Can the brain feel pain?

No! The brain itself doesn’t feel pain regardless of its billions of neurons (cells that transmit sensory and other information).

Neuroscience studies have found sensory nerve fibers called nociceptors that signal the sensation of pain. Nociceptors are specialized nerve fibers that detect tissue damage and send those signals to the brain for processing. But there are no nociceptors (or pain receptors) located in brain tissue. Therefore, if a doctor operate on your brain you wouldn’t feel pain during the surgery because the brain itself isn’t registering the incision.

This doesn’t mean you wouldn’t feel anything during brain surgery. There are nociceptors in areas like meninges (the protective membranes that surround the brain) and blood vessels that can be activated during surgery. This can cause pain so doctors typically use anesthesia to block these pain signals before operating on the brain.

This raises a big question. If the brain cannot feel pain, then how do we get headaches? Let’s find out.

How do we get headaches?

Simple answer: While the brain itself doesn’t feel pain, its surrounding structures can cause headaches.

Headaches are another example of how we can feel pain even though the brain itself isn’t hurting. Headaches arise from pain signals coming from other structures in the head and neck that do have pain receptors. So while the brain itself doesn’t feel pain, headaches arise from issues in nearby structures that can signal pain and the brain can process those pain signals.

For example: Headaches arise from pain signals coming from nerve fibers in skin, muscles and bones which are then relayed to the spinal cord and up to the brain to be processed and experienced as pain.

References

• Brain Institute: https://www.ohsu.edu/brain-institute/understanding-headaches-and-migraines
• Brain Facts: If the brain can’t feel pain, why do I get headaches? (brainfacts.org)
• BBC Science Focus: If the brain has no pain receptors, why do I get headaches? – BBC Science Focus Magazine
• https://www.kingshealthpartners.org/latest/how-pain-looks-brain