Poltergeist

 

"What was that?" says the lead character in the horror flick upon hearing an unexplained noise.

A flurry of activity ensues with frantic searches of the kitchen, frenzied checking of door locks, and cautious peering out windows looking for the source of the noise.

Although not exactly the same, my three year experience with an invisible, chronic condition pain is at least somewhat analogous to the scary movie's unexplained noise script. Chronic pain is like a poltergeist.

"What was that?" I ask myself when I have a new or different pain. A flurry of activity follows with includes a memory search for possible injuries that could have cause the pain or changes in schedules that may have set up a new pain scenario. I wonder if I have somehow caused the pain by some action or inaction. Have I disrupted the delicate balance in my internal environment or external environment  to cause this thing to appear?

If we can believe anything we see in these fiction films, some poltergeists are benign while others are characterized by violent manipulation of object or the environment. So if we extend that analogy to chronic pain, is the pain I have--is this NEW pain--benign or something more sinister? 

And further, how will I know?

Wait. What was that?