Every day, millions of people are living with pain that no scan can explain. They’re told it’s in their head. They’re handed pills. They’re left to navigate a healthcare system that often misunderstands them or ignores them altogether.
That’s why we made this film.
Why Pain, Misunderstood Had to Be Made
Pain, Misunderstood is more than a film, it’s a movement to challenge the way we think about pain. Here’s why Confluent Health partnered with leading voices in science and storytelling to bring it to life.
At Confluent Health, we believe movement is medicine—and knowledge is power. We’ve seen too many people suffer in silence or get stuck in cycles of ineffective treatments. We knew the science existed. We knew clinicians were out there doing things differently.
We just needed to tell that story.
“We wanted to show that there’s hope and that it starts with understanding how pain really works.”
– Stephen Clark, Chief Clinical Officer, Confluent Health
The Spark Behind the Film
It started with frustration. Our physical therapists and clinicians were seeing it again and again: patients with chronic pain getting bounced around the system, misdiagnosed, overmedicated, and overlooked. We knew that a better approach existed, and it was rooted in modern neuroscience and patient-centered care. But too few people knew about it.
So, we asked: What if we could tell the pain story in a new way? One that’s not clinical or dry, but emotional, visual, and deeply human with real human experiences.
A Marriage of Science and Story
We partnered with expert clinicians – many of which happen to be leading the latest research in PNE at Evidence in Motion, a member of the Confluent Health family, award-winning storytellers, and real patients who were brave enough to share their pain journey.
Every step of production from scripting to final cut was guided by one rule: honor the science, and focus the human experience. Pain is personal, after all.
The film includes:
- Leading researchers like Dr. Adriaan Louw, who have spent decades educating professionals on the neuroscience of pain
- Patients like Maddie Saur, who went from feeling helpless to hopeful through modern physical therapy and finding a provider they could trust
- Trusted providers like Cheyne Kulessa and Dr. Stephen Clark, who show what compassionate, evidence-based care looks like in practice, from elite athletes to everyday patients
“Initially when we set out to make a film about pain science, I was very fascinated with the experts and their research. As we looked for patient stories to tell, I didn’t realize how impactful and moving they would end up being. They’ve changed how I think about my own health.”
— Riley “Red” Clinton, Director and Partner, Boulder Media House, LLC
What we hope you’ll take away
Pain is real. And it’s treatable. But we need to change how we talk about it and treat it. This isn’t just a documentary. It’s a movement.
We want people living with pain to know:
- You’re not broken.
- Pain is real—and treatable.
- You deserve providers who understand the whole picture.
And we want clinicians, educators, and policymakers to see what’s possible when we shift the narrative—from one of fear and failure to one of function and freedom.
If you or someone you know is experiencing pain and wants to try Physical Therapy, find a clinic near you from the Confluent Health Family.
Share the film with someone who needs hope.
Let’s stop blaming people for their pain—and start showing them the path forward.