Feb 14, 2010 -
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It all started when I was 17 years old. I threw my back out somehow- I am not sure how, but I ended up in my PCP doctor's office (the same one I see now). She diagnosed me with Sciatica. It was really bad, so bad I couldn't bend over and I couldn't turn my body. My lower back ached so very bad. My buttocks hurt, my legs hurt and so did my hips. My doctor told me I had Sciatica, did no X-Rays, prescribed me 600mg of Ibuprofen and sent me on my way. The symptoms subsided and I didn't think anymore about it.
About a year later I developed severe pain in my knees. I was working in a factory as a machine operator and packager, so I was standing for eight hours a day. My knee pain got so bad I had to stop working and went on workman's comp. The Orthopedic doctor I went to diagnosed me with Tendinitis of the knees. I spent the summer of my 18th year with my knees wrapped in ace bandages. When I finally returned to work, I asked for a sit down job, but they refused to provide a machine where I could sit, so I just quit. I didn't realize what my rights were at the time.
My lower back and the Sciatica flared up during my late teens and early 20s once or twice and I had a very difficult time holding down jobs until I was educated enough to find a job where I could sit down when I needed to. I tried waitressing, but developed severe tendinitis of the wrists. Thank god for college. I eventually made it through while working as a customer service rep for an art supply company and earned a BS and an MS degree and now work for a newspaper as an Advertising Executive. It was a long hard road though...
I had a minor car accident when I was 25 years old that caused my neck to begin to feel incredibly intense pain. I saw a Chiropractor for a year and a half because she was the only doctor I could find who would take my pain seriously, but now I believe she may have only made things worse for me. I DO NOT PERSONALLY BELIEVE IN CHIROPRACTIC CARE for the spine.
The car accident was not my fault. A man ran a stop sign and we collided. We were only driving at about 20MPH max. I lost my jury trial court case and was humiliated in court and was made to look like one of those people who was looking to take advantage of the insurance companies. I was left with over $20,000 of medical bills. That was one of the hardest days of my life. Since then my neck pain has been unrelenting.
After that I decided I didn't trust doctors anymore. No one was willing to help me. I could barely work due to all of my pain, but I had to. I began to learn to live with things. I leaned on my father. My father lived with A LOT of PAIN. He had Reiter's Syndrome since he was in his early 20s. He got it in the military and was discharged because of it. Reiter's Syndrome is a type of Arthritis that is usually triggered by an infection, but normally you have to be carrying a specific gene called the HLA-B27. Well he had it and I had a lot in common with my father, so I would always talk to him about my pain. He was my anchor. I stayed away from doctors for everything besides my asthma medications for about 5 years UNTIL....
My left foot started to go numb at 31years old...I kept complaining to my husband about it and refused to go to the doctor until I tripped over my foot and fell down the stairs. I wasn't hurt, but realized it was serious. Now I thought I was having a circulation problem. When I went to see my doctor who diagnosed me at 17 years old with Sciatica, she said "no, I think we need to X-Ray your lower back." When she came back with the X-Ray results, she told me there was something seriously wrong with the formation of my bones in my lumbar spine and I needed an MRI ASAP. I freaked out.
I now see a Rheumatologist who manages my illness. I have been diagnosed with so many things, but my main diseases are Fibromyalgia, Spinal Degenerative Arthritis and Corneal Erosion Syndrome of the Eyes .
To make a long story short I have learned in the last 2.5 years that I have degenerative disc disease in my lumbar spine, scoliosis, degenerative facet arthritis, a bulging and torn disc that's dessicated, I also had an EMG and a Nerve Conduction test which revealed nerve damage. This has made me very upset with my doctor because she didn't take an X-ray all those years ago. Maybe she could have spared me some embarrassment.
Also, Initially MRIs of my cervical spine showed nothing abnormal around the time of my court case. Since then I have developed arthritis, degenerative disc disease as well as Hyperostosis and bone spurs.
I even had a shoulder decompression surgery that probably could have been avoided that I now think my shoulder pain was caused by my neck issues. That I guess I will leave for another day...