Between 20% and 25% of the population will suffer from chronic pain at some point in their lives. If you are one of the unfortunate people who have to deal with this debilitating condition on a daily basis or if a loved one is affected by it, the series Invisible pain, living with chronic painbroadcast by Savoir Média, is a must-see.
Over the course of four 30-minute episodes, this series presents the story of four people whose lives have been turned upside down by chronic pain. They relate how this illness entered their lives and to what extent it has turned their existence upside down, imposed mourning and poisoned their daily lives, “like a permanent scratching that spoils the melody of life”, as one of the participants put it.
These personal testimonies are interspersed with segments in which specialists, including Anne Marie Pinard and Yves De Koninck, from the Faculty of Medicine at Laval University, explain what chronic pain is, the nature of the disorder that causes it, existing treatments and their limitations, the lack of training of health professionals on issues of chronic pain and the shortcomings of our health system in the care of people suffering from chronic pain.
Anne Marie Pinard is one of the few physicians in Quebec with expertise in chronic pain. Holder of the Leadership Chair in Chronic Pain Education at Université Laval, she is the medical director of the Centre of Expertise in Chronic Pain Management at CHU de Québec – Université Laval. She oversaw the development of the Gérer ma douleur portal, which brings together essential information on chronic pain. She also coordinated the development of the chronic pain self-management program Agir pour moi, which can be followed without the support of a health professional.
For over 20 years, neurobiologist Yves De Koninck has devoted part of his research to the mechanisms involved in chronic pain. His research, carried out at the CERVO Research Center, has identified molecules that could serve as targets for the development of new drugs. A tireless communicator, he takes advantage of every platform he is offered to remind people that chronic pain is a real disease caused by a body disorder.
The series Mal invisible has been broadcast on Mondays at 8 p.m. since August 19 on the Savoir média television channel. The four episodes are available online on the Savoir média website.
