Making the Most of Your Doctor's Appointment
The most frustrating component to chronic pain is the part where you don't know what is going wrong within your body. Getting a proper diagnoses can be a chaotic time in your life. Not only are you dealing with pain daily, but there is the unknown. The fact that most doctors don't have a good understanding of controlling pain makes matters much worse.
My journey to diagnoses took almost three years. In those three years there was pain every single day. I spent the better part of six months without any pain control whatsoever because quite frankly, my doctor at the time did not believe me.
My story is long and convoluted so I will go into more detail in further posts about it, however let me give you a couple of examples.
I had been seeing my doctor weekly for pain when one evening after the girls had gone to bed I had poured a much needed "hot" bath. When I put my foot in the tub I was surprised to find the water was lukewarm at best. Disappointed I decided to get in anyway. I put my other foot into the tub and was shocked to find the water was extremely hot. Confused, I got out again. Shaking my head in disbelief, I tried again with the same result. You can imagine my concern, I called my husband who assured me the water was in fact hot and looked at me with the same concern I was feeling. We decided a trip to the doctor the next day was in order.
The visit to the doctor was less than satisfying. I told her of my odd dilemma and she asked me to remove my socks. When she saw I was wearing polish on my toenails she gruffly said she was unable to examine me properly because I was wearing nail polish. And that was the end of that. Unbelievable, right? It happened.
The second most shocking thing that happened with that same doctor was a day I was there for severe pain again. I left with a prescription for a laxative.
Just to be clear, I was later diagnosed with a very rare spinal cord injury known to cause horrific pain and could if not treated causes , paralysis.
Obviously not everyone will have an experience as extreme as this one, but I do hear from many people that they feel their doctor does not believe/understand their pain.
I have learned a lot about clarity with doctors and how it can work to your advantage. It is important to be prepared. So I'll share some tips on how to do that.
1. Remember, you have about 8 minutes with the doctor.
2. Focus on your pain, do not bring anything else into the conversation until the pain has been dealt with completely. No comments such as "The planter's wart is back on my foot" as he's thinking about what to prescribe for your pain.
3. Be descriptive with the type of pain you are having. Jot it down while you are having the pain, because if you are not in pain at the doctor's office it is more difficult to be accurate. Is it burn, throbbing, sharp etc.
4. Be able to describe what makes it worse, and what makes it better in clear language. ie. When I lie down my leg is worse. Ice makes it better.
5. Explain what things are affected by your pain. ie. I can no longer walk the to the post office, most days. I did it daily before the pain.
6. Does your pain have a pattern? This is also important. Twenty years ago when this all started mine was like clockwork most days. I knew by 4pm it would have peaked. you can tell a lot about what is causing the pain and how to control it by details such as this.
7. Journal your pain. I know sounds depressing doesn't it? Trust me on this one, it will help and it is not meant for life. So when journaling your focus should be time of day, what you were doing previous to its most unwelcome arrival, and how long it lasts and what you did to help. This will help you and help your doctor.
8. Be brief, be concise.
9. Don't exaggerate, such as: "what makes it better"? "Nothing" "What is your pain score"? and you answer it is always a ten.
10.Finally, be firm, be clear and be your own advocate. I you feel your doctor isn't doing everything you feel is needed ask to see a specialist in the most respectful way.
So there you have some tips I have learned and I will say over the years I have made a lot of mistakes but I have a doctor I trust now and one that trusts me. He often compliments me on how organized I am and likes the lists I come prepared with.
My journey to diagnoses took almost three years. In those three years there was pain every single day. I spent the better part of six months without any pain control whatsoever because quite frankly, my doctor at the time did not believe me.
My story is long and convoluted so I will go into more detail in further posts about it, however let me give you a couple of examples.
I had been seeing my doctor weekly for pain when one evening after the girls had gone to bed I had poured a much needed "hot" bath. When I put my foot in the tub I was surprised to find the water was lukewarm at best. Disappointed I decided to get in anyway. I put my other foot into the tub and was shocked to find the water was extremely hot. Confused, I got out again. Shaking my head in disbelief, I tried again with the same result. You can imagine my concern, I called my husband who assured me the water was in fact hot and looked at me with the same concern I was feeling. We decided a trip to the doctor the next day was in order.
The visit to the doctor was less than satisfying. I told her of my odd dilemma and she asked me to remove my socks. When she saw I was wearing polish on my toenails she gruffly said she was unable to examine me properly because I was wearing nail polish. And that was the end of that. Unbelievable, right? It happened.
The second most shocking thing that happened with that same doctor was a day I was there for severe pain again. I left with a prescription for a laxative.
Just to be clear, I was later diagnosed with a very rare spinal cord injury known to cause horrific pain and could if not treated causes , paralysis.
Obviously not everyone will have an experience as extreme as this one, but I do hear from many people that they feel their doctor does not believe/understand their pain.
I have learned a lot about clarity with doctors and how it can work to your advantage. It is important to be prepared. So I'll share some tips on how to do that.
1. Remember, you have about 8 minutes with the doctor.
2. Focus on your pain, do not bring anything else into the conversation until the pain has been dealt with completely. No comments such as "The planter's wart is back on my foot" as he's thinking about what to prescribe for your pain.
3. Be descriptive with the type of pain you are having. Jot it down while you are having the pain, because if you are not in pain at the doctor's office it is more difficult to be accurate. Is it burn, throbbing, sharp etc.
4. Be able to describe what makes it worse, and what makes it better in clear language. ie. When I lie down my leg is worse. Ice makes it better.
5. Explain what things are affected by your pain. ie. I can no longer walk the to the post office, most days. I did it daily before the pain.
6. Does your pain have a pattern? This is also important. Twenty years ago when this all started mine was like clockwork most days. I knew by 4pm it would have peaked. you can tell a lot about what is causing the pain and how to control it by details such as this.
7. Journal your pain. I know sounds depressing doesn't it? Trust me on this one, it will help and it is not meant for life. So when journaling your focus should be time of day, what you were doing previous to its most unwelcome arrival, and how long it lasts and what you did to help. This will help you and help your doctor.
8. Be brief, be concise.
9. Don't exaggerate, such as: "what makes it better"? "Nothing" "What is your pain score"? and you answer it is always a ten.
10.Finally, be firm, be clear and be your own advocate. I you feel your doctor isn't doing everything you feel is needed ask to see a specialist in the most respectful way.
So there you have some tips I have learned and I will say over the years I have made a lot of mistakes but I have a doctor I trust now and one that trusts me. He often compliments me on how organized I am and likes the lists I come prepared with.
