Participants needed for our study on pain and weight loss surgery.
See if you qualifyClick a year to follow the lab’s path.
The I-TRIP Lab opened in 2017 at NYU Steinhardt. Dr. Ericka N. Merriwether founded it with one key question: why does chronic pain affect some communities so much more than others?
In her clinical work, she saw the same thing over and over. People from marginalized communities whose muscle and joint pain was missed or dismissed. She went into research to change that.
DPT, Mayo Clinic. PhD in Movement Science, Washington University in St. Louis. Postdoctoral training in Pain Neuroscience, University of Iowa.
The lab started by studying chronic widespread pain and its link to body weight. Over time, the focus grew.
We saw that pain doesn't happen in a vacuum. Your neighborhood matters. The discrimination you face matters. Your access to care matters. All of it shows up in your pain. And in how you move.
By 2021, our research showed direct links between racial and weight discrimination and higher pain levels.
By 2023, we had federal funding to study pain after bariatric surgery in Black and Hispanic/Latino adults. We also opened a new line of research: chronic pain in people with blindness and low vision.
Today, the I-TRIP Lab works at the crossroads of pain research, movement science, and health equity.
The I-TRIP Lab opened in 2017 at NYU Steinhardt. Dr. Ericka N. Merriwether founded it with one key question: why does chronic pain affect some communities so much more than others?
In her clinical work, she saw the same thing over and over. People from marginalized communities whose muscle and joint pain was missed or dismissed. She went into research to change that.
DPT, Mayo Clinic. PhD in Movement Science, Washington University in St. Louis. Postdoctoral training in Pain Neuroscience, University of Iowa.
The lab started by studying chronic widespread pain and its link to body weight. Over time, the focus grew.
We saw that pain doesn’t happen in a vacuum. Your neighborhood matters. The discrimination you face matters. Your access to care matters. All of it shows up in your pain. And in how you move.
By 2021, our research showed direct links between racial and weight discrimination and higher pain levels.
By 2023, we had federal funding to study pain after bariatric surgery in Black and Hispanic/Latino adults. We also opened a new line of research: chronic pain in people with blindness and low vision.
Today, the I-TRIP Lab works at the crossroads of pain research, movement science, and health equity.
Every study we run starts with equity built in. Not added later.
That means we recruit people from the communities most affected by chronic pain. We use research tools designed to detect bias. We measure how pain affects real movement and real life. And we make sure that research reaches the people it was built to serve.
We also build spaces where those communities feel safe, heard, and protected. Because community is not just a goal. It is how we do the work.
Not just for our academic peers. For patients, caregivers, and communities who deserve to know what the science says about their health.
That’s our work. We’re glad you found us.
Founder and Principal Investigator, I-TRIP Lab
Assistant Professor of Physical Therapy and Medicine
NYU Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development
NYU Grossman School of Medicine
Dr. Ericka N. Merriwether is a physical therapist, movement scientist, and pain researcher. Her work focuses on why chronic musculoskeletal pain affects marginalized communities more than others. And what we can do about it.
She leads federally funded research on widespread pain in racially and ethnically diverse populations. She looks for culturally appropriate, personalized approaches to pain treatment. Her work has appeared in The Journal of Pain and BMC Public Health.
Dr. Merriwether is a member of the Antiracism Coalition in Pain Research (ACTION-PR). She earned her DPT from Mayo Clinic, her PhD from Washington University in St. Louis, and completed postdoctoral training in Pain Neuroscience at the University of Iowa.
