult to Study?
-Pain has cultural component:
oEnglish Canadian students reported lower pain tolerance for experimentally
induced pain compared to Chinese students
oCultural norms may impact experience & expression of pain
-Gender:
oWomen typically show greater sensitivity to pain
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Hormonal fluctuation across menstrual cycle known to influence pain
perception in women
Women may respond to stimuli w/ greater negative affect, which in turn
amplifies pain response
oMales & females socialized in diff ways
Coping styles with pain:
-Ppl who catastrophize about pain:
oRuminate about it, magnify it, & feel helpless about it
oAttend more to pain of others & estimate greater pain from behaviours displayed
by others
Linked to increased pain reports
Risk factor for:
Long term pain & disability, more intense labour pain
Poorer physical recovery after childbirth
-Resilience:
oProtective, as these individuals bounce back from moments of intense pain by
experiencing positive emotions
Why is Pain Difficult to Study?
-Measuring pain: pain = very subjective, which is a barrier to measurement
-Verbal reports used by practitioners
oDraw on everyday vocab for describing pain – e.g., shooting, dull, etc.
-Pain questionnaires – may include:
oNature of pain (throbbing, shooting), Intensity & frequency
oEmotions associated w/ pain (fear)
-Pain behaviour: observable behaviour that arise as manifestation of chronic pain
-4 types:
oFacial & audible expression of distress
oDistortions in posture or gait
oNegative affect
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com