1. Talk to your primary care doctor about your pain. Give him or her a diary of how you suffer, when the pain is worse and what makes it worse. Provide objective numbers: 0 is pain-free, and 10 is the worst pain.
2. Make sure your doctor knows exactly where you hurt. The pain may be associated with another serious disease.
3. If - despite your efforts - your primary care doctor can't get your pain under control, ask for a referral to a pain specialist who is board certified by the American Academy of Pain Medicine or by the American Board of Anesthesiology, with a subspecialty in chronic-pain management.