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Pain 101

Summary

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Pain can be harmful. 

Pain does not have to be a part of your life. It is a medical condition that can and should be treated.

Pain can't be measured objectively. Instead, doctors have to rely on you to describe your pain. This involves: 

  • The type of pain
  • The severity (how much it hurts)
  • When it hurts and for how long
  • What causes the pain if you can pinpoint a cause or causes.

Survivorship A to Z can help you keep track of your pain with our Symptoms Diary (see "To Learn More"). When you're ready to see a doctor, you can push a button and turn the Diary into an easy-to-read graph.

Pain treatment can involve medications as well as other techniques which do not rely on medications. Various methods can be used at the same time. One method of helping people live with the emotional side of chronic pain is to live with a pet. The pet doesn't have to be a dog or cat.

There are a series of roadblocks that prevent adequate pain treatment. Understanding what they are can help overcome them as you work with your doctor or other health care professional to relieve pain. For example, it is a myth to think that effective relief of pain from an illness causes addiction. Studies show that it doesn't.

If you prefer to be educated about how to reduce and possibly eliminate pain, take a few minutes to consider the suggested steps for pain reduction. Then take the ones that work for you.

NOTES: 

  • If you regularly use pain relievers and get headaches more than 15 days a month, the cause may be taking too many pain relievers. If this could be you, speak with your doctor before reducing or eliminating your pain medications.
  • It is worth keeping in mind that the experience of pain can be amplified by the meaning you give to pain. For example, if you think a pain means that your disease may be progressing. You can work on changing the meaning.