I noticed something about myself that I think is unusual. I have chronic low back pain but I don’t let it get me down. I still work full-time and stay involved in my family and community. I can’t help but wonder why other people can’t get off their butts, quit complaining about their aches and pains and enjoy life as it comes. As the old expression goes, we were never promised a rose garden.

With any physical ailment, there is often a wide range of experiences. Chronic low back pain is no different in this regard. Age, attitude, sex, the presence of other health problems, finances, and family support are just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to understanding why some people like yourself can cope while others don’t seem to even want to cope.

We do know that some patients need help with pain control while others need to improve their functional level. Research shows that adults in the general population (not a group of chronic pain sufferers) experience back pain with a wide range of pain intensity and disability. Here’s a sample of what that can look like:

  • No pain, no disability
  • Low pain intensity, no disability
  • Moderate pain intensity, low disability
  • High pain intensity, moderate disability
  • Very high pain intensity, severe disability

    You’ll notice there isn’t a category for high pain/no (or low) disability. That’s because it doesn’t happen very often in the general population. Studies of chronic pain patients suggest this phenomenon is more likely but it’s an area where more study is needed — both to identify how often it happens and to see what’s different about these folks. It would be great if it is something that could be duplicated and used for others.