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← Return to Severe chronic back pain
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@shooshoo7073
I hear you about having back pain limiting what you can do.
Do you have pain/weakness/numbness from lower back down to feet? Do you have any symptoms in your neck/upper back/arms/hands?
How long have you had these symptoms and did you ever have an accident or injury/fall?
You need to find a reputable and highly reviewed orthopedic spine specialist and get updated MRIs of cervical and lumbar spine. It would be good to see a neurologist to have an EMG/nerve conduction study of your upper and lower limbs and possibly small fiber neuropathy skin punch biopsy.
It sounds like you have compressed spinal cord/nerve roots/nerves and possibly stenosis/degenerative disc disease and neurogenic claudication.
You need to review the MRI report in detail as well as get a report for your EMG.
Have you worked with an orthopedic pain management center for treatment options like spinal injections? Have you tried Salonpas nerve pain patches or capsaicin nerve pain creams on your back?
Replies to "@shooshoo7073 I hear you about having back pain limiting what you can do. Do you have..."
I am so sorry you are experiencing this awful pain. I have fibromyalgia but have found a few things to help. The biggest has been a health coaching program Mayo refers people to called Lin Health. It basically retrains your brain to process pain differently and works on the brain body connection. I have experienced a huge amount of relief from this. They are based out of Edina but do virtual appointments too.
I also found relief from acupuncture and sometimes you can find community clinics with a sliding fee.
As far as topical I recommend Too Old Goats lotion and a Stop Pain roller stick.
I can attest to chronic progressive pain in my lower back, spine, hips, back of my legs. I'm startto get used to crying. I have CIDP which is a chronic neuropathy of the peripheral nerves. I know my pain is caused from my CIDP condition and several other maladies you have listed. I have them all. I have seen one surgeon during all of this and was not convinced. I'll leave it at that. I'm curious though why a lot of people insist on orthopedic surgeons to relieve these conditions which include giving my crushed nerve roots room to be free. I saw a neurosurgeon.
Well I would certainly explore the spine surgery option. I do wish I had put more time into it before things got exponentially worse. Some days pain means taking a step forward.
I do use a lot of creams, yes like mentioned with capsaicin, patches with lidocaine. VOLTAREN, ICY HOT, I prefer the roll on from creams, easier to apply.
Heat and cold. I have a small electric blanket. I place it on my back exactly along the length of my pain areas. I use ice topically. I interchange. They both help tremendously some times. Of course I take pregabalin, I have neuropathy, not much if a relief, so I have to take more serious painkillers or else I would have to spend my days in a horrible state for me and for my loved ones. That is not me. If you have a doctor you know and trust, talk about pain management. Options? Real options. Make an appointment for a pain clinic. See what they say. Take that information back to the doctor you trust.
Of course some physical therapy. Do as much as you can. Find a distraction, something you like doing that is productive, I find that helpful. Write, draw, paint, sing, meditate, research things you're curious about, watch documentaries, take a course online....suggestions.
Try. Find a way to deal with the pain.
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Yes my legs and feet feel like they don’t work well sometimes and the big toes on both feet are numb.
I have state insurance and they won’t cover pain management for some reason.
I was told that I have digestive bone disease and fibromyalgia.
I have had injection and they mad the pain worse and I’ve tried the patches and I can’t seem to get any relief.