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sheisreeds -> RE: ER pain charts (10/21/2013 7:27:38 PM)
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Oh, I know way too much about this topic. No fun, and I hope the pain is not chronic. I found the Mankoski Pain Scale very helpful. I like that it also takes into account what pain meds help. Helped keep things in perspective at 1 in the morning in the ER when my pain was finally at a 2, that I was also on Morphine. Also, when I am managing to get around, but I'm constantly hurting and cringing that I really am a 7 or 8.
Pain management was a weird thing to wrap my head around since I like pain for fun. This really helped put things in perspective and helped me communicate with my team.
The Mankoski Pain Scale
0 - Pain Free
1 - Very minor annoyance - occasional minor twinges. No medication needed.
2 - Minor Annoyance - occasional strong twinges. No medication needed.
3 - Annoying enough to be distracting. Mild painkillers take care of it. (Aspirin, Ibuprofen.)
4 - Can be ignored if you are really involved in your work, but still distracting. Mild painkillers remove pain for 3-4 hours.
5 - Can't be ignored for more than 30 minutes. Mild painkillers ameliorate pain for 3-4 hours.
6 - Can't be ignored for any length of time, but you can still go to work and participate in social activities. Stronger painkillers (Codeine, narcotics) reduce pain for 3-4 hours.
7 - Makes it difficult to concentrate, interferes with sleep. You can still function with effort. Stronger painkillers are only partially effective.
8 - Physical activity severely limited. You can read and converse with effort. Nausea and dizziness set in as factors of pain.
9 - Unable to speak. Crying out or moaning uncontrollably - near delirium.
10 - Unconscious. Pain makes you pass out.
For me, nothing could compare to my periods. Finally hit home when I woke up in the middle of the night screaming and delirious shaking my partner convinced he was dead because someone came in and tried to stab us to death in our sleep. Didn't help that I was covered in blood. I started going into shock, got icey cold, in so much pain I couldn't even cry or scream, and was fed some vicodin from his dental surgery which saved us a ride in an ambulance.
My daily 6-8 pain didn't register since the above scenario was something I regularly experienced, and to me that was pain. So yeah, pain scales are awesome!
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