#175: Multiple Sclerosis and Pain. How Exercise and Physical Activity Can Help

Pain is one of the most common and life-impacting symptoms in multiple sclerosis. In this episode, Nele talks with Rasmus Christian Jungersen, PhD student at the Department of Exercise Biology at Aarhus University in Denmark, about the different types of MS pain and how exercise and physical activity may help.

Rasmus explains the difference between neuropathic pain, nociceptive pain, spasticity-related pain, headaches, and mixed pain types. He also challenges one of the most common myths: chronic pain does not automatically mean ongoing tissue damage, and carefully adapted movement does not usually make pain worse in the long term.

The conversation offers realistic, hopeful guidance for people with MS who want to move more, reduce fear of exercise, and improve quality of life despite pain.

Read the full blog article here: https://ms-perspektive.com/175-rasmus/

What to expect in this episode

• Why pain is so common in multiple sclerosis
• The difference between neuropathic, nociceptive, musculoskeletal, and spasticity-related pain
• Why many people with MS experience more than one type of pain
• What central sensitization, neuroinflammation, and pain interference mean
• Why pain intensity is not the same as the impact pain has on daily life
• How exercise may help reduce pain biologically and psychologically
• Why light to moderate activity can already be helpful
• Why the best exercise is often the one you can sustain
• How to start safely and build up gradually
• Why temporary pain increase during or after exercise is not always a danger signal
• How exercise can be adapted for mobility limitations or disability
• Why a holistic approach to pain management is important
• What the EXpain project aims to investigate

Scientific background mentioned in the article

The blog article includes further reading on:

• Mechanism-based classification of pain in MS, including trigeminal neuralgia, Lhermitte's phenomenon, spasticity pain, musculoskeletal pain, migraine, and treatment-induced pain
• Pain types and lived experiences in people with MS, including dysesthetic extremity pain and spasticity-associated pain
• Exercise interventions for pain reduction in people with MS
• Possible mechanisms of exercise in chronic pain, including inflammation, oxidative stress, neuroplasticity, and descending pain modulation
• Exercise as a treatment option for chronic musculoskeletal pain
• The EXpain project, Rasmus' current research on exercise as a non-pharmacological pain treatment in MS

Previous related episode:
Holistic approach for pain management

Contact

• Rasmus C. Jungersen on PubMed
• LinkedIn profile

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See you soon and try to make the best out of your life,
Nele

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