What is a pain diary? 

A pain diary is a written record of your pain affects your daily activities. This can help you to describe to your healthcare team how your pain has been affecting you over time.

A pain diary can also record how medicines, other therapies and your activities affect your pain levels throughout the day. 

Why should I keep a pain diary?

A pain diary can help you and your healthcare team:

• Understand what makes your pain worse and what helps to relieve your pain. 
• Track your response to your pain management plan, including changes in your medicines or other therapies. 

When should I use a pain diary?

Use your pain diary as often as recommended by your doctor or pharmacist. This may include when you have ongoing pain, changes in your activity levels or changes in your medicines.

The information that you record will help you and your healthcare team prepare and guide your pain management plan. If your pain is under control you may not need to use the diary as often.

How do I complete a pain diary?

Use this template to record all the information that is relevant to your pain. You may not need to fill out all columns each time.

To complete the diary use the rating scale, provided on the template to rate your activity. A zero (0) means no pain and a ten (10) means worst possible pain. Select the number that best describes your pain.

The more information you record in your pain diary, the more helpful it will be for you and your healthcare team.

You can access the pain diary here or click on download document at the top of the page.