TedTest

From the Ted Talk by Karen D. Davis: How does your brain respond to pain?

Unscramble the Blue Letters

Let's say that it would take you ten minutes to svole this pzuzle. How long would it take if you received constant electric scokhs to your hndas? Longer, right? Because the pain would distract you from the task. Well, maybe not; it dendpes on how you handle pain. Some people are dttcaesird by pain. It takes them longer to complete a task, and they do it less well. Other people use tasks to distract themselves from pain, and those people actually do the task faster and better when they're in pain than when they're not. Some people can just send their mind wandering to drsatcit themselves from pain. How can different people be seutbjecd to the eacxt same painful stimulus and yet experience the pain so differently? And why does this matter? First of all, what is pain? Pain is an unpleasant sensory and emotional erpeencxie, associated with actual or potential tsisue damage. Pain is something we experience, so it's best measured by what you say it is. Pain has an intensity; you can dicerbse it on a scale from zero, no pain, to ten, the most pain ilgianmabe. But pain also has a character, like sharp, dull, burning, or aching. What exactly creates these perceptions of pain? Well, when you get hurt, special tissue damage-sensing nerve clels, called nociceptors, fire and send signals to the spinal cord and then up to the brain. Processing work gets done by cells called nerouns and glia. This is your Grey matter. And brain seaihwpyurhgs carry information as electrical impulses from one area to another. This is your white matter. The superhighway that carries pain information from the spinal cord to the brain is our sensing pathway that ends in the cortex, a part of the brain that decides what to do with the pain sgianl. Another system of ieteocnncetnrd brain cells caelld the saelncie network decides what to pay attention to. Since pain can have serious cnuoqnsecees, the pain signal immediately aiavtcets the salience network. Now, you're paying attention. The brain also responds to the pain and has to cope with these pain sliangs. So, mootr pathways are activated to take your hand off a hot stove, for example. But modulation nwkorets are also activated that deliver endorphins and enkephalins, chemicals released when you're in pain or during extreme exercise, creating the runner's high. These chemical systems help regulate and reduce pain. All these networks and pathways work together to create your pain experience, to prevent further tissue damage, and help you to cope with pain. This seytsm is similar for everyone, but the sensitivity and efficacy of these brain circuits determines how much you feel and cope with pain. This is why some people have greater pain than others and why some develop chronic pain that does not respond to treatment, while others respond well. Variability in pain sensitivities is not so different than all kinds of vaiibalitry in rpneoesss to other situlmi. Like how some people love roller cesortas, but other people suffer from terrible motion sickness. Why does it maettr that there is variability in our pain brain circuits? Well, there are many treatments for pain, tieanrtgg different systems. For mild pain, non-prescription mcoiditnaes can act on cells where the pain signals start. Other stronger pain medicines and aeihtsectns work by reducing the activity in pain-sensing circuits or boosting our coping system, or endorphins. Some people can cope with pain using methods that involve distraction, reatlxoain, meditation, yoga, or strategies that can be thguat, like cognitive behavioral therapy. For some ppeloe who suffer from svreee chronic pain, that is pain that doesn't go away months after their injury should have healed, none of the ragluer treatments work. Traditionally, medical science has been about tinsteg treatments on large groups to determine what would help a mraijoty of patients. But this has usually left out some who didn't benefit from the treatment or experienced side effects. Now, new treatments that directly smuaitlte or block certain pain-sensing atontetin or modulation networks are being deleevopd, along with ways to tailor them to individual patients, using tolos like magnetic resonance imaging to map brain pathways. Figuring out how your brain responds to pain is the key to finding the best treatment for you. That's true personalized medicine.

Open Cloze

Let's say that it would take you ten minutes to _____ this ______. How long would it take if you received constant electric ______ to your _____? Longer, right? Because the pain would distract you from the task. Well, maybe not; it _______ on how you handle pain. Some people are __________ by pain. It takes them longer to complete a task, and they do it less well. Other people use tasks to distract themselves from pain, and those people actually do the task faster and better when they're in pain than when they're not. Some people can just send their mind wandering to ________ themselves from pain. How can different people be _________ to the _____ same painful stimulus and yet experience the pain so differently? And why does this matter? First of all, what is pain? Pain is an unpleasant sensory and emotional __________, associated with actual or potential ______ damage. Pain is something we experience, so it's best measured by what you say it is. Pain has an intensity; you can ________ it on a scale from zero, no pain, to ten, the most pain __________. But pain also has a character, like sharp, dull, burning, or aching. What exactly creates these perceptions of pain? Well, when you get hurt, special tissue damage-sensing nerve _____, called nociceptors, fire and send signals to the spinal cord and then up to the brain. Processing work gets done by cells called _______ and glia. This is your Grey matter. And brain _____________ carry information as electrical impulses from one area to another. This is your white matter. The superhighway that carries pain information from the spinal cord to the brain is our sensing pathway that ends in the cortex, a part of the brain that decides what to do with the pain ______. Another system of ______________ brain cells ______ the ________ network decides what to pay attention to. Since pain can have serious ____________, the pain signal immediately _________ the salience network. Now, you're paying attention. The brain also responds to the pain and has to cope with these pain _______. So, _____ pathways are activated to take your hand off a hot stove, for example. But modulation ________ are also activated that deliver endorphins and enkephalins, chemicals released when you're in pain or during extreme exercise, creating the runner's high. These chemical systems help regulate and reduce pain. All these networks and pathways work together to create your pain experience, to prevent further tissue damage, and help you to cope with pain. This ______ is similar for everyone, but the sensitivity and efficacy of these brain circuits determines how much you feel and cope with pain. This is why some people have greater pain than others and why some develop chronic pain that does not respond to treatment, while others respond well. Variability in pain sensitivities is not so different than all kinds of ___________ in _________ to other _______. Like how some people love roller ________, but other people suffer from terrible motion sickness. Why does it ______ that there is variability in our pain brain circuits? Well, there are many treatments for pain, _________ different systems. For mild pain, non-prescription ___________ can act on cells where the pain signals start. Other stronger pain medicines and ___________ work by reducing the activity in pain-sensing circuits or boosting our coping system, or endorphins. Some people can cope with pain using methods that involve distraction, __________, meditation, yoga, or strategies that can be ______, like cognitive behavioral therapy. For some ______ who suffer from ______ chronic pain, that is pain that doesn't go away months after their injury should have healed, none of the _______ treatments work. Traditionally, medical science has been about _______ treatments on large groups to determine what would help a ________ of patients. But this has usually left out some who didn't benefit from the treatment or experienced side effects. Now, new treatments that directly _________ or block certain pain-sensing _________ or modulation networks are being _________, along with ways to tailor them to individual patients, using _____ like magnetic resonance imaging to map brain pathways. Figuring out how your brain responds to pain is the key to finding the best treatment for you. That's true personalized medicine.

Solution

puzzle
majority
variability
developed
people
medications
anesthetics
neurons
regular
solve
signals
tissue
stimuli
experience
relaxation
coasters
testing
networks
called
salience
describe
matter
shocks
depends
targeting
tools
distract
cells
stimulate
distracted
motor
responses
system
hands
imaginable
severe
exact
superhighways
activates
attention
taught
interconnected
subjected
signal
consequences

Original Text

Let's say that it would take you ten minutes to solve this puzzle. How long would it take if you received constant electric shocks to your hands? Longer, right? Because the pain would distract you from the task. Well, maybe not; it depends on how you handle pain. Some people are distracted by pain. It takes them longer to complete a task, and they do it less well. Other people use tasks to distract themselves from pain, and those people actually do the task faster and better when they're in pain than when they're not. Some people can just send their mind wandering to distract themselves from pain. How can different people be subjected to the exact same painful stimulus and yet experience the pain so differently? And why does this matter? First of all, what is pain? Pain is an unpleasant sensory and emotional experience, associated with actual or potential tissue damage. Pain is something we experience, so it's best measured by what you say it is. Pain has an intensity; you can describe it on a scale from zero, no pain, to ten, the most pain imaginable. But pain also has a character, like sharp, dull, burning, or aching. What exactly creates these perceptions of pain? Well, when you get hurt, special tissue damage-sensing nerve cells, called nociceptors, fire and send signals to the spinal cord and then up to the brain. Processing work gets done by cells called neurons and glia. This is your Grey matter. And brain superhighways carry information as electrical impulses from one area to another. This is your white matter. The superhighway that carries pain information from the spinal cord to the brain is our sensing pathway that ends in the cortex, a part of the brain that decides what to do with the pain signal. Another system of interconnected brain cells called the salience network decides what to pay attention to. Since pain can have serious consequences, the pain signal immediately activates the salience network. Now, you're paying attention. The brain also responds to the pain and has to cope with these pain signals. So, motor pathways are activated to take your hand off a hot stove, for example. But modulation networks are also activated that deliver endorphins and enkephalins, chemicals released when you're in pain or during extreme exercise, creating the runner's high. These chemical systems help regulate and reduce pain. All these networks and pathways work together to create your pain experience, to prevent further tissue damage, and help you to cope with pain. This system is similar for everyone, but the sensitivity and efficacy of these brain circuits determines how much you feel and cope with pain. This is why some people have greater pain than others and why some develop chronic pain that does not respond to treatment, while others respond well. Variability in pain sensitivities is not so different than all kinds of variability in responses to other stimuli. Like how some people love roller coasters, but other people suffer from terrible motion sickness. Why does it matter that there is variability in our pain brain circuits? Well, there are many treatments for pain, targeting different systems. For mild pain, non-prescription medications can act on cells where the pain signals start. Other stronger pain medicines and anesthetics work by reducing the activity in pain-sensing circuits or boosting our coping system, or endorphins. Some people can cope with pain using methods that involve distraction, relaxation, meditation, yoga, or strategies that can be taught, like cognitive behavioral therapy. For some people who suffer from severe chronic pain, that is pain that doesn't go away months after their injury should have healed, none of the regular treatments work. Traditionally, medical science has been about testing treatments on large groups to determine what would help a majority of patients. But this has usually left out some who didn't benefit from the treatment or experienced side effects. Now, new treatments that directly stimulate or block certain pain-sensing attention or modulation networks are being developed, along with ways to tailor them to individual patients, using tools like magnetic resonance imaging to map brain pathways. Figuring out how your brain responds to pain is the key to finding the best treatment for you. That's true personalized medicine.

Frequently Occurring Word Combinations

ngrams of length 2

collocation	frequency
spinal cord	2
cells called	2
pain signal	2
salience network	2
pain signals	2
modulation networks	2

Important Words

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