Caregiver
CareCommunity
Register | Login

Print  Email This Article

What Does It Feel Like?
Describing Pain
By Laurie Fronek, Staff Writer
describing painNot all pain is the same. A dull ache may cause subtle, nagging discomfort. A sharp, burning pain may suddenly shoot from one spot to another. A description of your loved one’s pain helps her medical providers determine the cause of the pain and decide which medicine or other remedy is most likely to help.

“Pain assessment is about using the right words,” says Gail Loughlin, RN, CHPN, clinical liaison at Providence Hospice of Seattle. “Sometimes pain is not even the right word. It may be more useful to ask, ‘Are you feeling uncomfortable?’ or ‘Are you having any discomfort?’ Using these words may help the person understand that pain is not only something that is sharp and excruciating.”

Finding the Right Words

When your loved one has discomfort, encourage her to describe it as specifically as possible. How does it feel? What qualities does it have? If it’s hard to find the right words, use this list of suggestions. Give or read the list to her so she can choose words that best describe what she feels.
 
Aching
Boring
Burning
Cutting
Cramping
Crushing
Dull
Electric
Flickering
Gnawing
Itching
Nagging
Nervy
Pinching
Pressing
Pricking
Pulsing
Radiating
Sharp
Shooting
Squeezing
Stabbing
Stinging
Throbbing
Tingling
Zinging

Put It in Writing

When your loved one has pain, write her description in her pain journal. This written record makes it easier to track and report important information such as the following.
  • Compare this pain to other pain she’s had to tell whether this is a new type.
  • Compare the pain before and after using a pain remedy to determine whether the remedy provides adequate relief.
  • Give medical providers an accurate sense of her condition and comfort, without having to remember all the details in your head.

 






 
Adjust font size
    
Expert Advice

"Pain assessment is about using the right words.  It may be more useful to ask, 'Are you feeling uncomfortable?' or 'Are you having any discomfort?'"

- Gail Loughlin, RN, CHPN, clinical liaison at Providence Hospital of Seattle
Related Articles
Relevant Resources
Describing Pain (The Canadian Cancer Society)
 
Describing Pain (Cancer Backup)
 
Putting Your Pain Into Words (Canadian Pharmacists Association)
 
Talking About Pain (Lymphomation.org)
 
About Us | Privacy Policy | Contact Us
© Copyright 2008 Enclara Health, LLC
This project was supported by grant number 5R44CA097592-03 from NIH (National Cancer Institute). Its contents are solely the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official views of the NIH (National Cancer Institute).