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What is Pain-Related Suffering? Conceptual Critiques, Key Attributes, and Outstanding Questions
Peter Stilwell1, Anne Hudon2, Keith Meldrum3
1School of Physical and Occupational Therapy, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada; Centre for Interdisciplinary Research in Rehabilitation of Greater Montreal (CRIR), IURDPM, CIUSSS-Centre-Sud-de-l'Ile-de-Montréal, Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
The Journal of Pain
|December 1, 2021
Summary
Pain-related suffering is distinct from pain, subjective, affectively negative, and disrupts one's sense of self. Further research is needed to operationalize suffering beyond self-reflection for better clinical strategies.
Area of Science:
- Pain research
- Clinical psychology
- Medical ethics
Background:
- Suffering is central to pain research but lacks a clear operational definition by the International Association for the Study of Pain.
- Eric Cassell's work on suffering is foundational but has faced critiques not yet integrated into pain literature.
Purpose of the Study:
- To present key attributes of pain-related suffering based on literature synthesis.
- To highlight challenges in Cassell's conceptualization of suffering.
- To propose a preliminary step toward operationalizing pain-related suffering.
Main Methods:
- Literature synthesis to identify key attributes of pain-related suffering.
- Analysis of Cassell's conceptualization and its critiques within the pain literature.
Main Results:
- Four key attributes of pain-related suffering identified: distinct from pain, subjective, negative affective valence, and disruption to sense of self.
- A challenge identified: suffering is often viewed as self-reflective and future-oriented, marginalizing some populations.
Conclusions:
- Operationalizing pain-related suffering is crucial for developing effective clinical strategies.
- Future research should explore suffering with and without self-reflection to validate diverse experiences.
- This article provides a preliminary framework for understanding and addressing pain-related suffering.
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