Content warning: Some mildly graphic descriptions and depictions of pain/violence/blood. I really dislike the "rate your pain on a scale of 1 to 10" question I get every time I encounter a medical professional. I understand the value it adds - the ability to quantify a subjective thing is a powerful tool for tracking improvement and for quickly assessing a feeling that can be difficult to communicate. But it ALWAYS throws me. I remember the first time I had the nerve to ask a medical assistant who told me to "rate my pain" to give me some examples to compare my numbers to. I was having sharp, intense pelvic pain (unidentified at the time, but years later diagnosed as endometriosis - using my current personal pain scale I was probably actually at a 7, and was doing poorly). She gave me a withering stare, as if I was purposely trying to make her day horrible, and said "10 is the most extreme pain you can imagine". This freaked me out! 10 is the WORST pain I can IMAGINE? I have a pretty active imagination, and I've felt some pretty intense pain in my life, so I said, "uh... this is a 3, I guess." Shortly thereafter, when the doctor came into the room, he said he thought I probably just had gas or constipation, and didn't even bother examining me. After all, what sort of hypochondriac comes to the doctor for abdominal pain that's only a 3 on the pain scale??? ...you see how this is not great. Another drawback of the pain scale is that it's not clear if it's a linear or logarithmic or exponential or some other type of curve - is the amount of pain between 1 and 2 different from the amount of pain between 9 and 10? Is a 6 on the pain scale twice as much pain as a 3? I don't know! Also, it's an inherently individualized, subjective measurement, and thus varies dramatically from person-to-person. I'm sure someone without chronic pain would rate their sprained ankle much higher than I do, because for them it's a serious problem, and for me it's a regular Tuesday. And there's no good way to standardize this, especially when the only benchmark given to patients is that "10 is the worst pain you can imagine". Finally, in the pain scale, you don't capture all of the beautiful descriptors of different types of pain that could exist. "It feels like knives covered in sandpaper are filleting my ovaries" turns into a simple 6. "Someone has unscrewed all of my joints, and then screwed them back on incorrectly" is a boring 4. Lying in the fetal position, with tears leaking out of your eyes, while you quietly whisper, "I just don't know how much longer I can bear this" is now a cold, hard 8. There's no art or depth or opportunity for empathy there. So, inspired by Hyperbole and a Half's better pain scale, I have decided to share the pain scale I have come up with for myself below. Bracing Grace's Highly Personalized Better Pain Scale 1 out of 10
2 out of 10
3 out of 10
4 out of 10
5 out of 10
6 out of 10
7 out of 10
8 out of 10
9 out of 10
10 out of 10
There you have it, folks - a better pain scale. I highly encourage you to create your own personal pain scale as well. If you do, please share it with me - I'd love to see some real pain scales that have actual meaning!
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
Grace Daly
I'm young, hot, and have multiple chronic illnesses. Come with me on this magical fucking journey. Archives
March 2020
Categories
All
|