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Posted 8/15/2014 9:50 PM (GMT 0)
How do you rate your pain? I think I am rating too low and my doc doesn't understand how much it hurts. She says zero is no pain and 10 is the worst pain I can imagine. Well, the worst pain I can imagine is how Louisville basketball player Kevin Ware broke his leg last year so bad that the bone snapped in half and popped out of the skin. That's pretty freaking awful. So when I say my pain is a 5, I mean it hurts half as bad as that. But I'm afraid when my doc hears "5" she thinks I mean it's like a mild headache.

And other day when I dropped a full garbage can on my toe that hurt like a *****, much more than my OA-afflicted shoulder hurts but that pain was gone in a few minutes while my shoulder has been hurting almost nonstop for six weeks. My toe hurt like an 8 while my shoulder hurts like a 5-6 but it isn't the same thing at all.

How can I get my doctor to understand my pain?
Posted 8/23/2014 1:28 AM (GMT 0)
Hi NewsGirl:

When you rate your pain you are telling your Doctor how you perceive your pain level to be. You don't compare pain to anyone else, it is about you only.

When you hurt yourself, like you did with the garbage can, and you feel pain, it is acute pain. Same as if you burn yourself cooking etc. It is still important, it is telling you that you have done something to hurt yourself. This type of pain is usually short lived. You might hold your toe for a bit or with a burn put some ointment on. The pain stops in time.

When you have pain that does not stop for weeks, months or years you have chronic pain. Chronic pain is harder to treat.

I am sure your Doctor does understand your pain as you are being treated. When you are asked next time to place a number on your pain you perhaps could think if it is better than the day before or worse. Can you function at all with the pain. What makes your pain worse. What, if anything makes the pain subside some.

I am just someone with Chronic Pain, not an authority on pain. I do hope get some help from your Doctor.

Loring

Osteoarthritis in multiple joints, Fibromyalgia, Neuralgia, Chronic Daily Headaches, I.B., Hard of Hearing...
Posted 8/27/2014 11:27 PM (GMT 0)
My back pain is about a four or five and is constant...no fun. Am conscious of it but try not to let it get me down type of pain. Have pain in other areas too.

PAIN IS.
Posted 8/28/2014 10:20 AM (GMT 0)
I have neck arthritis. I was diagnosed last March 19. I had neck xray and found 2 bone spurs on C4 and C5. I tried NSAID, it helps a lot but I am concern about the side effects. I rated my pain from 6-8.. headache, shoulder pain, knee pain and lower back pain. Pains that I have everyday. Thanks to myself, I never give up in trying new things to find a relieve of my pains. Now, I am 0-1 or 2 sometimes of pain scale. The good thing is NO NSAID at all..
Posted 9/10/2014 7:00 PM (GMT 0)
Hi caspy:

Welcome!

I am not the one who started the posts but read your reply. I have a whole lot of Osteoarthritis in my neck, which is causing the most pain. The other areas are mild. I have chronic headaches. I have trouble with my back sometimes and can overcome problems there. My lower back gave out this year and I had a hard time standing upright. I did get it back with exercise and pain cream. The headaches wear me down. I get nerve blocks. I am on NSAIDs. How do you manage with the headaches?

Loring
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