Pain is an unpleasant sensory and emotional experience. In short, it sucks. What can be helpful is adding a new focus on function. What if you can do more work with the same levels of pain? What if you can manage to participate in meaningful activities with some pain? Exercise is one way to help build back resilience and control. Graded exercise can help you do more things you enjoy and value in life. Professionals should not only ask how your pain is, but also how you are.