Pain
How do people describe pain?
Many people have difficulty describing
their pain, but often use words like "ache", "stabbing'
, throbbing", or "constant".
What happens when you experience pain?
Pain can affect you in many ways. It can keep you from
being active, sleeping well, enjoying family and friends,
and eating. Pain can also make you feel afraid or depressed.
What causes pain?
You may experience pain after your prostate surgery
or radiation therapy. Pain that results from your treatment
can be caused by many things and should always be evaluated
by your doctor. Some pain is expected when recovering
from surgery, but even mild pain should be kept under
control so that it doesn't lead to other problems.
How do people cope with pain?
- Biofeedback
- Breathing and relaxation
- Imagery
- Massage, pressure, vibration
- Transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS)
- Distraction
- Hot or cold packs
- Rest
What can family or significant others do to help with
pain?
Family members usually know when you are having pain
(even if you don't tell them). They often are grateful
for the opportunity to assist you with remembering your
pain medicine or giving you some of the non-drug treatments
(such as massage, relaxation, distraction, and imagery).
How can I talk with my partner about my pain?
- Be open and honest with your partner.
- Fully and calmly discuss your pain as well as your
thoughts, feelings, and ideas.
- Ask for your partner's thoughts, feelings, and ideas.
Who can I call to get more information?
- Ask your doctor or nurse for a copy of the
Pain Management booklet from the Agency for Health Care
and Policy Research (AHCPR).
- Contact the American Cancer Society at
http://www.cancer.org/.
How should pain be communicated to your health care
team?
The key to getting the best pain relief is talking with
your doctor and nurse about your pain. They will want to
know how much pain you feel, where it is, and what it feels
like. Answering the questions below may help you describe
your pain. You may wish to write your answers in the space
after each question.
Where is the pain?
You may have pain in more than one place. Be sure to
list all of the painful areas.
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What does the pain feel like?
Does it ache? Throb? Burn? Tingle? You may wish
to use other words to describe your pain.
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How bad (or intense) is the pain?
You can also use a number scale to rate your pain from
0 to 10: 0 means no pain and 10 means the worst possible
pain. You may want to use the attached Pain Intensity
Scale to put a number to your pain. You can also describe
your pain with words like none, mild, moderate, severe,
or worst possible pain.
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What makes the pain better or worse?
You may have already found ways to make your pain feel
better. For example, using heat or cold, or taking certain
medicines. You may have also found that sitting or lying
in certain positions or doing some activities affects
the pain.
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If you are being treated for pain now, how well is the
treatment working?
You may want to describe how well the treatment is working
by saying how much of the pain is relieved: all, almost
all, none, etc.
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Has the pain changed?
You may notice that your pain changes over time. It may
get better or worse, or it can feel different. For example,
the pain may have been a dull ache at first and has changed
to a tingle. It is important to report changes in your
pain. Changes in pain do not mean that the cancer has
come back or grown. Describe how the pain was before and
how it is now.
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