Archives for May 2015

The Painful Truth: Lending a Voice to Pain

At the beginning of my medical career, I met a patient who would change the trajectory of my life. He was a World War I veteran who suffered from arthritis, causing an excruciating grinding noise whenever he bent his limbs. Despite having risked his life for his country, his pain was so excruciating that whenever I passed by his room, he would grab at me and tearfully beg, “Help me die. You’re a doctor—you can do it. I’d rather be dead than keep living with the pain.”

I could not help him then. But I vowed to spend the rest of my life fighting for people in pain.

Solving the Pain Dilemma

Chronic pain affects 1 in 3 Americans and exerts more than a $600-billion drain on the economy annually. It is the largest invisible epidemic we face. Having treated thousands of patients with chronic pain – often when they were at their most vulnerable – I want to improve the future for pain suffers.

As one small step in that direction, I have penned The Painful Truth: What Chronic Pain Is Really Like and Why It Matters to Each of Us. Although 100 million Americans live with chronic pain, and literally no one can escape pain’s effects, physicians, lawmakers, and even family and friends haven’t been as understanding about pain as they could be. I want to change societal attitudes toward those in pain, and I want to ensure they do not ignore chronic pain sufferers.