JAKARTA - Women take longer to overcome pain than men. Historically, this is associated with women not being as strong as men.
However, recent research suggests that the reason is not true. It was found that men and women do have different immune system reactions to pain, which makes men more quickly overcome pain than women.
"Our findings show that when pain lasts longer in women. It is real and has a biological basis. It is not because women are softer or more emotional," said Geoffroy Laumet, PhD, quoted from Women's Health, Monday, March 2, 2026.
In this study, Laumet and researchers used data from the existing AURORA longitudinal study, which featured 245 people who had experienced traumatic injuries such as car accidents.
The researchers found that although men and women had almost the same level of pain on the day they were injured, the pain healed faster over three months in men than in women.
This is influenced by various factors, especially hormones that are different between women and men. In women, estrogen and progesterone affect pain processing and even increase pain sensitivity.
"This is why many women report worsening migraines, pelvic pain, or musculoskeletal pain at certain times of the month," explains pain management specialist Harrison Linder, MD.
Meanwhile, in men, the main hormone is testosterone, which may have protection against pain processing. In addition, genetic factors also play a role in the process of men and women in overcoming the pain experienced.
The process of overcoming pain is also influenced by social and environmental factors. Men tend to be expected not to reveal their pain too much, so that recovery is considered to take place quickly.
"Cultural expectations often encourage men to underreport pain, and women to express it more openly," says pain management specialist Shravani Durbhakula, MD.
The English, Chinese, Japanese, Arabic, and French versions are automatically generated by the AI. So there may still be inaccuracies in translating, please always see Indonesian as our main language. (system supported by DigitalSiber.id)
