Keeping track of pelvic pain, menstrual cramps, and other symptoms such as pain when you pass urine or when you have a bowel movement is important. Be sure to write down any symptoms you have, the number from 1–10 that describes the degree of pain (1= almost no pain- 10= worst pain you have ever had), and where it is located. If you are taking continuous hormone pills to suppress bleeding, you can use the chart to track other symptoms, including breakthrough bleeding.
Instructions:
- Be sure to check out the Sample Pain and Symptom Tracker and carefully read the keys at the bottom before you start filling out your own tracker.
- Make a few copies of My Pain and Symptom Tracker.
- Write the name of the month at the top of the page and begin tracking your pain and symptoms.
- To fill in the bleeding “Amount” row, look at the Blood Flow Amount Key at the bottom of the page to figure out which letter (S, L, N, or H) best describes your flow.
- Figure out which letter best describes the location of your pain (M, L, or R) by taking a look at the “Pelvic Pain Location Key” at the bottom of the page. Write it down in the Pelvic Pain “Location/Intensity” row. Then, decide which number best describes your pain (0 = no pain, 10 = the worst pain you have ever had) by looking at the Pelvic Pain Numerical Rating Scale at the bottom of the page. Write that number down in the same row. Example = M/5.
- If you don’t have any pain symptoms or breakthrough bleeding on any given day, just leave the box empty.
- Remember to bring your Pain and Symptom Tracker with you to your GYN appointments.
Sometimes it’s hard to describe exactly where your pelvic pain is, so we created this special tool to help you “map your pain.” Pain mapping using colored pencils or markers is a unique way to show your medical team the location of your pain. Simply color in the area where you have pain. You can create your own “key” using different colors. For example; you may use the color red to show the location of severe pain, while you may choose the color orange to indicate moderate pain—it’s up to you, you’re the artist. We’ve included a sample pain mapping worksheet to show you an example of how to map your pain.
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