Help your Doctor help you. Before your visit, ask yourself:

	What problem or symptom are you concerned about?
	When and how did it begin?
	Was it gradual or sudden?
	How does it interfere with your life (eating, sleeping, working, leisure, sex, etc.)?
	Is it related to time of day, time of week, time of month, time of year, time of life, meals, sleep, or anything else?
	What helps?
	What makes it worse or brings it on?
	Could this be a side-effect of a medication you're taking?
	Or is this part of a known problem (ulcer, migraine, depression, etc.) ?
	Since it started, is it the same, worse, or better?
	What do you think or fear may be causing it?
	What do you think needs to be done about it?

Based in part on Medical and Health Guide for People Over Fifty, The Dartmouth Institute for Better Health, An AARP Book (1986).