Pain Awareness Month 2023
RESEARCH PAIN. MANAGE PAIN.
The U.S. Pain Foundation seeks to raise awareness about pain research and its impact on the more than 51.6 million Americans living with chronic pain during Pain Awareness Month.
The initiative, #PainTrials, will break down pain research and show the real-life impact research has on individuals living with pain. We are honored to be collaborating with the National Institutes of Health on a variety of initiatives throughout the month, with NIH participation in our webinars, articles, support group meetings, and more. Each day, we will share a pain research statistic on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, along with one article a week that focuses on different aspects of research. We will also host three webinars bringing together prominent NIH researchers and clinical trial experts, in addition to offering special support group opportunities to learn more about local research efforts near you. In addition, we have Health Hack events and in-person patient education days planned in collaboration with the Humana Neighborhood Center.
On this page, you’ll find all the information you need to become involved this Pain Awareness Month with #PainTrials.
A new Resource for you
Want to learn more about the different types of clinical trials, the process of enrolling, and questions you should consider before signing up?
Check out our resource to get your questions answered.
Articles
UPCOMING WEBINARS
Turning Lemons into Lemonade: Building resilience despite chronic pain
September 28 from 1-2:30pm ET
Afton Hassett, PsyD, a licensed clinical psychologist and an associate professor and Director of Pain and Opioid Research in the Department of Anesthesiology at the University of Michigan, will share research she has conducted on developing resilience-enhancing skills for people with chronic pain. Patient advocates, Karen Duffy and William Hatchett, share firsthand experiences of how they incorporate those skills in their pain management journey.
IN-PERSON EVENTS
As part of our collaboration with the Humana Neighborhood Center this month, U.S. Pain hosted two pain education sessions at Humana’s Las Vegas locations of Henderson and Summerlin. We would like to extend our thanks and gratitude to David Nagel, MD, for speaking to individuals about integrative solutions to manage pain. In addition, U.S. Pain appreciates Ryan and Ada, the Health Educators at these locations.
PAST PEER-TO-PEER GROUPS INCORPORATING RESEARCHERS
In collaboration with the NIH HEAL Initiative, Rebecca G. Baker, PhD, HEAL Director, in the Office of the Director, NIH, joined several of our online state-based support groups with a local NIH researcher. The goal: to share an overview of HEAL’s efforts and learn about local research projects.
Massachusetts
Our Massachusetts peer-to-peer group was joined by special guests, NIH HEAL Director Rebecca G. Baker, PhD, and NIH researcher Natalia Morone, MD, MS, from Boston Medical Center. They talked about the efforts of HEAL to address the unmet needs of chronic pain as well as current research on group-based mindfulness for chronic low back pain.
California
Our California peer-to-peer group was joined by special guests: NIH HEAL Director Rebecca G. Baker, PhD, NIH researchers Lynn DeBar, PhD, MPH, Andy Avins, MD, MPH, and Alice Pressman, PhD, MS, and licensed acupuncturist, Meg McDowell. They talked about the efforts of HEAL to adress the unmet needs of chronic pain as well as research examining the use of acupuncture for chronic low back pain in older adults.
New York-New Jersey-Connecticut
Our New York-New Jersey-Connecticut peer-to-peer group was joined by special guests: Linda Porter, PhD, Director, Office of Pain Policy and Planning, and NIH researcher Jessica Robinson-Papp, MD, MS. They talked about the efforts of HEAL as well as sharing information about a pain clinical trials network called EPPIC-Net.
WAYS TO GET INVOLVED
There are MANY easy ways you can help create awareness about pain research this September, such as:
- Download our free Pain Awareness Month frame for your social media profile picture.
- Like, comment, and share/retweet our daily posts on social media.
- Use the hashtag #PainTrials in all your social media posts in September.
- Register and attend our three webinars.
- Read and share each weekly article.
- Register and join our four Health Hack events.
- Attend our live patient-education sessions at the Humana Neighborhood Center’s Las Vegas locations.
- Register and attend one of our special state support groups to hear from local researchers in California, Massachusetts, and New York/New Jersey/Connecticut.
- Join our social media challenge by posting a picture or going “Live” to share your #PainTrials
VIEW PAST CAMPAIGNS
Want to view the 2022 Pain Awareness Month campaign, #LifeWithPain? Click here.
Want to view the 2021 Pain Awareness Month campaign, #PainCounts? Click here.
RE-WATCH PRIOR WEBINARS AND EVENTS
Did you miss one of our webinars or Health Hack events this Pain Awareness Month? Did you watch a previous webinar or Health Hack event and wish to view it again or share with others? Well, you are in luck!
Below you will find links to those recordings.
HEALTH HACK EVENTS
We were excited to collaborate with the Humana Neighborhood Center this Pain Awareness Month. The Humana Neighborhood Center, the website as well as the physical locations, are open to anyone — meaning you do not need to be a Humana member to access their resources, location sites, or information.
During September, we developed four Health Hack events, short videos that tackled a different component of pain. Re-watch the recordings below! (Please note: you do not need to be a Humana member to access these resources; you just need to create a free account.)
Daily Stats and Facts
IN THE NEWS
#PainTrials Initiative Seeks To Raise Awareness About The Need For Pain Research – Read press release
The US Pain Foundation Launches New Awareness Initiative – Applied Clinical Trials, September 8
Understanding pain is difficult, since it’s hard to put into words – Hemophilia News Today, September 13
Pain points: Unsolved recruitment and trial design issues in pain clinical trials – Clinical Trials Arena, September 21
The Chronic Pain that Nobody Talks About – Health Policy Today, September 21
Our 2023 Pain Awareness Month campaign is made possible through the contribution of our sponsors, Vertex Pharmaceuticals and Lilly.
Thank you for recognizing the importance of pain research and its potential to improve the future of millions of people living with chronic pain.
