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WHY CAN'T I BE TREATED A AS REAL PATIENT ?
Well I was called a junkie on one of the other pages on this site !! But what they do not know is I have dealt with this injury for 7 years and still can't find a doctor to treat me seriously enough by the MRI results !! Because in one spot it says mild !!!! Well after 7 years I can assure you my pain is not MILD regardless of what they MRI says . It shows a pinched nerve and bulging disks and it said degenerative disk disease and someone wants to call me a junkie cause I hurt and want relief !!! The doc I was seeing has lost his license and they were trying to get me to pain management but pain management denied my appointment !!!! WHY ??? I thought that was there job !!! Since when did DOCTORS forget that they are suppose to treat people and not accuse them of JUST WANTING DRUGS !!! I have taken NON-NARCOTIC medicine before and it did not give me any relief !! Been to PT they were afraid to do anything with me when they found out that I sometimes lose control of my bladder and bowels. My left upper thigh has been numb since the end of January. And it has began to cause pain even downin the bottom of my foot !! I AM SICK AND TIRED OF BEING TREATED AS IF I AM LYINGABOUT MY INJURIES WHEN I HAVE THE MRI TO PROVE IT !!!!
Thank you for you words of encouragement !!! I will try to start journaling about my pain . I will also try to start writing down important questions so when I go see a doctor I will be better prepared !!!I thought I had found one in the ACNP I was seeing, he was trying all he could to get me to specialist and they pulled his license!! I just pray I find one soon that actually cares !!!
Hi Meema,
You need to get second and third opinions regarding the need for surgery. You can't wait for a doctor to pose the right questions for you to answer at your appointment. You need to tell them that you are having bowel and bladder control issues. I am certain if they knew this, it would influence their decision on whether or not you are a candidate for surgery.
Additionally, you should start journaling about your pain. What makes your pain worse? What makes it better? etc. Additionally, bring a list of questions or issues that you wish to discuss with your doctor at your appointment. Rate them from most important to least important and discuss the most important concerns first. It is unlikely you will get through all of your concerns in one appointment. Patients that come into their appointments prepared with a notebook and pen are better treated than patients that come to appointments empty handed. Doctors want to know what you have been doing to control the pain as best as you can on your end.
It does seem that you gave Gabapentin a fair trial. However, there are many that do well on Lyrica as opposed to Gabapentin and there are a growing number of people that are doing well on Cymbalta as well. Everyone is different in how they respond to medications. There is definitely not a "one size fits all" solution.
If you don't have doctor now, you NEED to find one. While I agree that venting on a internet forum is helpful in releasing the emotional stress imposed by chronic pain, it is not going to help the chronic pain itself. If you were denied access to one pain management clinic, TRY another one. It seems like the circle of doctors that you have been working with are not helping you.
I do hope that you are able to find a NEW doctor that will take your pain seriously and get you on a treatment plan that improves your quality of life. All doctors are not created equal. There are many that are against opioids in the treatment of chronic non-cancer pain but there are a few that believe in opioids for the treatment of chronic non-cancer pain. The goal is to seek out the doctors that believe in opioids for the treatment of your pain. You will get the same negative results going back to the same doctors you have been going to for years. You NEED to find a NEW doctor!
Good luck and keep us posted.
femmy :)
You need to get second and third opinions regarding the need for surgery. You can't wait for a doctor to pose the right questions for you to answer at your appointment. You need to tell them that you are having bowel and bladder control issues. I am certain if they knew this, it would influence their decision on whether or not you are a candidate for surgery.
Additionally, you should start journaling about your pain. What makes your pain worse? What makes it better? etc. Additionally, bring a list of questions or issues that you wish to discuss with your doctor at your appointment. Rate them from most important to least important and discuss the most important concerns first. It is unlikely you will get through all of your concerns in one appointment. Patients that come into their appointments prepared with a notebook and pen are better treated than patients that come to appointments empty handed. Doctors want to know what you have been doing to control the pain as best as you can on your end.
It does seem that you gave Gabapentin a fair trial. However, there are many that do well on Lyrica as opposed to Gabapentin and there are a growing number of people that are doing well on Cymbalta as well. Everyone is different in how they respond to medications. There is definitely not a "one size fits all" solution.
If you don't have doctor now, you NEED to find one. While I agree that venting on a internet forum is helpful in releasing the emotional stress imposed by chronic pain, it is not going to help the chronic pain itself. If you were denied access to one pain management clinic, TRY another one. It seems like the circle of doctors that you have been working with are not helping you.
I do hope that you are able to find a NEW doctor that will take your pain seriously and get you on a treatment plan that improves your quality of life. All doctors are not created equal. There are many that are against opioids in the treatment of chronic non-cancer pain but there are a few that believe in opioids for the treatment of chronic non-cancer pain. The goal is to seek out the doctors that believe in opioids for the treatment of your pain. You will get the same negative results going back to the same doctors you have been going to for years. You NEED to find a NEW doctor!
Good luck and keep us posted.
femmy :)
Currently I have no doctor !! the one I wasseeing had his license suspended and he actually listened to and my problems and wasdoing his best to get me some help from a surgeon or pain management but pain management said NO and the surgeon asked me to walk on my heels and walk on my toes and deemed me a noncandidate for surgery !! Therewere no questions about loss of bowel and bladder control !! The last time I seen a doctor was in a ER and that doctor told me I probably wouldn't find a doctor to don surgey cause my injury is so low and it could cause damage to other organs . I was on lortab 10 mg , soma, and valium for my nerves and I have been out of medicine since may 22 of this year. Yes I also know how it feels to not be able to walk . The Lord has blessed me enough to bless my husband with a good paying job so I don't have to work, I don't think I could anymore !! I have tried the gabapentin and it did nothing to me as I did increase the dose on my own as the specialist told me to . The last NP I seen asked me had I tried Lyrica but didn't write me any of it to try ! I do not know why doctors treat someone that is in pain, provable pain, like a dope head. Then you take a dope head and they go to the ER and they give them narcotics !! Puzzling to say the least !!
Hi Meema and welcome to the pain management community.
I know how you feel. I have been there and struggled for relief for many many years. Now I am on more medication than I would like to be on but lower doses don't give me the ability to walk and I need to get to work and provide for my family.
I have found that a combination of both non-narcotic and narcotic pain medications work the best. I have tried several alone and they did not provide me with enough relief. But together along with the opioid medications they do a pretty good job.
You need to find a pain management doctor that is willing to do a trial of different medications to find which long acting opioid works best for you as one does not fit all. Additionally, a short acting opioid is helpful for breakthrough pain as I have found that even the strongest long acting opioids still leave me with breakthrough pain 2, 3, and sometimes 4-5 times per day.
Opioids don't work well for nerve pain, which a good portion of your pain is nerve pain due to the pinched nerve in your spine. Gabapentin (brand name Neurontin), Lyrica, and Cymbalta are great meds to treat nerve pain. The starter dose for Gabapentin is 900 mg a day and the max dose is 3600 mg per day so if you tried it before and it didn't work, it could be that the dose was not therapeutic.
I am on Fentanyl Transdermal, and it has been the only opioid that has made a noticeable dent in the nerve pain. I have tried morphine and oxymorphone and both of those didn't not touch the nerve pain.
In the morning when I wake up...if I want to WALK, I have to take 600 mg of Gabapentin, 2 OTC Aleve, and one 10 mg oxycodone and then wait and hour for them to work!! This is all on top of the Fentanyl patch.
I have similar back problems as you that my spine specialists say warrants a two level fusion or at a minimum a discectomy/laminectomy. But the surgeries are so terribly risky so I am getting by until I can finance "endoscopic spine surgery"...I encourage you to research about it.
I am very concerned about the your loss of bowel and bladder control...typically that warrants emergency surgery. You could end up permanently not being able to control your bowels or your bladder so you really need to tell your doctors about this...preferrably a neurosurgeon or orthopedic surgeon.
BUT if I had to choose medications over nothing, I would still chose medications as I do function better with them than without them but just beware that the stronger the opioid, the stronger the side effects.
Don't settle for one doctor's treatment. Keep searching and interviewing other doctors within your area until you find one that will take you seriously. You have a better chance searching for a new doctor than waiting for your current doctor to adequately treat your pain.
Good luck and keep us posted.
femmy
I know how you feel. I have been there and struggled for relief for many many years. Now I am on more medication than I would like to be on but lower doses don't give me the ability to walk and I need to get to work and provide for my family.
I have found that a combination of both non-narcotic and narcotic pain medications work the best. I have tried several alone and they did not provide me with enough relief. But together along with the opioid medications they do a pretty good job.
You need to find a pain management doctor that is willing to do a trial of different medications to find which long acting opioid works best for you as one does not fit all. Additionally, a short acting opioid is helpful for breakthrough pain as I have found that even the strongest long acting opioids still leave me with breakthrough pain 2, 3, and sometimes 4-5 times per day.
Opioids don't work well for nerve pain, which a good portion of your pain is nerve pain due to the pinched nerve in your spine. Gabapentin (brand name Neurontin), Lyrica, and Cymbalta are great meds to treat nerve pain. The starter dose for Gabapentin is 900 mg a day and the max dose is 3600 mg per day so if you tried it before and it didn't work, it could be that the dose was not therapeutic.
I am on Fentanyl Transdermal, and it has been the only opioid that has made a noticeable dent in the nerve pain. I have tried morphine and oxymorphone and both of those didn't not touch the nerve pain.
In the morning when I wake up...if I want to WALK, I have to take 600 mg of Gabapentin, 2 OTC Aleve, and one 10 mg oxycodone and then wait and hour for them to work!! This is all on top of the Fentanyl patch.
I have similar back problems as you that my spine specialists say warrants a two level fusion or at a minimum a discectomy/laminectomy. But the surgeries are so terribly risky so I am getting by until I can finance "endoscopic spine surgery"...I encourage you to research about it.
I am very concerned about the your loss of bowel and bladder control...typically that warrants emergency surgery. You could end up permanently not being able to control your bowels or your bladder so you really need to tell your doctors about this...preferrably a neurosurgeon or orthopedic surgeon.
BUT if I had to choose medications over nothing, I would still chose medications as I do function better with them than without them but just beware that the stronger the opioid, the stronger the side effects.
Don't settle for one doctor's treatment. Keep searching and interviewing other doctors within your area until you find one that will take you seriously. You have a better chance searching for a new doctor than waiting for your current doctor to adequately treat your pain.
Good luck and keep us posted.
femmy
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