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And what doesn’t? And why? PainScience.com explores the surprisingly weird science of many kinds of chronic pain and injury, from fibromyalgia to runner’s knee. The site is a library of a couple hundred deep-dive articles for both patients and healthcare professionals, informal but heavily referenced and constantly updated for 20 years. Like it says on the tin, there’s a pro-science bias here, and quackery is kicked to the curb. More.

Why the salamander? More mascot than logo, the salamander’s astonishing regenerative biology is a symbol of healing. More.

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The basic newsletter is free: 4-8 posts per month, many of them short, about anything useful or neat for patients or pros. Browse the archives. ❐

Members get more! Membership unlocks extra emails (at least), or much more for the more expensive plans: web archives, audio versions, an RSS feed, etc. Read more, or just pull the trigger:

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Membership plans compared. For more detail, see the membership marketing page.<br>GOOD $3 Free emails (0–2/week) + premium emails (1/month)<br>BETTER $5 All emails + podcast + archives + members-only sections + RSS feed<br>AWESOME $10 All of the above + occasional special benefits

What hurts? The most popular guides to specific conditions

When to Worry About Neck Pain … and when not to! — Tips, checklists, and non-scary possible explanations for neck pain.

A Deep Dive into Delayed-Onset Muscle Soreness — The biology & treatment of the “muscle fever” that follows intense exercise.

The Complete Guide to IT Band Syndrome — Everything you could possibly want to know about the most common type of runner’s knee.

6 Main Causes of Morning Back Pain — Why is back pain worst first thing in the morning?

A Rational Guide to Fibromyalgia — All about the mysterious disease of pain, exhaustion, and mental fog.

Cramps, Spasms, Tremors & Twitches — The biology and treatment of unwanted muscle contractions.

Complete Guide to Frozen Shoulder — Exploring one of the strangest of all common musculoskeletal conditions.

INDEX of 52 CONDITION GUIDES

What works? The most popular treatment reviews

Quite a Stretch — The most popular form of therapeutic exercise… has few actual benefits.

Does Epsom Salt Work? — The science and mythology of Epsom salt bathing as a tonic for pain & injury.

Trigger Point Therapy — All about the strange therapeutic art of… pressing on sore spots?

Strength Training Frequency — Strength training is surprisingly efficient, good medicine.

The Chiropractic Controversies — A tour of far too many chiropractic controversies.

Does Platelet-Rich Plasma Injection Work? — Nope. The first popular “regenerative” therapy is bogus.

Zapped! Do TENS and friends work for pain? — Electrical stimulation is perpetually popular, which is weird.

See also compilations of the most proven pain treatments, as well as a much wider range of more speculative options (but still safer and more plausible).

INDEX of 92 TREATMENT REVIEWS

Yes, but why? Articles about key concepts and principles of pain

Pain is Weird — Pain is trickster, a volatile and misleading sensation.

Your Back Is Not Out of Alignment — Debunking the obsession with alignment and biomechanics.

MRI Worse than Useless for Back Pain — The legacy of the false alarm machines!

Is Running on Pavement Risky? — Hard-surface running might be a risk factor for running injuries. It’s surprising hard to tell.

Sensitization — Pain can change how pain works… and never for the better.

INDEX of 55 ARTICLES ABOUT CONCEPTS

The blog & newsletter: pain science news, highlights, and musings

The PainScience.com blog is the “director’s commentary” for the site.

Jul 21: An immense new review of exercise for pain

Jul 17: City noise pollution may aggravate pain (and nature sounds don’t help)

Jul 11: Pillow talk: the evidence about pillows and neck pain is soft

Jul 2: Freezing shoulders enjoy steroids, PRP not so much

Jun 25: Stretching for fibromyalgia: abstract versus full text

INDEX of 1351 POSTS

What’s new? Article updates

A steady stream of content improvements and corrections are all logged, like on Wikipedia.

Jul 22: most effective chronic pain treatments +Tuning and new citations for the exercise section.

What Works for Chronic Pain?

Jul 17: fibromyalgia +New section — In the future I’ll expand this new section into a general treatment of the “nature cure” topic. For now it’s just following the science of nature sounds versus urban noise pollution...