Pain
By Bjarne Lühr Hansen PhD, MD and Philipp Skafte-Holm MD, Mentor Institute
Ignorance about children’s pains has literally hurt many children. All children, including new-borns, feel pain. Assertions about children’s nerves not being sufficiently developed to be able to feel pain belong in the past.
Often it can be difficult to locate the pain. The infant cannot tell their parents where it hurts and small children often mislead their parents by complaining about stomach pains no matter the ill and by always answering leading questions the same way: ‘does your ears hurt? Yes they do’. It is a little easier with school children.
Most children experience pain often and in an early age when growing up in connection with falling, blows, abrasions, wounds, burns, injections by vaccinations and dentistry. However, also many infections (influenza, inflammation of the middle ear, tonsillitis) cause pain. It is common that parents often do not treat these pains properly because they do not have sufficient knowledge about what can cause pain with their children.
Recurring pain with children poses a particular problem. Two typical examples are recurring cases of stomach-aches and headaches. Children suffering from this should be looked at by a doctor. If the child gains weight, eats and plays like other children when it has no pain the cause is most often nerves or very rarely foodstuff allergy. Also recurring headaches can be connected to nerves but migraine is also a possibility. Migraine appears as headache, desire to avoid the light and vomiting typically with children of 5 to 8 years old.