Thoughts on Pain

My job almost exclusively deals with pain. There are exceptions of course, but most people that walk through those clinic doors are dealing with some type of nagging physical pain. I often use the analogy that pain is our own built-in "check engine light" to alert us that something's wrong. We naturally hate pain and seek to avoid it at all costs, but it serves a purpose. Physical pain stops us in our tracks and focuses us to take notice and address the problem. Many like to take meds to deal with the symptoms and only come to our clinic as a last ditch effort if that doesn't help.
There is a borderline epidemic going on in regards to the over medicating of society. Somehow pain has, wrongly in my opinion, come to be seen as an evil thing that can and should be solved by meds. Anyone reading this knows that this can be overdone in both ends of the spectrum, so I feel that I need to make that point clear.
I think a lot of parallels can be made with how we deal with both physical and emotional pain. I guess I'm thinking of the movie "Garden State" and especially the ending scene between the main character and his father. We run from emotional conflict and pain and seek to rid ourselves of it instead of dealing with it.
The beautiful thing about Christ is that he has redeemed pain, turned it on its head, so that we can see it for what it is. Pain can teach us a lot about ourselves, our world, and our God. Pain makes us human, in a very strange sort of way, and allows us to be able to have sympathy and compassion for others.
Just some random thoughts I thought I'd throw down. Unfinished and unpolished, as usual.