Stress and pain??

[jamlws]

Yesterday was a heck of a day. I took my son to see a NET and she was so nice. She looked him over and said he needs surgery asap so it is set for May 3rd. He is getting his tonsils and his adenoids out and he has a blockage in his sinus area that has to be cut open so he can get air into his nose, right now he breaths out of his mouth and when he eats he has to eat with his mouth open. He is only 7. I know this is a routine surgery but when it is your kid it isn't. Plus he has so many med, food and outdoor allergies. Some pain meds and meds they use to put you to sleep during surgery, his dad and grandpa is severly allergic too. We don't know what med it is to put to sleep cause his grandpa don't remember but vicidin almost killed his grandpa and made his dad really sick. It really scares me. I know he will have a tube down his throat during all this so that makes me feel alittle better that his throat can't close on him if he reacts to one of the meds they are using. It was so hard to keep it all together yesterday in front of him and to make it not seem like a big deal, I was able to do it and we have been talking alot about the surgery and stuff he has to do and can't do after. Like he has to stay in the house for 7 days and not be around any other kids and he can't play baseball for atleast 10 days which ***** for him cause his first game is May 8th and he can't play and that kills him cause he loves baseball.  Anyway since I found out how bad my son is and what he has to go through my pain has been so much worse, my knee is killing me (I sprained it) and my face pain hurts really bad. Does stress make pain worse? Also when I went to the dr last time she said she can't be giving me meds "long term" which she knows she won't cause I will be treated by a pain dr next month. Should I call when I run out of pain meds to try to get some more or just leave her alone and deal with the pain? I don't know what she meant by "long term" cause she knows I can't take anything other then what the pain dr gives me when he starts treating me. Any advice would be great.
Thanks
Jamie

[troubleinohio]

JMO but  I would call the nurse today at your dr's office, in case your doctor isnt in tomorrow or something like that. also they sometimes do that type of thing right after they close for the day - the dr usually reviews patients requests/messages at the end of the day and then they might call in a script for you tomorrow. If you wait too long you may not get anything before they close for the weekend. Just let them know when you call that you still have some left but didnt want to wait until you were completely out before requesting a refill. good luck and hope you feel better soon.
PS Im sorry your son has to go through that surgery! Poor little guy! My oldest son is the same age as yours and I know how hard it is to try and keep a boy that age quiet and indoors for a long time!

[jamlws]

My son is not aloud to have ANY kids around him for the first 7 days then after that it is fine and he will go watch the next game so he can cheer his team on IF he is feeling like it. I am trying to plan for his grandparents to come watch him so I can go to a play my daughter is in during the day and then that night I will stay with him so my husband can go watch her during the night play. I also have to go see that shrink 2 days after his surgery so I will have to have one of his grandparents come watch him so I can go. I am going to be in this house for awhile. I have talked to him about what is going to happen after the surgery, how he has to be in the house for 7 days and not play ball for 10. He isn't to happy bout it but that is the way it has to be. We are planning things he can do while he is in the house so he won't get to bored.
I am not due to run out of my pills til tomorrow so I will call then. I know they like a early notice but with pain pills I don't want her thinking I am talking more then I should. I will have 4 for tomorrow. So I will call her in the morning. IF she does give me more she is pretty good about doing it the same day, if it wasn't for the weekend I would wait another day after I run out but since it is the weekend I am afraid I can't make it through it. I was in so much pain last night I had trouble sleeping and that is ON the meds. Plus a have a  new pain that started and it feels like it is in the bone, I know the bone the 2nd dentist took alot of it out when he took the tooth out and one dr told me I should be having problems with that but I haven't til now. All I can do is call and ask if she don't give me more I will just deal with it.
Thank you
Jamie

[geminigirl1963]

I'm sorry for all your pain.  As a fellow chronic severe pain sufferer, I can relate to how you're feeling and how worried you are about trying to deal with the pain if you don't have any pain meds available.

I would most definitely contact your doctor about getting enough pain meds to last you until your pain management in May.  since your doctor didn't specifically tell you that she would "no longer" give you pain meds, I don't think she will have a problem with giving you enough to last you until your other appointment.  I would suggest, though, that you don't contact her about this refill until a day or maybe two before your current prescription of meds would run out.  I know some doctor offices require a couple of days' notice for processing refills, but with pain meds, if you call to request a refill much sooner than the "due date" - even if you still have plenty of meds left to last until that "due date" - your doctor could think that you are requesting a refill early becuase you have been taking more meds than prescribed.  Of course, you also could take your bottle of meds into the doctor's office and request the refill in person, so that way the doctor could see that you have been taking it as she prescribed.

I'm glad your son is enjoying baseball so much - I think it's great when children get involved with and have fun with team sports.  I think it goes a long way in helping to build their self esteem and ability to work with others.  It's a shame he's going to miss a couple of games, but like you said, he will feel so much better and be able to play more and longer once the surgery is over and he's healed.  Have you talked to him about that part of it?  I know it's hard for kids to understand the "waiting game" and "what's going to happen in the future".

I know you said your son can't go anywhere for 7 days after his surgery, but will he be allowed visitors?  If so, maybe you can talk to his coach about asking the team to come over to visit him after the game so that your son can celebrate with them and hear all about the game.  If it's permitted, maybe turn it into a team pizza party or something.  Your son will still be in the comfort and safety of your home, but will be able to have his friends and teammates with him, filling him in on what happened at the game - it might help your son to feel more like he was involved.

Best of luck to both you and your son.

[jamlws]

My bottle says to take 1 to 2 pills 4 times a day, I don't take anymore then what the bottle says to take. She said "I can't give you pain meds long term" She has only been giving them to me for about a month or two. She knows I go to the pain dr May 17th, I just have to be cleared by the shrink on May 5th then wait for my appt. The way I am feeling now I know I can't make it without the help of pain meds, my pain is pretty bad now and I don't even want to think of how bad it will get without them. I went to watch my son play baseball tonight and he made a heck of a catch and hit a really great ball and I couldn't even yell to cheer him on for fear my mouth and face will kill me.He asked me "Mom can I please wait til ball is over to have my surgery? I don't want to miss anything" I feel bad for him but I know he will only get healthier after the surgery so he can play ball even better, he is the only kid on the team that has to take breaks and you can hear him clearing his throat during the whole practice. I told his coach he will miss the 1st 2 games and told him he can't go anywhere for 7 days so he told him maybe he can come watch the 2nd game and cheer the team on if he is feeling like it.  I don't know whatt to do anymore I just hope my pain dr appt gets here fast. I will try some of the things you said to try to see if it works.
Thanks
Jamie

[geminigirl1963]

First off, I'm sorry for everything you and your son are going through.  Surgery is always a scary proposition, and when it's on a child AND that child has as many health issues as your son does, it can make it even scarier.  One thing that might make you feel a little better is the fact that since your son's doctors already know about all of his allergies and the family history of problems with anesthesia, they more than likely will be even more careful about what and how much medication they give your son - and will definitely make sure they have whatever they may need readily available in case of an emergency.

Stress most definitely can and does play a large part in our chronic pain issues.  At the very least, stress can make us tense our muscles even without knowing it and that alone can cause an increase in pain.  When you're under stress (either emotional or physical stress), your body tends to go into "overdrive" I call it and makes our pain receptors even more touchy.  I know it's impossible not to worry about your son and what you're going through, but the calmer you can stay and the more you can relax, it may help with the pain levels.  It's very important to take care of yourself during this time - if your pain gets out of control and you end up basically down and out, you certainly won't be able to take care of your son after his surgery.  So try to take as many steps as you can to reduce the amount of stress that you're experiencing - and if you can't reduce the stress itself, try to find ways to help you relax through it - warm baths, maybe a massage, even just taking 1/2 hour to lay down with a cool cloth on your eyes and lay there and listen to soothing music.  I know how hard it is to "relax" when you're in pain (believe me, I know it first hand!) - but I've also learned that taking some of these steps to relax a little even tends to help the pain meds work better - kind of like they aren't fighting against your body's own flight or flight response.  I hope that makes sense to you.

As far as requesting more pain meds from your primary doctor before your pain med appointment - that kind of depends on how your primary doc left it with you - did she say she can't give you any more meds after the initial script or just that she couldn't give them to you long term?  If she told you that she couldn't give them to you long term, I think it would be ok to call her to see about getting a refill - make sure you tell her that a) you realize that she can't give them to you long term and you only need enough to hold you over until your pain mgmt appoint next month and b) that you've been under a lot of stress lately and feel that that has soemthing to do with your pain levels increasing.  So long as you are ONLY taking the meds as prescribed and not abusing them and you're not requesting a refill before it would be time for one, she probably won't have too much problem with it, especially knowing that you already have an appointment set up with a pain mgmt doc for next month and not six months down the road.  you can also assure her that once she starts treatment with the pain doc that you will ONLY get your pain meds from that doc.

Best of luck with your son's surgery - I had my tonsils and adenoids out at about the same age as he is.  It's scary, but hopefully it will help not only with his breathing and eating, but it may also help alleviate some of his allergy symptoms.  When he gets scared about it, keep telling him that one major benefit of the surgery is that he will be able to eat pretty much as much ice cream and ice pops that he wants after the surgery!!!  The promise of a sweet treat may help alleviate some of his fears (at least for a while).

keep us posted on how you're both doing.