Managing Symptoms
Pain
Pain is the greatest fear of all. Learning to rate the level of pain on a scale (i.e. 0-10) is important to evaluate the effectiveness of relief methods. Use descriptive words to describe pain – sharp, dull, aching, unrelenting, and intermittent. The person with the pain records it using a pain scale. This helps them be the judge of the need for what and how much medication. No other person can judge how much pain another person is having.
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Terms
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Examples
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It is important to know that tolerance to pain medications DOES NOT mean addiction. Addiction occurs a person takes medication to relieve psychological stress not physical pain.
Scheduling pain medications provides good pain control. There are long-acting medications and short-acting pain medications. Using these in combination makes good pain control achievable. Being comfortable is important. Comfort allows you to move about, interact with others, and prevents complications. If you prefer to be sleepy, that is your choice!
Appetite
Lack of appetite and weight loss involves the whole family. Feeding is love in many cultures around the world. Weight loss may make you feel weak or depressed. Along with weight loss comes a changed image of yourself. Taste may change as well as amounts of food a person needs. Experiment with different foods but do not force a person to eat. Offer smaller amounts on a medium size plate more frequently.. Some may consider artificial hydration or feeding with intravenous lines and feeding tubes in the stomach.
Nausea & Vomiting
Different treatments can control nausea and vomiting in 90% of all persons. Help the nurse and doctor determine the causes so the best treatment is given. It may take some trials to discover what works best. Simmering a pot of spices will mask the odors of cooking which can cause nausea.
Constipation
Constipation is the infrequent passage of stool. Lack of fluids, less exercise, some medications, and changes in food types and amounts contribute to this. It is important to plan to prevent constipation.
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Recipes for Relief of Constipation |
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PAB Recipe Mix in blender or food processor equal parts of:
Start with 1/2 cup of each for the first batch. Store in the refrigerator in a plastic container with lid. Serving: Start with one (1) Tablespoon daily for a few days to test the results. You can increase the number of Tablespoons every few days until you have a normal stool. |
Fruit Pudding Mix in blender or food processor:
Add prune juice until you get the consistency of sauce or pudding Can keep in refrigerator 7-10 days. You can freeze it. Serving: Start with (1) one Tablespoon daily. You can SLOWLY increase to 2 tablespoons up to three times a day. Give your body a chance to respond to the recipe before increasing your dose. Recipe originally from: http://www.orthorehab.wisc.edu/rehab/paincenter/Constipation.pdf |
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Substitutes for Prunes If you do not like prunes, try one of the following fruits:
The important part in preventing constipation is the skin of these fruits. |
Senna Prunes
Serving: 1-2 prunes every other night Recipe originally from: http://www.orthorehab.wisc.edu/rehab/paincenter/Constipation.pdf |
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Wheat Bran Add to or sprinkle on1-2 Tablespoons of wheat bran to foods like hot cereal, meatloaf or casserole. Flaxseed Add to or sprinkle on1-2 Tablespoons of whole or ground flax seeds to cereals, baked goods, yogurt, ice cream, and puddings. |
Fruit Lax Mix in a bowl:
Soak overnight in a mixture of:
Blend in blender. May add one cup of wheat bran. Keeps two weeks in the refrigerator or freeze. Serving: two (2) Tablespoons daily as a spread on toast or mixed into hoe cereal or yogurt. Recipe originally from: http://www.bchealthguide.org/healthfiles/hfile69.stm#hf006 |
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Nuts You can add nuts of any kind to your recipes for additional benefit. |
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Experiment until you find what you like that works. |
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Depression
Depression is appropriate so do talk about it. Healthcare providers who do not recognize depression and often under treated it. You must have your feelings validated. There are a number of screens that you can do to see if you should seek help from you provider. Being unable to talk about fears or not having a support system contributes to depression. Some feelings of helplessness, hopelessness, and inadequacy are normal BUT they do NOT persist over time. Some medication may be helpful. Distractions are often important in countering depression. These distractions are often what you enjoy, such as music, humor. Click: Humor Page.
You can screen yourself using one of these two tools.
 | The Zung Self-Rated Depression Scale can be printed out to complete. This is the link: http://healthnet.umassmed.edu/mhealth/ZungSelfRatedDepressionScale.pdf |
| This is a version that you can take online from the National Mental Health Association. This is the link: http://www.depression-screening.org/screeningtest/screen.cfm |
| This is another online version from the New York University Department of Psychiatry: http://www.med.nyu.edu/Psych/screens/ |
Fatigue
Fatigue is constantly feeling tired and rest does not relieve it. It has important impacts on quality of life. You do need more sleep now. Pacing activities and rest, spreading tasks out over time, and saving strengths for what has the most value are all important tools to deal with fatigue. Some person may fear sleep and not waking up.
