migrating pain

[GuinaPig]

In addition to my lower back pain due to a compression fracture, and a small fracture of a vertebrae, I have been having pains that one day hits my hands and wrists, another day it will be my knees, then my hips, upper back and especially feet. My PCP does not have a clue and won't send me to an arthritis doctor. Won't x-ray my extremities for arthritis, but is a little too liberal in his pain and anxiety and anti-inflammatory meds. I notice I get more pains, especially in my upper back when I am stressed.  Are there any breathing and/or relaxation exercises to not only help my stress, but to limber up my spine gently?

[Crazyjan]

Please do me a favor. Look on the back side of your medical card. There should be a customer service number. Call them and tell them you would like to change your primary doctor. Most free health insurance including state and city free health care, they just asign you a doctor but you can change it. Just call them up, they might tell you to go to a website. At the website you register for an account, look up the doctors for primary doctors (you should be seeing the doctors name, address and phone number) then select the doctor. Just follow the instructions. The website should also let you know who you can see if you need a specialist (just find the specialist you like to see and tell your primary doctor who it is with all the contact information). If you need help at any part just call that customer service number.

please do this as soon as possible. They should be open to call on July 5th. You deserve the best care like everybody else does in the U.S.A.  This is your right!!!!!!  If you have done this just discard what I said. Did The doctor tell you could not go to another doctor or did you think you could not since they asigned you the doctor.

Hope this help. Please let me know if this helped out or not,

[GuinaPig]

Thank you for your response and very kind words.  I have been an x-ray tech for the last 27 yrs, am originally from southern california, and always had health insurance thru my employers, until 5 yrs ago, when I came to Louisiana with two of my cousins to help post Katrina people.  I thought I would be able to find a job here easily, but the job market for me was saturated, and settled as being a contract worker for the Louisiana Correctional Institute for Women.  This is the only women's prison in Louisiana, and only the worse fo the worse are here.  I love my job, it is very interesting hearing their stories, and helping them when they get hurt.  The problem is, it is only for 16 hours per week, and I have no health insurance.  I work 3 days a week, which for me is good because of my back and extremity pains, I can rest every other day.  It is because of this that I qualify for free health care, and my PCP, who is an internist, was given to me, not by choice, and I cannot request another physician, but can only be referred by him to another specialty physician.  I think because I am free, he does not really care, or that he has a budget as to how much he can do for me a year.
He has me on Ultram 50 mg, 2 pills 3xday for pain.  Lortab 500mg 1 pill 2x day as needed for pain (which I only took once because it made me so dizzy and nauseaus!)  Cardiosoprodol 350 mg, 1 pill 3x day as needed.  Lisinipril 40 mg for my high blood pressure, because I am so stressed out because of these pains!  Xanax .25 mg 1 pill 2xday as needed and ambien 10mg, 1x day for sleep.  Potassium 20 mg, 1x day, he can't figure out why my potassium is so low.  1200 mg of Calcium for my osteoporosis, Womens over 50 one a day, and mobic as an antiinflammatory.  I stopped the antidepression pill, cause it made me feel so out of it, and I feel much better.  I wish he would take care of me as your PCP does for you, my next appt is for 4 months..I just get so frustrated because I know i need arthritis doctor to handle my meds.  This PCP I have just hands out prescriptions like candy, without looking really into my problems.
I am very happy I found this site.  I already feel better just venting out to you!  Thank you.
Keep in touch, and let me know what you think!--------------Rosemary

[namnam46]

Hi GuinaPig,

First, I want to welcome you to the PM (Pain Management) Forum and let you know that we are glad you found this Forum. We are all CP (Chronic Pain) Patients that help each other with our own expertise and experiences that we have developed through our own CP Issues.

Love your name, as that's the way that I think we have all felt at one time or another in our quest for answers to our CP problems!!  

You know, if I were you and my Doctor wouldn't refer me to a Rheumatologist to check out any arthritic issues, I'd be looking for a new PCP.  I hope you won't mind my saying this, but by the time we reach our mid-50's (I'm almost 65) we are bound to have some Arthritis floating around in us.  I can't imagine what his thinking process is for not sending you unless he just wants to be able to keep your money with him so that he can keep prescribing the Pain Meds. My PCP sent me to a Rheumatologist, who in turn sent me to a PM (Pain Management) Doctor who has been treating me now for over a year.  He not only gives me Medication but also performs wonderful treatments, such as RFA (Radio Frequency Ablation) that have helped my pain immensely this past year.  

I've had Osteo-Arthritis since I've been in my 20's, so it's very probable that many of your problems are due to Arthritis. :(   I'm sorry that I don't have any solutions for you when it comes to the exercises, either breathing or relaxation.  I might suggest soaking in a "warm" tub or standing under a "hot" shower as that truly will help with the Cervical (upper back) pain. It also helps with the Thoracic (middle back) pain.

May I ask what meds your Doctor has you on?  You definitely need to get all of the answers about your condition. You deserve to have a complete Diagnosis, as we all do!!  I not only have Osteo-Arthritis but also severe DDD (Degenerative Disc Disease). I'm on the Fentanyl Patch 87 mcg's and Percocet 10/325's. My PM (Pain Management) Doctor is the one that sent me for all of my tests from x-ray's to MRI's.  He's wonderful and checks out any new problems that arise. I hope that you can find a Doctor like that to take care of you!

I hope that you will stay in touch with us on MH and be an active member on here. As I said earlier, I'm very happy that you have found MH!!  We are here to give you whatever support we can as you continue your search for answers to your pain.

I'll be looking forward to your updates..........Sherry