154. Early traumatic experiences

This episode is produced in partnership with the British Pain Society: all interviews were recorded at their 2026 Annual Scientific Meeting.

This episode features discussion of trauma and conflict that some listeners may find distressing.

‘The last injury report by Save the Children stated 50,000 casualties in children from 2020 to 2025, and we think that’s an underestimation…’

Can mental and physical trauma in childhood lead to a lifetime of pain?

‘If you’re exposed to things like abuse, neglect and various household challenges, and external challenges like war and displacement, you might be more likely to develop poor health…’

‘One of the things that’s come out, particularly within our Ukraine collaborators, is that their children have high pain scores, regardless of injury severity and regardless of pain management…’

What are the lessons from history that we ignore at our peril?

‘We asked, was there anything they wanted to tell us about their experiences? A number of them wrote about the Second World War. Some of them, exactly as you say, said we just got on with it, and they were very stoic, but there were others who…’

And what can be done?

‘Some say, well, you can’t avoid adversity happening, and that is true. My answer to that is if you can intervene after some adversity, then…’

Listen now to find out.

Featuring:

• Tim Hales, Professor of Anaesthesia at the University of Dundee and Principal Investigator of the Consortium Against Pain Inequality (CAPE)

• Gary Macfarlane, Professor of Epidemiology at the University of Aberdeen and a member of CAPE

• Caitlin Edgar, postdoctoral researcher at Imperial College London’s Centre for Paediatric Blast Injury Studies 

• Anna Gibby, doctoral researcher at the University of Bath’s Centre for Pain Research 

• Vanda White, doctoral researcher at the University of Bath’s Centre for Pain Research