Chronic Back Pain for Years

@polygons I am so sorry to hear of all the terrible things that can happen to one person. My thoughts and prayers are with you, such a selfless person

Ask your Doc about an intrathecal pain pump. Search this sight for wsh66. I have a pump and have written a lot about it. It's the way to go. If your Doc doesn't know of them contact pain management clinics and ask if the do them.

@wsh66

Do you have any suggestions for deciding to get a pump, and for things to ask a doctor? My SCS isn't working anymore, and doctors are trying to convince me that morphine doesn't treat neuropathy pain, even though it's the only medication that's helped long term.

Jim

Hi Jim!
First, let me say that it is very important for you to be your own advocate.
If you know something works for you, or you want something, or you don't want something, advocate for it.

I also suggest that you do your own research :
1. best pumps to use for your lifestyle?
2. best or newest meds being used and the possible side effects?

Questions:
1. procedure used to insert pump?
2. where the pump will be? make sure it does not interfere with where your clothes sit (ie. your pants waist)
3. how long the pump will last?
4. maintenance of pump?

Hope this helps. Although I never had a pump, I did go for a SCS and these are the things I did.
Best of luck!
Ronnie

@jimhd. I feel bad that they won’t even try pain meds for you. Doctors are willing to try and antidepressant or anti seizure medication to see if it reduces pain. Why not an actual pain medication?

@bustrbrwn22

My doctors have to follow the protocols set up by the Oregon physicians committee, which limits how much opioid they can prescribe. Even though opioids have been treating pain for centuries, because of the current opioid climate, a new perception of them has been adopted. It's irrelevant that many thousands of people have been/are now being effectively treated by opioids for chronic pain that no other medication has been of any help. It defies logic and reason that a medication suddenly becomes ineffective in the opinions of medical bureaucracy. And that so many doctors buy into the rhetoric. It's insulting to be told that it's all in my head., when it's actually all in my legs and feet.

Jim

I am a retired RN and also someone who has used narcotics for chronic pain (serious use years ago for a severe jaw issue) and also for back and neck pain. These days my use is very minimal. I am lucky the spinal cord stimulator has really helped me deal with my back pain! I get nerve blocks for my neck about every 12 weeks which also help.
I agree with what you said except for one thing: I honestly don’t think it’s fair to totally blame medical bureaucracy. I think it was politically driven and I think more doctors are fearful of getting in trouble for prescribing opiates than those who buy “into the rhetoric”. Just my opinion, but based in knowing people in healthcare. It’s become a huge convoluted mess with finger pointing in multiple directions. If the issue of drug misuse/abuse is truly looked at, majority of abuse has been shown to NOT stem from prescribed drugs being used BY the patient. It is misuse of those drugs via “others” - theft by family, friends, or strangers. Use of street drugs. Huge money to be made in illegal drug transactions. When I was able to discontinue use of hydrocodone and morphine for my jaw issue, once I recovered from the surgery, I remember rolling my eyes as the rest of the pills were safely discarded - they could have brought in a lot of money! I knew that from being a nurse.

@wisco50 I stand corrected. I shouldn't blame medical people for the mess, as it comes from the next level up. If it hadn't become a political hot topic, those of us, whom you describe, would have access to the medications that treat our chronic pain, whatever the cause. I've been trying to give every medication that my team of doctors throw my way a chance to reduce my pain level for 7+ years now, with only temporary success at best. I'm pretty much at the end of options.

One of my frustrations is that as recently as 5 years ago my doctors spoke of the morphine sulfate contin I take as a pain reliever. It changed quite abruptly from a "medication that treats pain" to "It doesn't treat pain. It only changes your perception of the pain".

Whatever the mechanism, it does truly reduce my pain level, whether directly or indirectly. It really offends me when a doctor tells me that it isn't actually treating the pain.

Jim

Jim, I TOTALLY understand, believe me! I recently had a (normally) intelligent person say to me that pain meds, i.e. narcotics, “Don’t help chronic pain.” I was shocked she bought into that nonsense. I agree with you, it doesn’t matter WHY it works, if it works, so be it! My SCS isn’t curing my underlying problem (I refused more complicated surgery), the stenosis still exists. But the SCS interferes with how pain signals are received/transmitted by my brain. I don’t care, all I know is my back/buttock/leg pain is gone/tolerable, I can function and I am delighted!

@wisco50
Arghhh! Two messages I was writing just vanished! I'll try to remember what I wrote.

I have a great team of doctors, who know how much I appreciate them. They have to work with the restrictions placed by the clinics they're associated with, the clinic leaders have to work with the restrictions placed by the state physicians board, who have to work under multiple layers of political systems. I've seen a few mediocre health care workers, but I'm grateful for my pcp, neurologist, pain specialist, surgeons, urologist, ophthalmologist, orthopedists, ENT, speech therapist, psychiatrist, therapist, and nursing and office staff (did I miss anyone?).

I just wish that one of them would figure out how to reduce the pain in my feet and ankles. If that were to happen, maybe depression, anxiety and PTSD would be reduced, as well.

As my brother told me today, if it works, why change? He's a vet who's lived with his share of pain, and has had the added challenge of working with the VA hospital. All 5 of my siblings and my father had/have pn. My siblings are fortunate to be able to treat their pn with Gabapentin and CBD cream. What's up with that? I'm just different generally.

Jim