Women and Men Face Off on Who Can Stand the Pain

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Women and men have opposing views on many topics, and it turns out that they also have different takes on chronic pain. According to a new survey of women and men with chronic pain released today by the nonprofit HealthyWomen, the leading independent health information source for women, women are more than twice as likely as men to believe that women have a higher tolerance for pain (76% versus 32%, respectively). In addition, almost twice as many women as men with chronic pain (59% of women vs. 36% of men) feel they are considered to be "complainers" because of their chronic pain.

The survey (of which 16% of participants had fibromyalgia) is part of a new educational campaign - "She Said, He Said: Understanding Gender and Pain" - launched today by HealthyWomen (formerly the National Women's Health Resource Center). The initiative is supported through a sponsorship by Pfizer Inc. The campaign is designed to help women and men better understand and manage fibromyalgia, one of the most common chronic, widespread pain conditions in the U.S., affecting more than 5 million Americans, mostly women. The campaign offers comprehensive resources including a series of articles, expert answers, first person perspectives, videos and tips on living with fibromyalgia, all available at www.HealthyWomen.org.

Produced for Healthy Women