The saying "men are from Mars and women are from Venus" may ring true in some instances, but when it comes to chronic pain, are the 2 sexes really that different?

Chronic pain is a significant health issue that is estimated to cost approximately $100 billion in the United States each year, in health care costs, lost income and lost productivity.  Both men and women experience chronic pain, but there are many questions and misperceptions when it comes to gender and chronic pain.

A new national survey suggests that women and men do perceive and experience chronic pain differently:
——-Three in 4 women (7 ) believe women have a higher tolerance for pain, while just 1 in 3 men (32 ) think women have a higher tolerance
——-Nearly half of women (4 ) think men are taken more seriously when they visit health care providers about chronic pain
——-Nearly twice as many women than men (59 vs 36%) feel they are considered a "complainer" because of their chronic pain

New Educational Initiative Decodes Gender Differences and Chronic Pain
——-The survey was conducted by HealthyWomen (formerly the National Women's Health Resource Center), the leading independent health information source for women, which today launched a new educational campaign on the gender gap in chronic pain.
——-The "She Said, He Said: Understanding Gender and Pain" program aims to help women better understand and manage the chronic pain of Fibromyalgia, one of the most common chronic, widespread pain conditions in the United States, affecting mostly women.

Program resources and tools, including a series of articles and videos, are available for download at http://www.HealthyWomen.org.