Understanding Chronic Pain
When Your Body's Alarm System Gets Stuck On
Pain is supposed to be an alarm system - a warning that something is wrong. But in chronic pain, that alarm never shuts off. Even after the original injury heals, your nervous system keeps screaming that something is wrong.
Here's what happens: The pain signals travel through your spine and brain via neurotransmitters - chemical messengers. In chronic pain, substance P (an excitatory neurotransmitter) gets stuck at elevated levels. The pain receptors become hypersensitive. Your brain starts interpreting normal sensations as dangerous. Meanwhile, the natural pain-killing systems in your body - your endogenous opioid system and GABA-inhibitory pathways - have downregulated and stopped working properly.
Then patients turn to pharmaceutical opioids for relief, which temporarily work by mimicking your body's natural painkillers. But they shut down your own endogenous opioid production even more. Your tolerance climbs. You need higher doses. The pain worsens. It's a trap.
"Chronic pain isn't just a pain problem - it's a neurochemical problem."
Peptide therapy takes a completely different approach. Instead of forcing external opioids, we help restore your body's own pain management system. Some peptides block pain signals at the source. Others restore your natural painkillers. Together, they address the underlying neurobiology instead of masking symptoms.