People with arthritis experience a range of symptoms, from joint stiffness to extreme tiredness. However, pain can be the most difficult symptom for many people. This Pain Awareness Month we wanted to share with you how we are funding research to tackle chronic pain.

What is Pain Awareness Month?

Pain Awareness Month is a global initiative to highlight the challenges faced by those living with chronic pain and the importance of better support and management.

Each year, the British Pain Society (BPS), alongside the International Association for the Study of Pain (IASP), aim to raise public awareness around pain by highlighting topics such as:

• pain management
• the experiences of people living with pain
• and the great work of pain professionals.

For Pain Awareness Month 2024, the BPS is focussing on a unified approach across the UK to improve pain management, raise awareness, and empower those affected.

#MyPainStory encourages people to share their personal experience of living with chronic pain. You can join the BPS in raising awareness, sharing stories, and supporting those living with chronic pain across the UK.

What is chronic pain?

Chronic pain - pain which has lasted for more than three months - affects between 18.4 million (34%) and 28 million people (43%) in the UK.

74% of people with musculoskeletal conditions report pain as impacting on their lives. Pain can affect many different parts of our body and around eight in every ten people (84%) with chronic pain in England say that at least some of their chronic pain is in areas where the pain is most likely to be musculoskeletal.

Everybody’s pain is different, and people with chronic pain typically experience several different kinds of pain. Pain is complex and is affected by many different factors. Alongside biological causes, psychological factors such as thoughts and feelings, personal relationships and lifestyle, can also affect chronic pain. However, we currently don’t know which of these factors are most important, or how they combine to affect people’s overall experience of pain.

Pain can affect how we move, think, sleep and feel, along with our ability to spend time with loved ones. There is a real need for pain research to help understand what causes and influences people’s experience of pain. This will help to find effective treatments, with fewer side effects.

By further developing our understanding of pain and finding new ways to treat and prevent it, we can push back against the impact chronic pain has on people with arthritis.

Get the support you need  if you’re living with arthritis

If you would like to talk to someone, you can:

• Call our free helpline on 0800 5200 520
• Talk to our arthritis virtual assistant, 24/7
• Join our online community
• Stay in touch and follow us on Twitter/X, Facebook and Instagram.