Understand the Scope

Over 50 million U.S. adults live with chronic pain
17 million suffer from high-impact chronic pain
Women and adults over 65 are disproportionately affected
Chronic pain is invisible, misunderstood, and often dismissed

Recognize Systemic Gaps in Care Pain care is often impersonal and protocol-driven

• Patients with a history of opioid use may be unfairly labeled
• Many were prescribed opioids without long-term plans or alternatives
• The stigma surrounding pain medication is a barrier to real care

Lead with Compassion

• Pain is not a moral failure or something to “tough out”
• Believe people when they say they’re in pain
• Don’t reduce a person to a prescription history or pain scale
• Empower, don’t punish, patients with chronic pain

Know Your Rights & Options

• Understand your current medications and why you’re on them
• Know that comfort, not full pain elimination, is a reasonable goal

Explore alternatives:

• Physical therapy
• Nerve blocks
• Non-opioid meds
• Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
• Acupuncture

Request a pain management referral proactively Ask about a pain contract before hospitalization or surgery
Insist on real conversations before medication changes

Reframe Chronic Pain

• Chronic pain is not “all in your head”—but your brain is part of how pain is experienced
• Healing doesn’t always mean curing—it can mean learning how to live better with pain
• You are still you—and your life still holds meaning, purpose, and possibility

Advocacy isn’t just asking for less pain. It’s asking for more life, even with pain.

Stay Connected

You’re not alone
Your pain is real
You deserve care that sees the whole you