The New Science of Pain (and What It Means for You)

The New Science of Pain (and What It Means for You)

May 14, 2026 · 47 min

About this episode

The episode explores the biopsychosocial model of pain and offers insights into managing pain effectively.

We're all going to experience pain in some form or another. Unfortunately, our long accepted model for what pain is — and how to treat it — has been wrong. Today, we're breaking down the biopsychosocial model of pain, which presented a recent change in how researchers, doctors, psychologists, and performers think about why we feel what we feel. We discuss an important distinction between hurt and harm from pain psychologist Rachel Zoffness, discuss why two people with identical injuries can have very different experiences of pain, present a taxonomy of three different types of discomfort, and give you a practical toolkit for dealing with your own pain (including a balloon metaphor that might change how you think about recovery). Get a free LMNT drink mix pack with any purchase:  drinkLMNT.com/Clay Click here for an AI-generated transcript (please excuse errors in grammar or spelling) - Subscribe to  The Growth Equation newsletter -  Join The Growth Equation Academy - If you are enjoying "excellence, actually," do us a huge favor: text your favorite episode to three people so they can enjoy it, too. Thanks! iTunes and Apple Podcasts Spotify Android PocketCasts See…

People in this episode

Hosts: Steve Magness, Brad Stulberg, Clay Skipper

Guest: Rachel Zoffness

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LMNT

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Organizations: The Growth Equation

Products: LMNT

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