Pain can affect how you move, rest, think and connect with others. Whether brief or ongoing, it can quietly shape daily life in difficult ways. You don’t have to manage it alone. Pain management doctors may help find the cause and offer ways to relieve it, so you can move toward feeling better and doing more of what matters to you.

What Is Pain Management? 

Pain management is a medical approach that helps people find relief from pain and improve their feelings and functions. The goal isn't always to completely eliminate pain. Often, it's about helping people feel more comfortable, move better and do more in their daily lives.

Pain is the body’s way of signaling that something may be wrong. It’s not just a physical feeling, as it may also affect emotions. Pain may feel different from person to person. It may be sharp, dull, burning, throbbing or tingling. Some pain may come and go. Other times, it stays for a long time. In some cases, the cause is clear, such as an injury or surgery. In other cases, pain continues long after the body has healed or starts without a known reason. 

There are different patterns of pain:

• Acute pain begins suddenly and usually goes away as the body recovers.
• Chronic pain lasts for more than three months and can continue even after the original problem has healed.
• Episodic pain happens off and on, sometimes without a clear pattern.

Pain is also described based on where it starts:

• Nociceptive pain comes from damaged or inflamed body tissue, like a sprain or an infected cut.
• Neuropathic pain happens when nerves are injured or not working properly. This pain often feels like burning, shooting or electric shocks.
• Nociplastic pain occurs when the nervous system processes pain in a different way, even when there’s no clear injury. Fibromyalgia is one example.

Pain involves many parts of the body. The nervous system carries pain signals to the brain. Over time, repeated pain signals may make the nerves more sensitive. This can lead to a stronger reaction to things that wouldn’t normally hurt, like light touch. That process is called sensitization.

Pain is also influenced by a person’s mood, stress level, thoughts and life experiences. Anxiety, depression or past trauma can all affect how pain is felt and how much it disrupts daily life.

Because pain is complex, managing it often takes a team approach. Treatment may include pain management medication, physical therapy, counseling or minimally invasive treatments, such as interventional pain management procedures tailored to the person’s needs and goals.

Why Is My Doctor Sending Me to Pain Management? 

Your doctor may refer you to a pain management doctor when pain is lasting longer than expected, is difficult to treat or is interfering with your daily life. Pain management doctors are trained to evaluate different types of pain and offer a range of treatments beyond basic care.

Pain management providers work with people who have many kinds of pain. This includes pain that stays after surgery or an injury, pain linked to long-term conditions like arthritis or nerve damage or pain that doesn’t have a clear cause. Their goal is to help reduce the impact of pain and help you move, rest and function better.

Not all pain needs a doctor right away, but it’s a good idea to check with your doctor if:

• Your pain lasts more than a few weeks
• It keeps coming back
• It gets in the way of daily tasks like walking, sleeping or working
• It causes stress, anxiety or low mood
• Over-the-counter treatments aren’t helping

What Does a Pain Management Doctor Do? 

A pain management doctor is a medical provider who focuses on diagnosing and treating different kinds of pain. Their goal is to help reduce the impact pain has on your life and improve how well you can function.

At your first visit, the doctor will ask questions to understand your pain. They’ll want to know how long you’ve been in pain, where you feel it, what it feels like (for example, burning, throbbing or aching) and how it affects your daily life.

They may also ask about your sleep, mood, activity levels and any treatments you’ve already tried. If needed, the doctor might refer you for a mental health evaluation, since things like stress, depression or anxiety can influence how pain is felt.

A physical exam is usually done, and the doctor may watch how you move, test your reflexes or check for areas of tenderness. If more information is needed, they may order tests like:

• Imaging tests such as MRI or CT scans
• Nerve conduction studies or electromyography (EMG) to check for nerve or muscle issues
• Lab tests to look for signs of infection, inflammation or other medical conditions
• Pain questionnaires or assessments to better understand how pain is affecting your life

What Treatments Can They Offer? 

Pain management doctors may offer different treatment options depending on your condition and needs. These treatments may be used on their own or combined as part of a broader plan. Here are some examples:

Nonsurgical Treatments

• Medications, such as:
  • Acetaminophen or nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs)
  • Antidepressants or antiseizure medications for nerve pain
  • Topical creams, patches or muscle relaxers
• Physical therapy, to help with movement and strength
• Cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) and other psychological approaches to support emotional well-being and coping

Minimally Invasive Procedures or interventional pain management

• Injections, including nerve blocks or epidural steroid injections and trigger point injections
• Radiofrequency ablation, which uses heat to target pain nerves
• Spinal cord stimulation, where small devices are placed to interrupt pain signals
• Intradiscal procedures, such as intradiscal electrothermal therapy (IDET), biacuplasty and percutaneous laser disc decompression (PLDD), which offer minimally invasive alternatives to surgery for disc-related pain
• Intrathecal drug delivery, an implantable system that delivers medication directly to the spinal fluid, often used for cancer pain when other methods are not effective
• Vertebroplasty and kyphoplasty, performed to help stabilize painful vertebral fractures caused by conditions like osteoporosis
• Peripheral nerve stimulation, where small devices are placed near nerves to manage chronic or post-surgical pain with minimal need for opioid pain medications
• Via Disc, a biologic therapy using a disc allograft (VIADISC™ NP) to help reduce pain and improve function in patients with degenerative disc disease

If surgery is needed, your pain management doctor may refer you to another appropriate doctor. Surgery is usually considered when other options haven’t worked, and there’s a clear issue that may be improved with an operation.

Advanced pain management often involves a team approach. Your pain management care provider may work closely with your primary care doctor, physical therapist, mental health provider and other medical providers. Together, they focus on finding a safe, realistic path forward for chronic pain treatment.

Find a Pain Management Doctor

At Piedmont Physician Network in Rock Hill, SC and Fort Mill, SC, our team is here to help you manage pain with care that focuses on your individual needs. Our pain care providers take time to understand your condition and work closely with you to create a treatment plan that fits your goals and daily life.

Whether you’re dealing with pain from an injury, a chronic condition or something that hasn’t yet been diagnosed, we offer support through a wide range of treatment options. From accurate diagnosis to guidance on long-term management, our goal is to help you move toward better function and quality of life. If pain is making it harder to do the things you need or want to do, we’re here to help.