10/27/2025
A different view on pain..
Repeat after me—Pain Is More Than Just Nerves.
For years and years and years and years...a long time indeed - I have been pushing for the understanding that pain is not only neurological but also immunological too!
In fact there is ALOT of information out there on this topic- yet it seems to be poo-pooed by a lot of therapists and academics.
Please understand-the immune system also plays a huge role in pain. In fact nerves and immune cells are constantly talking to each other — and sometimes that conversation makes pain worse or keeps it hanging around far too long.
When you get hurt, your immune system sends in “first responder” cells. They release chemicals to protect the area and begin healing. Those same chemicals also open blood vessels, bringing more blood — that’s why the area looks red and feels hot.They make blood vessels leaky, so fluid spills into the tissue — that’s the swelling, and they turn nociceptors up, so even light touch or mild heat can hurt.
This is the body’s way of protecting itself, but it also explains why inflamed tissue feels so sensitive.
Of course the process doesn’t stop there. In the spinal cord and brain, helper cells called glia can crank up the volume on pain signals. Sometimes they keep doing this long after the injury is healed, which is one of the main reasons pain can become chronic.
Here’s the interesting part: the immune system can make pain worse or make it better. Some cells turn up inflammation and sensitivity and others act like peacekeepers, releasing calming chemicals that settle things down.
Whether pain fades or lingers depends on which side is winning that tug of war.
This is a two-way street where immune chemicals make nerves more sensitive, and nerves send signals that activate more immune cells.
If nothing interrupts this back-and-forth, the cycle just keeps feeding itself and pain continues.
If pain is both a nerve problem and an immune problem, then treatment has to address both. This means we have to try and block pain-driving chemicals, calm the nervous system’s “pain amplifiers”, and supporting the immune system’s natural peacekeepers.
Now most manual therapies focus mainly on muscles, fascia, or joints — trying to loosen tissue or increase mobility. While those approaches can feel good, they don’t always interrupt the neuroimmune loop that drives pain.
RAPID is different. We use short, intense, and highly targeted inputs at fascial and nerve interfaces. This approach directly engages the nervous system and influences the immune response at the same time. The result? Pain-driving chemicals are dialed down, hypersensitive nerves reset, and immune cells shift toward healing instead of inflammation.
That’s why RAPID often works faster and lasts longer- it’s not just treating tissue, it’s targeting the neuroimmune system where pain truly begins.
Bottom line- pain isn’t just about tight muscles or irritated nerves — it’s about how the nervous and immune systems interact. By calming that loop, we give the body a chance to reset. That’s exactly what RAPID does differently than most therapies — and why clients often feel relief in minutes instead of weeks.
Want to read more? ⬇️
-Lim SY, Kam PCA. "Neuroimmune mechanisms of pain: Basic science and potential therapeutic modulators."
-Ren K and Dubner R. "Interactions between the immune and nervous systems in pain."
-Grace PM, Hutchinson MR, Maier SF, Watkins LR. "Pathological pain and the neuroimmune interface."
-Ji RR, Chamessian A, Zhang Y-Q. "Pain regulation by non-neuronal cells and inflammation."
-Pinho-Ribeiro FA, Verri WA Jr, Chiu IM. "Nociceptor Sensory Neuron-Immune Interactions in Pain and Inflammation."
-Ji RR, Berta T, Nedergaard M. "Glia and pain: Is chronic pain a gliopathy?"
-Baral P, Umans BD, Li L, et al. "Nociceptor immune interactions."
-Calvo M, Dawes JM, Bennett DL. "The role of the immune system in the generation of neuropathic pain."
-Ji R-R, Nackley A, Huh Y, Terrando N, Maixner W. "Neuroinflammation and central sensitization in chronic and widespread pain."
-Chen O, Donnelly CR, Ji RR. "Regulation of pain by neuro-immune interactions between macrophages and nociceptor sensory neurons."
