How to Talk to Your GP About Pain

Oct 17

3 min read

A GP appointment for pain often depends on the first few sentences, and when time is short and the pain is hard to pin down, it is easy to under-sell something that matters and leave without the help you came for. Walking in prepared changes that, not because you should have to work to be believed, but because a clear account of your pain is the single most useful thing you can bring.

Before you go

The most valuable preparation is a short record kept over a week or two, because a pattern on paper carries weight; note where the pain is and whether it stays put or moves, what it feels like, when it comes and how long it lasts, and what makes it better or worse. Note how it affects your sleep, your work and your daily life. Note whether it arrived alongside your other menopause symptoms, because that timing is a genuine clue, and it is exactly the connection a busy clinician may not make for you.

Describing it

Lead with the pattern rather than a single bad moment, because how your pain behaves over time tells a clinician far more than its worst hour. Something as plain as this does the work: my pain is widespread, it moves around, it is worse when I sleep badly, and it began to line up with my other menopause symptoms. Describing the character of the pain in specific words, whether it burns, aches, throbs or tingles, helps too, because those qualities point towards different causes and different treatments. You do not need medical language, use your own words.

What to ask

Having a few clear questions ready keeps the appointment on track. It is reasonable to ask directly whether your symptoms could be connected to the menopause transition, and what the options are for the kind of pain you are describing, from movement and sleep to whether MHT might help your particular picture. You are entitled to ask what should be ruled out, and to say if something feels more serious to you than how it is being treated. If you have several things to cover, book a longer appointment at the outset, which spares you both being rushed.

If you are not taken seriously

Sometimes, despite good preparation, you leave feeling dismissed, and that appointment is not a verdict on you or your pain, you are allowed to seek another view. Looking for a GP with an interest in menopause is a sensible response, and many practices now have someone with that focus. You are also allowed to bring your notes back, to ask for your concerns to be recorded, and to keep asking until the full explanation has been sought rather than assumed.

Your pain is real, menopause may be part of the explanation, but it should never be used to stop looking for the full explanation.

In simple terms

Keep a short record of your pain for a week or two before the appointment, since a pattern on paper is harder to dismiss.
Lead with how your pain behaves over time, and note whether it arrived with your other menopause symptoms.
Ask directly whether it could be menopause-related, what the options are, and what should be ruled out, and book a longer appointment if you need one.
If you feel dismissed, that is information about the appointment, and seeking a GP with a menopause interest is a reasonable next step.
Preparing well makes it harder for the important things to be missed.

Take the words with you. Download the Understanding and Describing Your Pain fact sheet to prepare for your appointment.

This information is educational only and does not constitute personal medical advice. Always consult a qualified health professional about your individual circumstances.

Anna Pattison. Former Registered Nurse, Clinical Myotherapist, Menopause Mentor.

Menopause Hub