Miscommunication

How's your pain now? Can you rate it on a scale from 0 to 10? "Well, it was at about a 9, but I repositioned my leg better, so now I'm at a 10." ...Wait a minute. Does that mean you have no pain? "Yes, no pain. It's at 10." This is the point where I re-explained the pain scale we use, where 0 is no pain and 10 is the worst possible. (The patient explained that she and her husband used to joke around and rate each other. i.e. You are all dressed up, you're a 10 today! or You've been out working in the yard, you're a 2! In her mind, 10 = good!) Come to think of it, she did look very relaxed when her pain was a "9"!