During the worst of PN, my pain was pretty much 24/7 unless I could get to sleep for a few hours. It was somewhat dependent on position and activity levels. Traveling made it worse. My understanding is that for many people with entrapment the pain is somewhat dependent on position with sitting being the worst. I do remember several forum members mentioning temperature as a factor but I don't know if they had an entrapment or just neuralgia. Weather didn't change my pain levels at all.
I wouldn't expect the nerve to regenerate completely during sleep but maybe it's kind of like tying a rubber band around your wrist. Your hand/wrist would get uncomfortable after awhile but if you took the rubber band off, then the pain would subside. If you put it back on, the discomfort would return. I can see how the nerve being compressed in certain positions could be similar -- or maybe irritated with certain activities. A rubber band is definitely not the exact same mechanism as nerve pain but I think you can get the idea of what I'm saying.
I think you are right though Ezer, that there can also be a psycho-physiological component with some people. I don't think you can ever completely separate pain from emotions but the question arises as to whether the pain is causing the emotions or the emotions are causing the pain, or if there is a bit of both going on and the percentage of each is probably different in everyone.
Alan, regarding nerve pain, I think the type of pain can vary, depending on which nerve fibers are affected. Also, I think it is dependent on the extent of damage. For instance, I went through stages in my PN journey when the pain was initially mild and more of an itchy feeling. This was at the beginning before the pain become severe and then again towards the end of the healing process.
Here's an interesting thread where lots of people describe having pain from nerve damage.
http://www.healthcentral.com/chronic-pa ... ve-damage/
The mechanism of pain is really a complex topic. For an excellent scientific article on the subject you might want to check out this link:
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK32659/
Violet
PNE since 2002. Started from weightlifting. PNE surgery from Dr. Bautrant, Oct 2004. Pain now is usually a 0 and I can sit for hours on certain chairs. No longer take medication for PNE. Can work full time and do "The Firm" exercise program. 99% cured from PGAD. PNE surgery was right for me but it might not be for you. Do your research.