Aa
any suggestions?
About 21 months ago 1/2010, after almost 2 very painful years of fighting via appeals with my health insurance company (Blue Cross, I refer to them as double cross), Finally I was authorized to have an L5-S1 disecectomy fusion w/ instrumentation, . My original orthopedic surgeon insisted that I have a full disc replacement and I spent 1 and a half years with him painfully trying to get Bluecross to approve the surgery to no avail. That surgery was plan A but the surgery I ended up getting was plan b or c , another words a compromise since bluecross viewed it as “experimental” or some kind of voodoo.
So, I had to find another surgeon because my first one only wanted to do a full disc replacement. After finally finding a good surgeon I had the disecectomy fusion w/ instrumentation surgery. Due to complications I was in the hospital atleast 6 additional days due to post surgical urine retention. When I finally left the hospital I had many pain scripts and several for physical therapy. Also, during the 2 years of fighting bluecross’s denials I had no less then 10 cortisone shot treatments. They were very painful, and never any relief from the pain.
I’ve tried several stints of physical therapy, and never got any relief, to the point that my healthcare carrier finally said no more p.t.
I use to try and go for a walk everyday along with the exercises I learned from pt, but the severe pain in my back and down my legs is just insane, its constant and chronic. At times its so bad I’ve gone to the hospital E.R. and they give me a pain shot and some pills, small amount (percs or viccodin, flexeril) usually. This has happened maybe 3 or 4 times in the last 18 months.
My back aches and my legs feel like they are so heavy, with sharp pain running down them below my knees. Sometimes parts of them just get numb, for no reason. So, if I do walk, its now with a cane, because Ive fallen down due to the random numbness several times.
The Orthopedic doctors I’ve seen have all been very cold to me, not friendly, or caring by any means, the pain management people have been worse. I stopped taking fulltime scripts for several reasons about 16 months ago. 1: As a sole and direct result of all of this, I lost my career as a PC network administrator, and now being on ssdi I can’t afford to fill the scripts and eat in the same month. 2: Ive had them randomly refuse to write any more scripts and I wasn’t even sure as to why, I didn’t abuse them or finish them early. 3: I use to be (before all of this) a prideful man, and I never wanted to lower myself to have to beg some doctor that doesn’t care about me, for anything, let alone for pain pills.4: The pain pills are addictive and over time they have diminishing returns, so I acknowledge that they are not a long term solution.
So here I am 43 years old living with pain that I can no longer deal or cope with. I went to another Orthopedic doctor on Monday, had an MRI on Tuesday, and today (Wednesday) he says it all (the hardware) looks super. When I asked him why am I in so much pain, he arrogantly replied “my best guess would be severe nerve damage, and I should do PT and pain meds, w/pain management. I was appalled; I thought to myself, your best guess? Really?
Also I should note that I did try marijuana a little while back and did get some relief, but I got caught by the police and that’s no longer an option for me…Coming home from the doctor visit today I just started thinking (for the very first time in my life) about just ending it all... Thankfully I shared these thoughts with my wife and tomorrow I have an appointment with a psychiatrist. I cant believe that this is my life now. 4 straight years of solid unrelenting pain…And the doctors, simply put, don’t seem to really care, they treat me as if I caused this all myself..I just feel alone, just me and the pain, that’s always there. Degenerative disc disease and severe nerve damage. I feel like Im just waiting to die. Any suggestions?
So, I had to find another surgeon because my first one only wanted to do a full disc replacement. After finally finding a good surgeon I had the disecectomy fusion w/ instrumentation surgery. Due to complications I was in the hospital atleast 6 additional days due to post surgical urine retention. When I finally left the hospital I had many pain scripts and several for physical therapy. Also, during the 2 years of fighting bluecross’s denials I had no less then 10 cortisone shot treatments. They were very painful, and never any relief from the pain.
I’ve tried several stints of physical therapy, and never got any relief, to the point that my healthcare carrier finally said no more p.t.
I use to try and go for a walk everyday along with the exercises I learned from pt, but the severe pain in my back and down my legs is just insane, its constant and chronic. At times its so bad I’ve gone to the hospital E.R. and they give me a pain shot and some pills, small amount (percs or viccodin, flexeril) usually. This has happened maybe 3 or 4 times in the last 18 months.
My back aches and my legs feel like they are so heavy, with sharp pain running down them below my knees. Sometimes parts of them just get numb, for no reason. So, if I do walk, its now with a cane, because Ive fallen down due to the random numbness several times.
The Orthopedic doctors I’ve seen have all been very cold to me, not friendly, or caring by any means, the pain management people have been worse. I stopped taking fulltime scripts for several reasons about 16 months ago. 1: As a sole and direct result of all of this, I lost my career as a PC network administrator, and now being on ssdi I can’t afford to fill the scripts and eat in the same month. 2: Ive had them randomly refuse to write any more scripts and I wasn’t even sure as to why, I didn’t abuse them or finish them early. 3: I use to be (before all of this) a prideful man, and I never wanted to lower myself to have to beg some doctor that doesn’t care about me, for anything, let alone for pain pills.4: The pain pills are addictive and over time they have diminishing returns, so I acknowledge that they are not a long term solution.
So here I am 43 years old living with pain that I can no longer deal or cope with. I went to another Orthopedic doctor on Monday, had an MRI on Tuesday, and today (Wednesday) he says it all (the hardware) looks super. When I asked him why am I in so much pain, he arrogantly replied “my best guess would be severe nerve damage, and I should do PT and pain meds, w/pain management. I was appalled; I thought to myself, your best guess? Really?
Also I should note that I did try marijuana a little while back and did get some relief, but I got caught by the police and that’s no longer an option for me…Coming home from the doctor visit today I just started thinking (for the very first time in my life) about just ending it all... Thankfully I shared these thoughts with my wife and tomorrow I have an appointment with a psychiatrist. I cant believe that this is my life now. 4 straight years of solid unrelenting pain…And the doctors, simply put, don’t seem to really care, they treat me as if I caused this all myself..I just feel alone, just me and the pain, that’s always there. Degenerative disc disease and severe nerve damage. I feel like Im just waiting to die. Any suggestions?
Hi Dilullo,
You're are so correct about pain management not being uniform across the United States. I have heard horror stories about pain management from folks that live both in the south and on the east coast. I am so glad that you are able to move west where pain is treated more liberally.
The injections give the same results for me too. They barely touch the pain in my low back but they reduce the pain in my gluts and legs quite a bit but only temporarily.
I am also Neurontin but the generic version, gabapentin. I have been on it for about 2 years and it really helped get rid of the severe pain I was having in my mid back. I guess there must be nerve damage in that region because I heard Neurontin targets nerve pain rather well. The gabapentin doesn't touch my low back pain only the opiates seem to help and with them the pain relief is still limited. The minute I ramp up my activity level because I hate being confined to a chair all the time, the low back pain flares up regardless of how much opiate medication I took for break through pain. It doesn't help. As long as I don't do much, my low back pain is minimal but is ***** because I WANT to do stuff! I am sure you can relate. The MMJ helps a lot where the opiates leave off but I use it sparingly because sometimes it can raise my heart rate and cause chest pains. The indica strains are a little better at not doing that so much. I am on 1200 mg of gabapentin a day. I was on 900 mg like you for about a year before the increase. How long have you been taking the neurontin? It can take some time to build up in your system and really start working. I really hope the pain relief picks up with the neurontin.
You know, doctors can be so fixated on one solution to a multi-faceted problem. I am on 6 different medicines for pain and each adds 10-15% of pain relief. There really isn't one med that is going to reduce the pain to zero. It typically takes a combination.
That is crazy that the cymbalta made your throat close up like that! That IS very scary and I am glad you dumped that stuff. I am on Remeron for pain and depression and it seems to work fairly well with minimal side effects. It is an anti-depressant as well, one of the few or the only one that doesn't have sexual side effects. I also take flexeril, valium, and extended release morphine with percocet for breakthrough pain. I still get bad days but they are the minority instead of the majority. I know if I were getting injections alone, my pain relief would be minimal. It is the injections in combination with the other things that makes a big difference. And, I think there are many doctors on the western side of the US that understand this. I think you will be very happy with your care out here and more happier in general. I am VERY excited for you!! :) :)
femmy
You're are so correct about pain management not being uniform across the United States. I have heard horror stories about pain management from folks that live both in the south and on the east coast. I am so glad that you are able to move west where pain is treated more liberally.
The injections give the same results for me too. They barely touch the pain in my low back but they reduce the pain in my gluts and legs quite a bit but only temporarily.
I am also Neurontin but the generic version, gabapentin. I have been on it for about 2 years and it really helped get rid of the severe pain I was having in my mid back. I guess there must be nerve damage in that region because I heard Neurontin targets nerve pain rather well. The gabapentin doesn't touch my low back pain only the opiates seem to help and with them the pain relief is still limited. The minute I ramp up my activity level because I hate being confined to a chair all the time, the low back pain flares up regardless of how much opiate medication I took for break through pain. It doesn't help. As long as I don't do much, my low back pain is minimal but is ***** because I WANT to do stuff! I am sure you can relate. The MMJ helps a lot where the opiates leave off but I use it sparingly because sometimes it can raise my heart rate and cause chest pains. The indica strains are a little better at not doing that so much. I am on 1200 mg of gabapentin a day. I was on 900 mg like you for about a year before the increase. How long have you been taking the neurontin? It can take some time to build up in your system and really start working. I really hope the pain relief picks up with the neurontin.
You know, doctors can be so fixated on one solution to a multi-faceted problem. I am on 6 different medicines for pain and each adds 10-15% of pain relief. There really isn't one med that is going to reduce the pain to zero. It typically takes a combination.
That is crazy that the cymbalta made your throat close up like that! That IS very scary and I am glad you dumped that stuff. I am on Remeron for pain and depression and it seems to work fairly well with minimal side effects. It is an anti-depressant as well, one of the few or the only one that doesn't have sexual side effects. I also take flexeril, valium, and extended release morphine with percocet for breakthrough pain. I still get bad days but they are the minority instead of the majority. I know if I were getting injections alone, my pain relief would be minimal. It is the injections in combination with the other things that makes a big difference. And, I think there are many doctors on the western side of the US that understand this. I think you will be very happy with your care out here and more happier in general. I am VERY excited for you!! :) :)
femmy
Thanks again Femmy :)
Well, I had to stop taking the cymbalta, the second week, the dosage doubled as per my doctor, and it began to close up my throat (side effect),it was like being choked out, very uncomfortable and freightning to say the least. So he put me on Neurontin. Its an antiseizure med that has done nothing to help me regarding back and leg pain. The strange part is that Im taking 900 mg per day and the "effective" dose begins around 2800-3200 mg per day. He wants to go slow with it, as it makes me really dizzy....
Also I got more spinal injections this week. (round 11) And for 3 days my leg pain dropped from a 9, to a 6 or 7, but low back pain stayed the same at a constant10.
Today, my left leg pain is increasing and at about 8 or 9. So far the right leg is still at about a 7.
I Honestly think the neurontin is poison and I dread what I will have to endure to get off of it, if it does not work. These type of drugs scare me maybe even more then the opiates. And yes I was on them (opiates) for a couple of months post surgery, but then the doctor stopped perscribeing them, and thats how I ended up smoking the mmj.
I cant explain just how frustrating this all is. And as soon as my legal issues are cleared up, we intend to sell our home and head west. You would think that pain management would be a singular language coast to coast, but its not even close...I hope your doing well and living well, peace and love to all.
Well, I had to stop taking the cymbalta, the second week, the dosage doubled as per my doctor, and it began to close up my throat (side effect),it was like being choked out, very uncomfortable and freightning to say the least. So he put me on Neurontin. Its an antiseizure med that has done nothing to help me regarding back and leg pain. The strange part is that Im taking 900 mg per day and the "effective" dose begins around 2800-3200 mg per day. He wants to go slow with it, as it makes me really dizzy....
Also I got more spinal injections this week. (round 11) And for 3 days my leg pain dropped from a 9, to a 6 or 7, but low back pain stayed the same at a constant10.
Today, my left leg pain is increasing and at about 8 or 9. So far the right leg is still at about a 7.
I Honestly think the neurontin is poison and I dread what I will have to endure to get off of it, if it does not work. These type of drugs scare me maybe even more then the opiates. And yes I was on them (opiates) for a couple of months post surgery, but then the doctor stopped perscribeing them, and thats how I ended up smoking the mmj.
I cant explain just how frustrating this all is. And as soon as my legal issues are cleared up, we intend to sell our home and head west. You would think that pain management would be a singular language coast to coast, but its not even close...I hope your doing well and living well, peace and love to all.
Hi Dilullo,
That is awful that a physician told you that you needed to get that crap flushed out of your system. UNBELIEVABLE!! There is so much propaganda that surrounds marijuana use. In our state we do have medical marijuana and I have a license. I pick up a brownie every now and then. They last a few weeks as 1/8th does quite a bit for a whole day. Marijuana can't kill you but alcohol and narcotics can.
Personally for me, medical marijuana boosts the pain relief of my medications, both narcotic and non-narcotic. I get evaluated by a MMJ doctor once a year to keep my license active. All of them say that it is perfectly safe to combine MMJ with opiates and other meds.
I wish you could move to Colorado!! or California!! where it is legal. Doctors are always pushing patients to do more injections. I get those epidural injections every 3 months. I have had 5 of them so far and the 6th coming in December. They take the edge off for 5 to 6 weeks but one of my anesthesiologist told me the truth about those injections when I went in for one recently. She said that over time they weaken the bone significantly to the point of causing arthritis of the hip (as I get them in my low back). She told me that these injections are not a long term solution and that I can't keep coming in here forever. However, so many physicians use them as a requirement for pain meds without telling the patient the truth about what they doing to their bones. I take calcium supplements every day to try to combat the loss of bone density.
Obviously, doctors in NJ aren't very compassionate and understanding about MMJ and how effective it can be with managing pain. I don't know if you have been on opiates before or has it just been MJ? I think you'll need to make a decision on which type of med works best for your pain as doing both will unfortunately get you in trouble when they drug test you. And that *****!! :(
I am so sorry you are at a crossroads regarding pain management. I wholeheartedly believe that doctors need to listen to patients more. But so many doctors are not thinking solely of doing good for the patient but are rather influenced by big pharmaceutical companies to promote their drugs to their patients without regard for finding the optimal solution for their patients.
I wish you could move to a different state so you could get better care. I would wait it out and see if this physician is going to help you or not. If not, I would find another physician and don't tell him about MJ because unfortunately in your state that seems to backfire on the patient. Which ***** because patients should be able to engage in open and honest comunication with their doctor regarding pain in terms of what helps and what doesn't. And the patient's statements should be taken seriously and care should be aligned uniquely for each patient as everyone is different. Instead of dictating what you will do for pain management.
Please keep us updated on your progress. I really hope that you can get medications that will help reduce your pain levels so that you can get back to enjoying life.
femmy
That is awful that a physician told you that you needed to get that crap flushed out of your system. UNBELIEVABLE!! There is so much propaganda that surrounds marijuana use. In our state we do have medical marijuana and I have a license. I pick up a brownie every now and then. They last a few weeks as 1/8th does quite a bit for a whole day. Marijuana can't kill you but alcohol and narcotics can.
Personally for me, medical marijuana boosts the pain relief of my medications, both narcotic and non-narcotic. I get evaluated by a MMJ doctor once a year to keep my license active. All of them say that it is perfectly safe to combine MMJ with opiates and other meds.
I wish you could move to Colorado!! or California!! where it is legal. Doctors are always pushing patients to do more injections. I get those epidural injections every 3 months. I have had 5 of them so far and the 6th coming in December. They take the edge off for 5 to 6 weeks but one of my anesthesiologist told me the truth about those injections when I went in for one recently. She said that over time they weaken the bone significantly to the point of causing arthritis of the hip (as I get them in my low back). She told me that these injections are not a long term solution and that I can't keep coming in here forever. However, so many physicians use them as a requirement for pain meds without telling the patient the truth about what they doing to their bones. I take calcium supplements every day to try to combat the loss of bone density.
Obviously, doctors in NJ aren't very compassionate and understanding about MMJ and how effective it can be with managing pain. I don't know if you have been on opiates before or has it just been MJ? I think you'll need to make a decision on which type of med works best for your pain as doing both will unfortunately get you in trouble when they drug test you. And that *****!! :(
I am so sorry you are at a crossroads regarding pain management. I wholeheartedly believe that doctors need to listen to patients more. But so many doctors are not thinking solely of doing good for the patient but are rather influenced by big pharmaceutical companies to promote their drugs to their patients without regard for finding the optimal solution for their patients.
I wish you could move to a different state so you could get better care. I would wait it out and see if this physician is going to help you or not. If not, I would find another physician and don't tell him about MJ because unfortunately in your state that seems to backfire on the patient. Which ***** because patients should be able to engage in open and honest comunication with their doctor regarding pain in terms of what helps and what doesn't. And the patient's statements should be taken seriously and care should be aligned uniquely for each patient as everyone is different. Instead of dictating what you will do for pain management.
Please keep us updated on your progress. I really hope that you can get medications that will help reduce your pain levels so that you can get back to enjoying life.
femmy
Not to mention that when I went to pain management, they had to turn the blue water back on so I could go to the bathroom. It made me feel like a criminal and that was while I was still waiting to see the doctor (in the waiting area). My thought was, maybe I should just start to bring a lawyer with me to every visit, since its such an untrusting environment...And still, all these thought racing through my mind does nothing to help ease the severe spasms and chronic, full time, all the time pain that I am in.
Thanks for your ear and have a great day!
Thanks for your ear and have a great day!
So I will wait 4 more weeks and see what happens. It just dosent seem right that I have to clean out the only drug that has never killed anyone for highly addicting and damaging drugs that kill people every single day...<<>>
Wow Femmy!!! And Thank you so much..Very frustrating. It got so bad (the pain and depression, that is) that I went to yet another pain management doctor out of sheer desperation, and he is a great man, but its the same old song and dance. Of course like every other doctor, he wants to do spinal injections, with courtiszone and steroids. Having been down this road no less then ten times before, I know that this is not the answer. And so I tell him the truth, that I smoked weed (again out of desperation) over 3 weeks ago to help with the pain. He had already tested me (urine) and getting ready to send it out, so I figured I should tell him the truth. He thanked me for being honest and said "we gotta get that crap out of your system before I can perscribe any narcotic meds", so Ill see you in a month, and stop screwing around with that crap. The only plus that came out of it was that after looking at my most recent MRI scan they have finally determined that I suffer from "failed back syndrome".
I knew something was wrong, way wrong, so atleast I got some validation as to whats going on in my lower back and legs. He did put me on Cymbalta, which lowered some depression, but has done nothing for the pain. Honestly speaking Marijuana did really help me out all the way around, from helping with the pain levels to totaly alieving depression, if that makes any sense. But here in NJ to date, medical marijuana is taboo..If you bring it up to any doctors they cant flush you out of there fast enough, mainly because there are no MM trained doctors.Its a total joke.
I knew something was wrong, way wrong, so atleast I got some validation as to whats going on in my lower back and legs. He did put me on Cymbalta, which lowered some depression, but has done nothing for the pain. Honestly speaking Marijuana did really help me out all the way around, from helping with the pain levels to totaly alieving depression, if that makes any sense. But here in NJ to date, medical marijuana is taboo..If you bring it up to any doctors they cant flush you out of there fast enough, mainly because there are no MM trained doctors.Its a total joke.
You should also take at least 1200 mg of calcium with vitamin D a day. This regimen has been shown to reduce pain and ease depression due to pain. I am so sorry to hear about your pain, issues with surgery and the insurance company, and the loss of your profession. My heart goes out to you. Your wife seems to be very supportive and it is important to have a caring person in your life at this difficult time.
I also know from experience that marijuana is great for pain. I hope they legalize medical marijuana in your state soon.
Hang in there and take it one day at a time.
femmy
I also know from experience that marijuana is great for pain. I hope they legalize medical marijuana in your state soon.
Hang in there and take it one day at a time.
femmy
I do take a vitamin b6-b12 supplement, and have been doing so since prior to the injury, thank you for your input :)
I am sorry to hear about your pain ordeal. I wish I can be of help. Do you ever take B vitamins, especially B1-B6-B12? Anyway, let me share this link for your reading... http://www.livestrong.com/article/30301-vitamins-nerves/. Maybe you can ask your doctor about taking B vitamins. I pray that you get well.
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