How do you describe your pain? Numbers on Pain Scale, Adjectives, Silly Weird Pain Faces.

How do you describe your pain? Numbers on Pain Scale, Adjectives, Silly Weird Pain Faces.

I hear it all the time from doctors and nurses: "Tell me your pain on a scale from 1 to 10". I always cringe at the thought of summarizing my pain and fatigue down to a number. I also get scared at the thought that I have never felt below a 4 or 5. How can every patient from a broken leg, to a chemo

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Sick Humor: Why, Yes Virginia...There Really ARE Spoonies!

Sick Humor: Why, Yes Virginia…There Really ARE Spoonies!

I originally just started this article by delving right into the "Dear Santa" part, but then as I started formatting it, I realized it deserved an intro that was worthy of one of my articles.  By now you all know "me" as a writer.  My theory..."go big or go home".  So, "go big" I definitely did.�

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36 Easy things that you can do to make the life of your chronically ill friend a bit better.

36 Easy things that you can do to make the life of your chronically ill friend a bit better.

You do not need to spend a lot of money. You can be thoughtful in so many ways. The point is to do something, and do something today. I have listed below 36 easy ideas that anyone would appreciate. Sometimes it is hard for a patient to ask for help. Just do it! The hardest thing about chronic dise

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National Patient Safety Awareness Week March 6-12

This week, March 6-12, marks National Patient Safety Awareness Week. This initiative is sponsored by the National Patient Safety Foundation which was founded in 1997. The goal of this foundation is to improve the safety of care for patients by providing information and education to healthcare provid

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Arm Yourself With Knowledge

Arm Yourself With Knowledge

I can't tell you how many times I've thought of a great idea only to forget it five minutes later. Then I get frustrated enough to pull my hair out because I can't remember what I was thinking about, and then five minutes after that wonder why I'm upset. The best part is when I completely forget the

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Hurry Up and Wait: Untold Stories of the ER

Hurry Up and Wait: Untold Stories of the ER

He had a half inch cut on his finger... it wasn’t even bleeding that bad and certainly didn’t warrant the barrage of “Grey’s Anatomy” style nurses snatching him up and herding him towards the coveted double doors.  I sat watching him like a hawk from the minute he walked in to the minute

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Professional Patient Tip: 10 Tips for Visiting Someone Who is Sick

Professional Patient Tip: 10 Tips for Visiting Someone Who is Sick

I have unfortunately been on both sides of this article. I have spent time visiting friends and family when they have been sick, but I have more often been the patient everyone is visiting. Many of the visits went very well, but unfortunately others didn’t go so well for them or me. Hopefully my m

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“Proffesional Patient Tip” Preparing for a Doctor’s Visit

Seeing the doctor is rarely what I would call fun. You are usually there because you don't feel well and you usually fall into the following categories: Having a diasnosis you thought you had walking into a door- and possibly seeing a new doctor for a 2nd opinion, or a treatment/ investigation of s

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Who's Who in the Hospital?

Who’s Who in the Hospital?

With so many different medical specialties it’s easy to feel confused by the number of people who come into your hospital room to check on you. Sometimes your doctor may show up along with a whole bunch of medical students. Other times you may not recognize the person leaning over your hospital be

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