Severe chronic back pain

Thank you for your suggestions I appreciate them.

I get the same thing (have it right now) and that is exactly how I describe it - it feels like my tendons or ligaments are being torn apart. The pain is quite violent. I get the same feeling in other parts of my body as well.

I should note that I have osteoarthritis in my spine but I also have psoriatic arthritis (PsA). I also think that at least some of my spine/back pain stems from my PsA, but it can be hard to tell. I had a PsA flare in a knee so bad that I could hardly pull my pants over my leg (it was that inflamed) and the pain was so bad that I really couldn't put much pressure on that leg. I had multiple steroid injections over time and the joint pain & inflammation finally went away, but I still had lingering pain on points on the sides of my knee. Those areas also felt like they were ripping. It turned out I had enthesitis there, so now I wonder if I could have the same thing going on with my lumbar spine/outer hip/pelvic area. Sometimes the pain spreads to my sacral area and with it all, I have described as feeling like I was a chicken bone being ripped apart.

The best suggestions I can offer after dealing with this for 30 years is you’re going to have to find a really good orthopedic surgeon that will continue to look at the various vertebrae and disc conditions in your lumbar. You need to have MRIs every year if you have a degenerative condition like I do. I’ve done everything known to man and finally got to the end where I couldn’t sleep and the only thing that got me back to sleeping was an exercise routine that I do myself. For the last nine months I had on fire burning from my sciatic down to my foot and we did diagnose what nerve roots it seems to be coming from, but the orthopedic surgeon is not ready to do surgery and the pain management doctor will not do another Cortizone injection, even though That relieved me of the on fire ripping burning 100%. Cortizone is bad for your body. So the only thing I had left was exercise and my facial tissue release MFR. There’s a section here at the Mayo Clinic on that so I suggest you get into MFR for immediate relief and then you start creating an exercise regime that you can live with. I saw the result from my first exercise session that I could sleep at night, but then the pain returned over three weeks, but only somewhat. By three weeks in I could increase my exercise regime and now I can sleep at night after a month with no burning, ripping tearing pain. At 68 with all my degenerative stuff, I can sit on my stationary bike for 30 minutes to an hour and a half and I walk the dog twice a day for 20 to 30 minutes. That allows for a couple things. It allows me to sleep heavier because I wear myself out and my body can heal and it also strengthens my muscles to support my degenerative condition And twice a month I go for MFR therapy and I have a really good therapist. I’ve been going for nine months and I can really feel the difference. They told me I will be going for the rest of my life as your muscles develop a habit. And if I don’t go, they’ll just go right back into position of tagging on my bones and pulling everything out of whack. I know it’s really hard to start an exercise routine, but I found it better to quit PT and rehab after 30 years. I know what to do myself and that extra hour to drive back-and-forth I’d rather put into exercise at home. Find something you can live with and I bet you you’ll see a difference, but don’t expect it overnight.

I've had MRIs, but has anyone with similar condition had a MRI with 3D capability?

Also it's been suggested to try a muscle relaxant, but the only one I could find that would be compatible with PreGabalin is Metaxalone. Unfortunately it is not covered by my part D plan. IMO it is not inexpensive as my OOP cost for a minimum dose of 400mg 3x per day would be around $275 for a 30 day supply. Not sure I need another med that makes me sleepy.

I’m taking pregabalin an it helps with the tingling but not the pain.

I had chest pain on the left side. The PreGabalin took care of that and the constant itching all over. I have CVI in my lower legs which can make the skin painful to touching. Can't win em all, but the PreGabalin helps immensely. It's a keeper.

You don’t explain whether the pain is nerve related or muscle/tendon/ligament. I have nerve impingement at L-4/5 and C5/6. Both can be excruciating at times and I’ve tried physio, IMS, steroid injections and ablation. The only thing that gives me relief is Pregabalin. I took it a few years ago when only my Lumbar spine was involved and didn’t like the woozy feeling it gave me at times, so stopped, but now that my neck is impinged I’m willing to live with that for the pain relief. It gives me about 85-90% pain free time. My Doctor has allowed me to play with dosage so I take as little as possible. Right now it’s either 25-50 mg in the morning and 50 mg at night. Last time I was on 75mg twice a day. I have less side effects this go round.

Neither PreGabalin nor GabaPentin helps my current pain so I assume it's not nerve related.

That’s too bad. Have you tried IMS? Or had an MRI? Just throwing some ideas out there. I’ve also been to the Pain clinic and have learned about breathing and distraction to relieve pain.