by Kelsey Cannon September 27, 2013, 04:30 am EDT
Rest, ice, compression, elevation, and genetics? Some people are predisposed to the development of chronic pain after an injury, according to a recent Northwestern University study.
Researchers took brain scans of people who experienced their first back injury and found that patients with specific brain abnormalities (small changes in the white matter that usually go unnoticed) were more likely to have pain linger than those without. After a year, another set of scans showed with 85 percent accuracy thaat those with the abnormalities were still haunted by their discomfort.
The research reports that this specific structural difference impacts the center of the brain responsible for emotional learning—amplifying the pain’s emotional significance and making injury harder to shake.
While you can’t change the makeup of your brain, there might be a loophole: A recent British study demonstrated that optimistic athletes are more likely to bounce back from an injury faster, due to reduced emotional susceptibility to getting sidelined.
Need to improve your outlook while you’re on the bench? Try listening to up-tempo music, which can boost your energy, according to Israeli scientists. Or try these 12 strategies to help you feel happier.
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