A new study from the University of Portsmouth has revealed that how people respond to pain might matter more than the pain itself when it comes to staying physically active.
The research, published in the journal PLOS One, highlights the importance of pain resilience—the ability to cope with and manage pain effectively.
The study, led by Dr. Nils Niederstrasser from the School of Psychology, Sport and Health Sciences, looked at 172 people living with chronic pain. Using detailed data and statistical models, the researchers wanted to understand how different factors affect physical activity in those who live with long-term pain.
They considered many things, including fear of movement, frailty, how many parts of the body were painful, how long the person had been in pain, and how intense the pain was.
What they found was surprising: the level of pain someone felt wasn’t the strongest predictor of how active they were.
Instead, those who had higher levels of pain resilience were more likely to stay active, regardless of how much pain they experienced. Fear of movement, often thought to play a big role in limiting activity, turned out to be less important in this study.
Pain resilience is the ability to keep going, stay positive, and deal with pain in a healthy way. This might include pushing through discomfort, focusing on goals, or finding ways to stay motivated despite pain. People with high resilience tend to remain more physically active even when their pain is strong.
Dr. Niederstrasser explained that the findings suggest we should look beyond the pain itself.
“What we found is that it’s not how much pain you’re in that determines whether you stay physically active—it’s how you think about and respond to that pain,” he said. “People who are more resilient can keep a positive attitude and keep moving, even if they’re uncomfortable.”
This challenges older beliefs that managing pain was mostly about reducing it or avoiding movement. Instead, this study shows that helping people build psychological resilience may be a better way to improve their overall health and quality of life.
The research team believes this could change how chronic pain is treated. Rather than focusing only on lowering pain levels, doctors and therapists might try to help patients build mental strength and coping skills. Resilience-based programs might include techniques from psychology, like mindfulness, stress reduction, and goal-setting.
This work adds to earlier research by Dr. Niederstrasser, which found that being physically active can reduce the chances of developing chronic pain in the first place. That study suggested that prevention programs should include regular exercise, healthy weight management, and addressing social inequalities.
Looking ahead, the researchers hope to test whether building pain resilience directly leads to more physical activity. If so, this could lead to new types of treatment that focus more on helping people stay active and positive, even when dealing with pain.
This study is a hopeful reminder that even in the face of chronic pain, how people think and respond can make a big difference. By focusing on resilience, more people may find it easier to stay active and healthy, regardless of their pain.
If you care about pain, please read studies about how to manage gout with a low-purine diet, and a guide to eating right for arthritis.
For more health information, please see recent studies about the link between processed foods and chronic diseases, and avoid these 8 foods to ease arthritis pain.
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