Pain that is unrelenting has many causes. The chronicity of a pain signal can become a cause in and of itself. In the treatment of a chronic pain pattern acupuncture addresses both the underlying cause of the pain as well as the pain signal. This process and response are slower because of the interplay between the injury signal of the tissue and the central nervous system memory of that signal. This approach is also what gives acupuncture its successes in the treatment of these problems.