I’ve lived with chronic pain for nearly 40 years. I’m speaking up today because the progress we’ve made is in danger—and I’m asking you to speak up with me.
When I was first diagnosed, the world of pain care looked very different. There were fewer options. Less understanding. A lot more silence. I was told to accept it, to be strong, and to carry on.
But over the years, something remarkable started to happen: research began to catch up to reality.
Non-opioid therapies, pain reprocessing, functional brain imaging, better diagnostic tools, and holistic models of care—these didn’t exist when my journey started. They exist now because people with pain told our stories and researchers had funding to listen, explore, and act.
Now, that momentum is under threat.
📉 What’s Happening
The 2025 federal budget proposal does not include dedicated funding for the HEAL Initiative, the single largest government program supporting chronic pain research. Without it, ongoing projects could be halted, promising studies left incomplete, and whole areas of pain science will stall out.
Let me be clear: this is not just a budget issue. This is a care issue. A dignity issue. A survival issue.
📊 Why It Matters
According to the CDC, 1 in 4 U.S. adults lives with chronic pain, and 1 in 11 suffers from high-impact chronic pain—pain that limits their ability to work, care for themselves, or engage in life.
(CDC, 2023)
The U.S. Pain Foundation reports that chronic pain is the leading cause of long-term disability in the United States and costs our economy up to $635 billion per year in medical expenses and lost productivity.
(U.S. Pain Foundation, 2024 Fact Sheet)
Despite these numbers, chronic pain receives only about 2% of the total NIH research budget.
That is unacceptable. And unsustainable.
💬 Why Your Story Matters
Pain research doesn’t happen in a vacuum. It moves forward when patients speak, when caregivers tell the truth, and when lawmakers hear directly from those impacted.
Your story—what you’ve lost, what’s helped, what you still need—can change minds in a way no number ever could.
I’ve seen it happen.
That’s why I’m asking you to speak up—especially now, when it matters most.
✊ What You Can Do (Today)
Congress is finalizing the 2025 budget right now. We must act before decisions are locked in.
Here’s how:
📞 1. Contact Your Members of Congress
Ask them to:
- Restore funding for the HEAL Initiative
- Increase NIH investment in chronic pain research
- Recognize chronic pain as the public health crisis it is
Use this simple tool to get started:
👉 https://uspainfoundation.org/get-involved/advocate/
✍️ 2. Tell Your Story
Write to your representatives. Post on social media. Share with your community. You don’t have to be a professional writer—you just need to be honest.
If you want help writing your message or finding the right words, reach out to me. I’ll help.
🧡 A Personal Note
This ask does not come from the American Chronic Pain Association or any organization. It comes from me—Tom Norris.
I live with pain. I’ve worked hard to stay connected to life, to advocate for others, and to remind people that we are not invisible.
We didn’t choose this path, but we have a say in how it continues.
If we don’t speak up now, we risk losing everything we’ve fought for. But if we stand together—loud, clear, and brave—we can protect what’s been built and demand a future where pain care reflects the truth of our lives.
Let’s raise our voices. Not just for ourselves—but for everyone still suffering in silence.
With deep respect and shared purpose,
Tom Norris
Facilitator, Los Angeles Chronic Pain Support
California Advocacy Team, U.S. Pain Foundation
jtomn482171@gmail.com, tomn482171@aol.com