have severe back pain

[will99900]

About a two years ago i bent over to feed my cat and felt something and hurd something pop in my back. It took me a month to get better, but ever since then i have had a pain in my back, but nothing i could not handle. Recently the pain has started up again and is vary severe. I had xrays done and the doctor tells me that other than some degeneration and some arthritis theres nothing wroung and that i need to just deal with it. The pain is affecting my job and my personnal life. The doctors seem to think i want pain medication and i don;t i just want the pain to go away. Its hard also because i don't have insurance and i don't have alot of money so i don't know what to do please give me any help that you can thanks

[Tuckamore]

Hi Will,

Welcome to MedHelp's Pain Management Forum. I am glad that you found us and took the time to post but so sorry to hear that you have increasing pain and no medical insurance. It's a sad situation that many are faced with today. My heart goes out to you.

As atonicat said, if you have degeneration and arthritis (especially at your age) there is something wrong with you. Both can produce some nasty pain. There are medications that are not in the opiate family that can help control the inflammation and reduce your pain levels. As Namnam said PCP are reluctant to prescribe opiates for young patients.

Additionally an x-ray is not a great diagnostic tool for spinal structural defects or disease. It's always a beginning test, in part due to cost control. However it will not produce detailed pictures of what may be happening in your spine. An MRI is a much better diagnostic tool. Sadly I doubt this will be ordered given the-high cost and your lack of medical insurance.

Have you been to your local county office. Sometimes they offer affordable insurance. In my state you can even obtain a voucher for a one or two time visit for diagnostic testing if they deem it a medical necessity. It's worth a try... you have nothing to lose.

Unfortunately too often when we consult a physician about pain issues they think we are just seeking drugs. I believe this to be due to all the abusers that exist. Sometime it's difficult to know who is on the level unless they have a glaring and documented problem that is known to cause severe pain....another very sad situation.

We true CP patients pay dearly for all the drug seekers/abusers. I've been told that for every legitimate CP patient a physician sees they have at least ten others that are not legitimate. So we're up against some pretty staggering odds.

If you aer not satisfied with your current physician remember there are others. They do not treat us out of the goodness of their hearts. We pay them for their services... they are Service Providers. If you're not happy with a particular "service" move on to one that will listen and provide options for pain management. It doesn't mean opiates... but there are alternatives to medications. PT is very costly, most medical treatments are! So again I urge you to see what may be available through your state or county.

In the meantime talk to your local pharmacist. See what he/she may suggest for an OTC pain reliever. There are also rubs and similar items that may help ease your pain. My personal favorite is ThermaCare. There are now generics available in that product. Rotating ice/heat may be beneficial. Again your pharmacist may be your best source right now until you can find better options.

Best of luck to you. Please keep in touch and let us know how you are doing.

Take Care and Good Luck,
~Tuck

[namnam46]

Hi will99900,

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.

I'm sorry that you are having these problems with your back.  Have you asked your Doctor to have an MRI done of your back, since your pain is persistant?  Sometimes problems don't alsways show up in an x-ray.  This could be a real problem since you don't have any insurance, but it could be the only way that you will have a chance to get some answers.  Can you borrow the money from your parents?  Can you get some insurance either now or in the near future?  Are you working at a job that offers insurance? Are you a student? I know that students often have a possibility of purchasing insurance.  Just trying to throw out some options to you. :) I'm sure that you've probably thought of these already.

Doctor's will, usually, not give many Pain Meds to young people without a definite diagnosis.  In fact, they won't give them to anyone without a definite diagnosis that requires the Pain Medication.  All we pain patients want is for the pain to go away, and whether you are young or old you deserve to have the best control of your pain that is available. Unfortunately, your age is going to cause you some problems and that's not fair but that's the way that it is.  As long as you know this and are prepared for it, you will be OK. :)

Have you tried any of the OTC Medications?  You can always ask your Pharmacist for his/her recommendations as what would be the best for you to try.  Of course, at night, the good old Heating Pad is always a good stand-by as well as soaking in a "warm" bath or taking a "hot" shower and letting the water run over your back. I'm throwing out these ideas to you to help you get by until you can get a diagnosis so that you might be able to get some relief from your pain.

Have you thought about trying some PT (Physical Therapy)?  That's always a good start when you are having some back pain.  A lot of times that will take care of it and you wouldn't need anything else. I'm really sorry that you are having to go through this at such a young age.

I wish you the very best and hope that you will keep us posted on how you are doing.

We'll be looking for you updates.............Sherry  :)

[atonicat]

If you have degeneration and arthritis, there is something wrong. Those are two of my main problems and they cause me a lot of pain. The arthritis cause such stiffness and pain that I can't sit for long periods of time or walk around for long periods. So it's a balancing act of rest and movement. I also take 400mg's of Celebrex daily which does help. I was taking Norco and a muscle relaxer but I had the nerves burned in my facet joints (where most of my arthritis is) back in February so I haven't had to take those.

What I'm trying to say is you need a second opinion or a referral to pain management or something like that. Arthritis alone can be very painful. And it's nothing to just ignore.