“Hurt and Misunderstood”: Emotional reactions to pain dismissal in emerging adults with chronic pain

Background

Twelve percent of emerging adults (EAs) experience chronic pain which is associated with psychological distress and isolation. At least 40 % of EAs with chronic pain experience pain dismissal which poses a significant barrier to care and treatment. The goals of this paper were to expand our understanding of pain dismissal experiences among EAs and to extend research to the emotional and psychological impact of pain dismissal on EAs.

Method

EAs with chronic pain (N = 227) between the ages of 18–25 (Mage = 19.58) completed online surveys of pain experiences, anxiety, and depression. Thematic analysis was conducted for three open-ended responses.

Results

Over 40 % of EAs with chronic pain experienced pain dismissal (43 %), with female and EAs identifying as other gender identity experiencing greater dismissal than male EAs. There were no differences across racial/ethnic identities. Medical professionals (46 %) and caregivers/parents (38 %) were most frequently reported people to have dismissed participant pain. Minimizing/invalidating (27 %) and normalizing (26 %) were the most frequent themes of what was said to dismiss one’s pain. In response to pain dismissal, EAs described feeling generic negative feelings (25 %) and anger/annoyance (21 %).

Discussion

Survey responses suggest that pain dismissal bothered EAs, and those who experienced pain dismissal had higher anxiety and depression, indicating a need for family/provider education on pain in EAs and validation of pain experiences in EAs. New themes around what constituted pain dismissal included negative self-view and invalidated/gaslit. Future research should explore the long-term effects pain dismissal has on chronic pain outcomes.