Researcher

Why I study pain

Chronic pain.. did you know that 10-20% of the population is afflicted by it? That is one out of every five to ten people you meet. In other words, very common and a great cause of illness which in turn has both social and economic consequences. Yet, when it comes to the understanding of what actually happens in the body when somebody falls ill with chronic pain, we’re only starting to put the puzzle pieces together. Plato, quite poignantly, called pain “the suffering of the soul” and chronic pain is indeed something that not only affects the physical health of an individual but all aspects of life: social, mental and physical. 

I started my scientific endeavor as a research assistant at the centre for the study of pain at Uppsala University hospital in my 3rd year of medical school, in 2017. It gave me an insight into what the clinical management of chronic pain might look like as well as a first taste of what opportunities as well as obstacles a combined clinical and academic career might present with. However, I wouldn’t find the drive to look for a PhD project until after graduation in spring 2020. It was during a 2-week quarantine, while waiting to start a summer internship at the emergency ward on Åland Isles, that I finally made up my mind: I want to do a PhD and pain will be my field of research. More specifically, the pathophysiology (i.e. what happens in the body) of chronic pain was what interested me. 

Initially, my plan was to complete my medical training first and then look for a PhD programme, perhaps abroad. But things never develop the way we initially plan. I returned to Uppsala in autumn and met Eva Kosek, newly installed professor of clinical pain research in Uppsala, and sat down with her for a meeting to discuss research in general. A quick afternoon meeting turned into a 4-hour brainstorming session. We decided to plan a project and, when we realised we work rather well together, the question was: shouldn’t I start a PhD now instead of later? A few weeks passed until I had made up my mind, after which the process of admitting me as a PhD student started. Finally, I was accepted in May 2021 and look forward to delving deep into the physiology of chronic pain during the upcoming years.