Keeping a symptom diary your doctor will actually use

“Where does it hurt?” “Since when?” “Does it come after meals?” Doctors ask these questions because the answers point somewhere. In a short appointment, most of us can’t answer well. We forget, or the symptom isn’t there that day.

A symptom diary solves that. It’s a few lines a day, and it gives your doctor something better than “on and off for a while”.

What to write

For each symptom, a few words each time:

• What you felt, and where. “Dull ache, lower back, right side.”
• When it started and how long it lasted.
• How strong, on a scale of 1 to 5. Use the same scale every time.
• What came just before: a meal, a walk, a medicine, a bad night’s sleep, stress.
• What helped, or didn’t.

Don’t try to diagnose yourself. Just record. Your doctor will find the pattern.

How often

Once a day is enough for most things, at the same time, for example before bed. Add a line whenever something happens. A week of notes is a good start, and your doctor may ask for more.

Keep it simple

A diary you keep up beats a detailed one you drop after two days. Use a page, not a notebook. Short words are fine. Dates and times matter more than neat writing.

You can print our one-week symptom diary. It’s free, with a row for each day and columns for the five things above.

At the appointment

• Bring the diary, and any readings you’ve taken.
• Start with the main problem, in one sentence, then show the notes.
• Tell your doctor about any medicine or supplement you take, including ones you buy without a prescription.
• Write down what the doctor says. Our doctor visit checklist covers the rest.

When not to wait

A diary is for symptoms that come and go. If a symptom is severe or sudden, such as a strong chest pain or trouble breathing, don’t write it down and wait. Call your doctor or the emergency number, 112.

On your phone

Kinsu has a daily check-in for symptoms, mood and sleep, with a place for notes, and it lets you start an illness episode that gathers a stretch of symptoms, readings and medicines into one timeline. The notes stay on your phone, encrypted. Kinsu doesn’t read your symptoms or tell you what they mean. It keeps them for you and your doctor.