Quality of Life: A Change in Healthcare Trends
Quality of life has become a buzzword in healthcare. More and more, healthcare providers are taking quality of life into consideration when suggesting treatment options. With so much emphasis being placed on quality of life, you need to understand what quality of life means and how it relates to pain management.
Quality of Life Defined
Quality of life is a measurement of your overall well-being. It takes into consideration your physical, emotional, spiritual, and social needs. Your quality of life is negatively impacted by pain. One of the goals of proper pain management is to implement pain control to improve your quality of life.
Pain Relief and Your Life
It’s important that your pain management plan takes into consideration the various aspects of your life, not just your condition and treatment. For instance, your personal religious beliefs need to be considered. Your social life is impacted by pain, too, so your involvement in social activities needs to be thought of, also. You are more than just a body. The emotional or psychological impact of pain needs to be addressed.
Pain Management is Your Choice
The point is that proper pain management takes the whole person into consideration. It’s your life, and you should be able to live it the way you want to, in spite of pain. Pain management should be a collaborative effort between you and your healthcare provider to ensure that your quality of life is maintained at a level of your choosing.
Tools to Measure Quality of Life
There are numerous tools available to your healthcare provider that aids in measuring your quality of life. Most of these tools come in the form of a survey or inventory. Of particular importance to any tool used to measure quality of life is your input.
Your Role in All of This
Any of your responses to questions asked by your healthcare provider will be included in any pain management plan. It’s important that you give accurate and honest answers to any questions asked of you by your healthcare provider. Also, be sure to address anything that wasn’t covered by the survey or inventory. When it comes to quality of life and pain management, your voice matters.
A Means of Discovery
As you complete the quality of life measuring tool, you may discover situations or activities in your life that may actually impact your level of pain. As you think of these issues, discuss them with your healthcare provider. Remember, pain management is a team effort. Your healthcare provider will not know about the particular details of your life unless you bring them up.
Pain and Relationships
Another important area that pain can affect is your relationships, especially since pain can cause you to feel depressed or stressed. Any negative emotions that are caused by pain will affect your relationships. Pain management that considers quality of life will include your relationships within the discussion of a pain management plan. It’s also good to include your loved ones as part of the pain management team. They are the ones who are with you daily, and know you better than anyone else. They may be able to provide information that you leave out or may not even consider. Your quality of life includes your relationships.
Pain Management Restores Quality of Life
The purpose of a pain management plan is to bring relief to your pain so that you can resume life at a level that is close to the level you were experiencing before the pain. Pain management is about restoring quality of life. Quality of life takes a holistic look at your life, and so should any pain management plan.
If your pain management plan doesn’t take your whole life into consideration, speak with your healthcare provider. You don’t have to settle for a lower quality of life because you are in pain. There are options available to you that will help you deal with the pain and enjoy the things in life that you enjoyed before your pain. Good pain management goes beyond simply addressing the pain and considers how pain affects you as a person.