Health Navigator New Zealand

Describing your pain accurately can help your doctor make the right diagnosis and develop the best treatment plan for you. It's fine to describe things in your own words – you don't need to use medical terms. Here’s some ideas of how you can do that.

Providing helpful information

Your healthcare provider may find the following details about your pain helpful.

When did the pain start?
Where do you feel the pain?
Is your pain is in one spot or spread out?
How does the pain feel? (See below for some words to help you describe it)
How severe is it?
Is the pain constant or does it come and go?
What makes it worse?
What makes it better?
How does your pain limit what you can do?
How often does the pain occur and how long does it last?

Some words to describe pain

Each person experiences pain differently. Describing your pain accurately is important as it can help your doctor make the right diagnosis and develop the best treatment plan for you. The following are examples of words that can help you describe the way your pain feels. You can use a combination of these words.

Word to describe your pain
aching cramping dull ache burning cold sensation electric shock nagging intense pins and needles	sharp shooting spasms splitting stabbing tender throbbing tingling tiring or exhausting

Some people find using descriptive sentences helpful such as 'like a red hot needle' or 'like a tight band'.

Using a pain scale

You may be asked to rate your pain using a scale from 0 to 10, where 0 out of 10 indicates that you have no pain at all, and 10 out of 10 means the worst possible pain. The middle (around 5) is moderate pain. You will be asked to choose a number that represents the intensity of your pain.

(Image source: Waitematā District Health Board)

You may be asked to rate your pain using the pain scale for your “best” day, “worst” day, and on an “average” day. This helps your doctor get a clear picture of how your pain level changes each day.

Sometimes people may have trouble describing their pain, this may apply to young children, people with intellectual difficulties, or where there are language barriers or communication difficulties. In these cases, your healthcare provider may use other signs to gauge pain such as crying, facial changes (such as grimace or frown), changes in sleeping or eating patterns, becoming quiet and/or withdrawn, and screaming or refusing to move.

Using a pain diary

Keeping a pain diary and tracking how your pain affects your daily activities can be a useful way to help you understand what makes your pain worse (called triggers), what helps to relieve your pain and pick up any patterns or trends in your pain experiences. It can also help you describe to your healthcare team how your pain has been affecting you over time.

While keeping a record of your pain is important, it is not necessary to document every moment that you experience pain. This could cause you to become too focused on your pain. Instead, it is recommended that you make an entry in your pain diary at certain times throughout the day, such as in the morning, at midday and before bed. This helps to maintain a regular record of events which will provide valuable information about your pain and its management.

Information to record in your pain diary	Description
Date and time	Make a note of the date and time you get the pain.
Describe your pain	Describe the location of your pain — where is it Whether it moves - does the pain remain in the same place or does it spread How long does it last What it feels like — see above for word to describe your pain
Rate the severity of your pain	You may find it helpful to rate your pain using a scale from 0 to 10, where 0 out of 10 indicates that you have no pain at all, and 10 out of 10 means the worst possible pain. The middle (around 5) is moderate pain. See above for using a pain scale.
Things that make your pain worse	Write down the things that make your pain worse — this could be activities you do, things you eat, etc.
What helps to relieve your pain	Make a note what helped relieve your pain and get through the day. This could be things like rest, pain relief medication, complementary and alternative therapies.
Anything else	Write down anything else that you notice about your pain or the pain relief that you use. For example, do you notice any side effects from your pain relief medication.