Pain coping strategies predict perceived control over pain

Area of Science:

• Psychology
• Pain Management
• Behavioral Medicine

Background:

• Perceptions of control and coping strategies positively impact chronic pain patients.
• Transactional stress models highlight the interplay between coping and control appraisals.
• Limited understanding exists regarding specific coping strategies that enhance perceived pain control.

Purpose of the Study:

• To identify specific pain coping strategies that predict greater perceptions of control over pain.
• To investigate the relationship between coping flexibility and perceived pain control.
• To differentiate adaptive from maladaptive coping strategies in chronic pain.

Main Methods:

• 195 individuals with chronic pain completed the Multidimensional Pain Inventory, Survey of Pain Attitudes, and Coping Strategies Questionnaire.
• Stepwise multiple regression analyses were employed to predict perceived pain control.
• Pain severity and education were controlled for in the analyses.

Main Results:

• Coping self-statements and reinterpreting pain sensations predicted increased perceived pain control.
• Ignoring pain sensations predicted decreased perceived pain control.
• Coping flexibility (using multiple strategies) also predicted greater perceived control, independent of pain severity.

Conclusions:

• Specific cognitive coping strategies, such as self-statements and reinterpreting sensations, enhance perceived control over pain, irrespective of pain severity.
• Cognitive-behavioral interventions for chronic pain should incorporate these adaptive cognitive strategies.
• Further research is needed to explore increasing the use of strategies like reinterpreting pain sensations through interventions.