The Fallacy of the Pain Scale
I am sure you recognize this graphic. We see this image in one of its various formats each
time we visit the doctor. For those of us “blessed” with chronic pain, it is a mute point.
I was ridiculed by the ALJ during my hearing yesterday because I have consistently been using the number 10 to describe my pain WITH medications.
Now let me attempt to describe this Pain Scale through the eyes of someone who is homebound and in constant pain.
Many years ago, a wise nurse tried to help me interpret my pain to be placed on this scale. She simply said that in my situation, if I am noticing pain/discomfort that I am to respond with a 6. If my day-to-day life is completely off kilter, I should respond with a 10.
Fast forward to the present. The ALJ’s understanding is that a “10” means you must be in the hospital. I can hear the smirking of those with chronic pain. Our medical team is all ready doing everything possible to try to improve our quality of life…oftentimes, that means to bring pain within a tolerable range…like a 7-8! Reality check! All they could do is attempt to overwhelm my system with medications that I cannot tolerate! My combination of diagnoses do not have a definitive origin which has caused much frustration to my doctors and specialists.
I could hear the condescending tone when the ALJ responded to my description of Polyarthralgia. He asked about Lupus, Rheumatoid Arthritis, etc. All have been ruled out. My set of diagnoses: Fibromyalgia, Polyarthralgia, Chronic Pain Disorder, Somatic Symptom Disorder, Pelvic Floor Syndrome, Neuralgia, Postherpetic Neuralgia, Paresthesia, PTSD, IBS-D, Colostomy; do not fit the norm. My issues have been “unique” making my “special” (terms that I have heard so many times). These are diagnoses that you are assigned when you do not test positive for something!
Why have I been answering “10” “Unimaginable/Unspeakable? Let’s see…just a few thoughts come to mind…I am homebound, can barely move from the bed to my recliner, find no position to help relieve symptoms, have thick Fibro Fog (brain fog), have difficulty completing a sentence, experience Flares on a regular basis (riding in car to doctor appointment will set me back for days), cannot concentrate…these diagnoses have completely robbed me of a “normal” life. How do you describe to an outsider the reality of being a prisoner within your own body that is complete with its own torture chamber?
The other important point, is that I am in the process of weaning off of the medications as we continue to fine tune my pain pump. Here again, the ALJ just wanted to focus on the ONE visit where my pain level was actually down to a 9! The reality of that number was the result of the pain pump being implanted and still taking ALL medication! The entire reason we fought SO hard for the pain pump was to offer me the hope of true improvement…NOT masking it by overwhelming my system with drugs!
Mom Is Sick -- For Parents & Kids 
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