In earlier entries, I've written about some of the many possible causes of chronic pain. But even if the underlying cause of your pain is never identified, figuring out what type of pain you have can help determine the best way to treat it.

Let's go over the most common types of pain and what they feel like:

• Pain within a joint. This type of pain is called arthralgia (from "arthro," meaning joint, and "algia" meaning pain). The many types of arthritis (joint inflammation) explain most arthralgia, but they are not the only cause. Arthralgia can be sharp and stabbing or dull and aching. It can also be throbbing or constant.
• Muscle spasm. This is a very common type of pain. It's usually described as aching, cramping, or dull, but can sometimes be sharp (especially with certain activities or in certain positions). It can occur in the middle of a muscle or be centered on a joint (and so be confused with arthralgia).
• Tendonitis. This is due to irritation of tendons, which are the ends of muscles where they connect to bones. Bursas are fluid-filled sacs that cover and protect many bones and joints. Inflammation of a bursa is called bursitis. Pain from tendonitis and bursitis is often sharper than muscle spasm pain, and usually worsens when the painful area is touched.
• Swelling. The accumulation of fluid (swelling), either inside a joint or just generally in an injured area, often hurts. This is mainly due to the increased pressure that comes from the extra fluid. Sometimes the sensation feels like tightness, stiffness, or just plain pressure, but it can also be sharp, achy, or dull. Swelling can often accompany some type of inflammation, like arthritis or tendonitis, so there may be multiple different types of pain at the same time.
• Nerve pain. This type of pain, also called neuropathic pain, results from pressure, injury, or other damage to a nerve, and is pretty distinctive. It often "shoots" from one location to another, and it can be hard to tell if it is "shooting" up or down. Common descriptions of nerve pain include numb, tingly, electrical, hot, cold, or like an ice pick.
• Chest pain. The chest area includes joints, muscles, tendons, bones, and nerves, so this region of the body can harbor all of the above types of pain. Angina is pain that comes from coronary artery disease. Classic symptoms of angina include pressure or aching, with radiation to the back, jaw, or left arm. However, the pains caused by angina can vary greatly, so chest pain should always be evaluated promptly by a doctor. Chest pain can also be due to problems in the esophagus, stomach, and lungs, and (rarely) in a few other organs.
• Stomach pain. Like chest pain, stomach or abdominal pain is complex and can be difficult to figure out. Everything listed above, including just about all of the causes of chest pain, can also result in abdominal pain. In addition, there are about a dozen other organs in the abdominal area that can be sources of pain. But it gets even harder, because our brains aren't very good at figuring out where in the abdomen the pain actually is. Sometimes, for example, gall bladder pain is felt in a shoulder blade, and pancreas pain is often felt mostly in the back.

You may or may not be able to correctly diagnose your pain based on the general descriptions I've given. But describing what you're feeling as accurately as possible, keeping these ideas in mind, can be very helpful when you seek professional help for your pain.