The Brain Can Turn Pain Up and Down: The Volume Knob
Pain is real but is not a reliable indicator to measure tissue damage. Pain is an interpretation of an electrical signal produced by the nervous system in response to changes in mechanical, thermal and chemical inputs.
Your brain and spinal cord can turn up or down the sensitivity to these inputs. Stress, poor sleep, fear, worrying beliefs and focusing closely on pain can increase sensitivity. To start turning the volume down it is important to understand your pain, improve your sleep, start or continue exercise consisting of stretching, strengthening and stabilising.
This does NOT mean pain is “all in your head”. It means pain is influenced by the whole person and their situation. Learning about pain and building confidence with safe paced movement can be a helpful starting point. Contact your local physiotherapist for advice on what exercises would be appropriate for you.
Good Country Physiotherapy Naracoorte is currently rolling out a back specific exercise program, contact the clinic on 8762 1515 for further information on the GLA:D back program.
Fraser & Jordan
4th Year Physiotherapy Students at Adelaide University
Supervised by Angela Willsmore
References:
Nguyen, L. (2025, December 5). What is predictive processing? A simple guide for chronic pain sufferers. Karuna Labs. https://www.karunalabs.com/blog/what-is-predictive-processing-a-simple-guide-for-chronic-pain-sufferers
Basbaum, A. I., Bautista, D. M., Scherrer, G., & Julius, D. (2009). Cellular and Molecular Mechanisms of Pain. Cell, 139(2), 267–284. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cell.2009.09.028
Lin, L., Lin, T., Chang, K., Wu, W., & Ozcakar, L. (2024). Pain neuroscience education for reducing pain and kinesiophobia in patients with chronic neck pain: A systematic review and meta‐analysis of randomized controlled trials. European Journal of Pain, 28(2), 231–243. https://doi.org/10.1002/ejp.2182
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