What to consider when your stomach hurts

·          When did I start feeling this pain? It is very important to know the onset of the pain. You don’t have to take note of the exact time of when you felt it but do take note of whatever activity you did before you felt that severe stomach pain.

·          What’s the duration and how often do I feel it? For the duration, again it doesn’t need to be an exact count but do not exaggerate as well; a rough estimate would do. The frequency of when you feel it is also needed because this would narrow down the possible health condition that you have.

·          What are the aggravating and relieving factors? You have answered the “when” now it’s time to answer the “what”. Take note of certain activities that gives you severe stomach pains and what kind of activity makes it worse. The action that you take that makes the pain go away is necessary as well because not everything that gives you relief is actually a cure.

·          What is my pain like? This time you have to describe your pain qualitatively. Assess if it’s a stabbing pain, burning sensation, squeezing, throbbing, etc. Did it go from being mild to severe or was it an abrupt severe pain right away?

·          Where do I feel the pain? We’re talking about severe stomach pains here so it should be on the stomach region but you still have to take note of specifically where the pain is. For this one you have to be specific. Since your abdomen have different regions and contains various organs inside it, it would be easier to figure out the probable health condition that you have if you specifically point out where the pain is coming from. Also, did the pain go from one point to another or was it localized to one area only?

·          How bad is my pain? You would have to rate your pain based on a pain scale. From 0 – 10, 0 being “no pain” and 10 being “severe pain”. The use of this scale is very subjective because every individual has different pain threshold but it doesn’t mean that this information is not important.

·          Did I take any medications? Since this is severe stomach pains we’re talking about, it’s very important for you to recall each and every medication that you took before you felt the pain because sometimes, it’s the medication itself that would cause you severe stomach pains.

·          What could be causing this pain? You’re the one experiencing the pain. Hence, what you think it is also matters but it shouldn’t be the basis of concluding that what you’re thinking is right.

What to consider when your stomach hurts