Chronic Pain members - Welcome, please introduce yourself

I'm sorry you are in so much pain. I'm a retired orthopedic RN and l have the similar problems . I reciently moved from CA to FL . In Calif I had great doctors and my pain was well managed. Then I moved to the Florida the " Meca of Drug Abuse " no one here will prescribe anything stronger than Tramadol for chronic pain. Its better than nothing but its not enough. Doctors in Florida will still give their patients all of the Oxy drugs they want ( which is what started the drug abuse problems ) but I'm allergic to all of them. So Fentynal patches is what I was given in the past ( which they refuse to give me).

Unfortunately all you can do is keep seeing pain doctors until you find one who will help you. Call your Ins co and let them know that you needing second opinions ( or maybe a third or fouth ). That way they will know that you aren't " shopping for drugs and will authorize and pay for second options. ONLY tell your Ins co and future doctors that "you just don't click " with your current doctor. Never complain to a new doctor about your last one. That's a red flag.

The other thing that might work is to " educate your doctors" about your condition. Be VERY careful about your approch. Physicians have Big Egos and do not like being told how to treat you.
I have h-EDS Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome which means I am in chronic pain and autoimmune. I've collected medical articles about my condition and bring copies with me. I even highlight the important information I want them to focus on. Think of it as giving them accurate "evidence/ proof" in a murder trial.

I wait until I have my first appt to see if I even like them or if they might be able to help me. Then I hand the doctor my info packet at the end of your appt.
All you need to say is that you don't expect your doctors to know everything about your condition ( or what treatments worked in the past...) so you thought this might help him/ her understand you better. THATS IT. The less you day the better. Then thank them for their time and leave. Don't get frustrated if they dont give you what you wanted at that first appt. Give them a chance to read what you gave them... In addition to the clinical info, I always include what previous treatments and meditations worked and which ones didnt. I also request that if he/she can't ( or won't) help me to please be honest and tell me so I can find another doctor. There is nothing wrong with saying that. You are giving them permission to say " I'm not the right doctor for you " and you won't waste your time or theirs.
I hope this helps you.
💜🩷💛

Hi this is Catherine Olsen. I am a retired orthopedic RN and I've worked with pain patients. I am new to this entire forum and I don't know where or how to introduce myself. Please direct me on how to do that. Also what information about me should I include?
Thank you.
Cat 🐾

@spenjen Have you tried gabapentin? I began in tiny doses and the change was amazing. Because of multiple injuries I now take 1200x2. Luckily I can tolerate it n. I know it works well for some but not all. Some prefer Lyrica (I don’t).
A warm therapy pool can help (if one is available)
I go to a pain clinic but none of the injections have helped. I gather that I am not alone in this. But it is relatively recent that fibro was diagnosed which means that treatments are guesswork

@kitkatrn, the posts you made today serve as a great introduction. Welcome. You can also update your profile. Learn how and other tips to getting started in the Help Center here: https://connect.mayoclinic.org/help-center/

@krundus76 Ken--I too am a Mayo PRC graduate but it did not help me. I have suffered with lower back pain for 14 years and have been thru 15 back surgeries. I as well would be interested in a support group where people could talk. I don't think anyone who has not lived with significant chronic pain can truly understand what it is like, though my wife probably has the best idea. So, a support group would be beneficial.

@kitkatr Thank you for a thoughtful post. Your cover of prescribing, and finding and interacting with physicians is intelligent. Anecdotally, having been prescribed “the limit” of sixty mg of Oxy a day for years here in NC I recently broke my neck in a fall and was prescribed two Tylenol by my Pain Management physician. Intelligence does not seem to govern “our” system as much as do business models.

@cpalmer Two Tylenol for pain after you broke your neck? That's ridiculous. Too bad some of these doctors who are reluctant to prescribe stronger drugs for severe pain can't experience OUR pain for a day or two. Then, they might change their tune. I wish you well on your journey.

I’m a 69yo woman with arthritis in my spine and sciatic joints. In 2020 i ve ale crippled from pain and th legs wouldn’t work. I was diagnosed with Covid related osteoarthritis. I didn’t have arthritis in 2020 or prior. Then it hit me hard. I was sick of 6 weeks a lost the ability to walk. I was in a wheelchair for a year because the pain was so bad my body wouldn’t let me use my legs without the walker and very limited in that. Pain doc got me out and was burning nerves and injections. Turns out injections were steroids and it ate up my bones so now I have severe osteoarthritis in my spine and severe osteoporosis in my spine as well as osteopenia in both femurs. I’m on a twice a year injection called Prolia to grow new bone. It is painful on top of the severe pain I have. I’m on gabapentin, Cyclobenzaprine for a chronic muscle spasm which is losing its effectiveness and my memory is an issue because of gabapentin. I’m curious to know if anyone has tried CBD instead of gabapentin. If so does it work on the pain? Can you stop gabapentin? This is going to put me back in the wheelchair. I can’t walk around a store. I have to use the carts they offer. If they don’t have carts a store is too big, I can’t shop there. I am forced to do online shopping. I miss just going into a store to see what they have and maybe buy it. I can’t even do food shopping without the cart. My husband helps in many ways. I told him think about getting me my own cart. This way I’m free to do more. Guess that kind of tells you how much I hurt. I also have narrowing of the spine so a wheelchair is in my future. There is more fancy names to my diagnosis. Spondylitis is one. I can’t think of the rest. I have it written down for my docs. I was supposed to be having fun and instead I’m more housebound than I am out of the house and I hurt more than I don’t. Does anyone try CBD? I would rather that than gabapentin. Can’t do Cymbalta. It numbed my brain they I don’t have emails. I don’t feel elations nor sadness. I can’t cry. I’m a cryer. So I can’t take that. I can’t take Pregabalin (Lyrica). It makes my skin super sensitive and it doesn’t help my pain at all. It makes me irritated. So I’m back on gabapentin. It works decently but my memory is shot. I would love to try CBD.

@spenjen did you have any radiography done on your back? I have similar pain that is due to my scoliosis. Most scoliosis is not only curving left and/or right the spine also twists. My Xiphoid bone at the bottom of my sternum points to the right instead of straight down. If your spine twists so do your attached ribs. This may be your issue?

@jenatsky I really don’t know, but I am seeing my pain management specialist this week and will ask. I have had many different treatments,like trigger point injections,light therapy,nerve ablation, radio frequency,epidural blocs,steroids, hot pepper treatments ( that’s not the medical term!)and even tried acupuncture. So far, nothing has helped even a bit.