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Managing Children’s Pain... Continued from page 42 for their child’s pain. Parents Know Best How to Comfort Their Own Children Pain that is untreated can make children afraid, anxious, depressed, irritable and tired. Uncontrolled pain can also cause children to have trouble eating and sleeping and to revert to immature, babyish behaviors. When children are too young, too sick or too afraid to say how much pain they have, parents are usually the next best judges. Parents know best how to comfort their own children and can talk to the children’s doctor about pain management. A pamphlet published by the Asso-ciation for the Care of Children’s Health (ACCH), a group based in Canada, provides information on how parents can help children deal with pain. The pamphlet can be accessed on the Internet at www.dal.ca/~pedpain. The Medical Society of the State of New York recommends the following advice, which was adapted from the ACCH booklet. Just having a parent or other loved one present may be the best psychological treatment for pain. Generally, a parent should accompany children who need to undergo medical procedures. Touch is important, especially for younger children. Depending on the illness or injury and the type and extent of pain, holding, cuddling, massaging or gently rocking children can be comforting. Like other patients, children want and need information about what is going to happen to them. Parents can ease fears by explaining, in language that their child can understand, what procedures are going to be done and how the child might feel during and after a particular procedure. Parents can also encourage children to ask questions and express their feelings. Letting a child have some control over treatment, such as sitting or lying down to receive an injection, usually helps to reduce pain. Teaching children deep and steady breathing can help children gain a feel-ing of self control and may help to ease fear, tension and pain. For additional information about pain management, visit the National Pain Foundation website at http://wwwpainconnection.org/ or the American Academy of Pain Medicine website at http://www.painmed.org/. This information is provided by the Medical Society of the State of New York (MSSNY).
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