1. < Spine Health

Low back pain & neuropathy issues

Posted by timmckinney @timmckinney, Feb 6, 2018

68 years old and lower back+neuropathy issues make staying active hell. Used to be avid jogger and now cannot be on my feet for more than 10-15 minutes. No meds help. Very depressing.

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cognac | @cognac | Feb 10, 2018

@lioness, I envy your tenacity in seeking some sort of normalcy in life. I fear there are times when I'm not sure it's worth the trouble. But having people like you, and the rest of the people in this group, does help. Thank you, and take care.

REPLY
3 replies
Mentor
Jim, Volunteer Mentor | @jimhd | Feb 10, 2018
In reply to @jimhd "@timmckinney Parus is right. You're not alone. I had compression fractures in my lower back when..." + (show)
@jimhd

@timmckinney

Parus is right. You're not alone. I had compression fractures in my lower back when I fell several years ago, and have peripheral neuropathy pain in my feet. I had a spinal cord stimulator implant in June last year, and the pain in my feet has been reduced significantly, though certainly not completely. It's frustrating not to be able to walk like I used to. I take morphine sulfate contin and I'm trying Gabapentin again. I'm hoping that one of the medications for neuropathy will work, now that I have the stimulator. None of them did anything before.

Going to a pain specialist was one of the best things I've done. He took a sincere interest in helping me. I had been through all the neuropathy meds with the neurologist, with no success.

What doctors have you seen about the neuropathy? Keep pressing them to try everything they can. Don't let them give up.

Jim

Jump to this post

@vikingdad

A pain specialist is just what it sounds like. A doctor who specializes in treating people with pain, usually pain that hasn't responded to any treatment your pcp has tried. They know more about medications that might be used for things other than what the label says. They also may know of other specialists specific to your symptoms.

In my case, a neurologist had tried everything on his list to treat my neuropathy pain in my feet, so he referred me to the pain specialist, in the hopes that he would know of other options.

Jim

REPLY
Mentor
Jim, Volunteer Mentor | @jimhd | Feb 10, 2018
In reply to @jimhd "@timmckinney Parus is right. You're not alone. I had compression fractures in my lower back when..." + (show)
@jimhd

@timmckinney

Parus is right. You're not alone. I had compression fractures in my lower back when I fell several years ago, and have peripheral neuropathy pain in my feet. I had a spinal cord stimulator implant in June last year, and the pain in my feet has been reduced significantly, though certainly not completely. It's frustrating not to be able to walk like I used to. I take morphine sulfate contin and I'm trying Gabapentin again. I'm hoping that one of the medications for neuropathy will work, now that I have the stimulator. None of them did anything before.

Going to a pain specialist was one of the best things I've done. He took a sincere interest in helping me. I had been through all the neuropathy meds with the neurologist, with no success.

What doctors have you seen about the neuropathy? Keep pressing them to try everything they can. Don't let them give up.

Jim

Jump to this post

@parus

Gabapentin won't treat the pins and needles. I'm just starting on it for the second time, to see if it might work now that the spinal cord stimulator takes care of much of my pain. My wife and the psychiatrist seem to remember that it made my thinking get even more foggy than it already is. Lol

Jim

REPLY
Mentor
Jim, Volunteer Mentor | @jimhd | Feb 10, 2018
In reply to @grandmar "I feel your pain...literally! I am 63 (in a month) and I also suffer from chronic..." + (show)
@grandmar

I feel your pain...literally! I am 63 (in a month) and I also suffer from chronic pain. My lumbar and cervical spines are in real trouble! At one point I stopped walking for over 2 years because of the pain. I also had severe, I want to die pain in my left arm to fingers that came from my cervical spine. I went to a pain doc who gave me a shot. The shot was the answer and thankfully it worked for years!
As for my lower issues, I saw 4 docs. They all tried lots of things that didn't work. Three years ago I moved and went to one doc who was good for nothing. I searched and searched and finally found a pain doc who is about 1-2 hours away (because of traffic, it can be longer). He has worked MAGIC on my lumbar spine!. He uses a fluoroscope to find the sweet spot, based on my MRIs and what I tell him. His shots usually last 8-12 weeks if I behave.
I agree with Jim. You are too young to be homebound. Do some research in your area for a good pain doc. Read reviews by patients and other docs.

A couple of sites you can use:
vitals.com
Zocdoc.com
nationalpeerreview.com
WebMD.com
ratemds.com

Hope this helps.
Ronnie

Jump to this post

@grandmar

Another website that posts reviews is Lifescripts, also Yelp, and Googlescholar.

Jim

REPLY
GailBL, Alumni Mentor | @gailb | Feb 10, 2018
In reply to @jimhd "@timmckinney Parus is right. You're not alone. I had compression fractures in my lower back when..." + (show)
@jimhd

@timmckinney

Parus is right. You're not alone. I had compression fractures in my lower back when I fell several years ago, and have peripheral neuropathy pain in my feet. I had a spinal cord stimulator implant in June last year, and the pain in my feet has been reduced significantly, though certainly not completely. It's frustrating not to be able to walk like I used to. I take morphine sulfate contin and I'm trying Gabapentin again. I'm hoping that one of the medications for neuropathy will work, now that I have the stimulator. None of them did anything before.

Going to a pain specialist was one of the best things I've done. He took a sincere interest in helping me. I had been through all the neuropathy meds with the neurologist, with no success.

What doctors have you seen about the neuropathy? Keep pressing them to try everything they can. Don't let them give up.

Jim

Jump to this post

@vikingdad
Have you asked for gene testing to find out which drugs are compatible with your metabolism? That may help zero in on drugs that will work.

Gail B
Volunteer Mentor

REPLY
Mentor
Jim, Volunteer Mentor | @jimhd | Feb 10, 2018
In reply to @wsh66 "I did go the gym today, twice. The first time i did 55 minutes on the..." + (show)
@wsh66

I did go the gym today, twice. The first time i did 55 minutes on the NuStep cross trainer. It's a wonderful device. I can't walk more than 20 feet without using a cane and even with a cane it gets very painful very fast. (I love going to the grocery store daily as It gives me social contacts and the carts make really good walkers.) Sorry, I digress. The NuStep positions your body, (seated, recumbent),in such a way that your back is not loaded at all. You work your arms with a push pull motion and your legs while pushing forward. After an hour or so I'm dripping sweat and feeling the effects on my one good lung. I've only been doing this for 3 weeks and it's getting stronger already. My cancer treatment gave me chronic hospital pneumonia which left me with COPD and my right lung collapsed and the diaphragm paralyzed. With only one to work with I need to make it stronger.

After my workout I took my 31 year old son who has Down's syndrome to work at the Pizza Barn where he has been a dish washer for the ;last 15 years. Then I went back to the gym for a complete massage with coconut oil and hot rocks. Massage won't cure your pain issues but think about it. When you have chronic pain how often does your whole body feel really great for a solid hour? Every muscle, every joint every pore on your skin is transformed into an instrument of pleasure. We're usually happy to just not hurt. This is way beyond just not hurting. This is pleasure. Your body, the source of your pain, the source of all your displeasure and you depression is transformed into the source of your pleasure. The warm oil, the hot rocks the masseuses powerful and skilled hands. It's just wonderful.

Alternative therapies like Massage, Qigong, Yoga, Thi Chi, Acupuncture, tapping, (Thought Field Therapy), and Healing Touch may not cure you. They might not replace your drugs or your spinal stimulator or your surgeon but they do all contribute to improving your general sense of well being and when that happens your pain or your experience of your pain lessens and improves. These alternatives may not be founded in modern science, you may nor be able to test them and produce repeatable results but they are not scalpels and pills nor are they parlor tricks and yes they don't work for everyone. You're dealing with nontraditional healers and you must have confidence in them and in what they do. They are bringing you gifts that existed for thousand s of years before there was modern medicine. Many of the oldest come from the east where they had highly organized bureaucracies, organized cities and libraries while we of European descent were still running around hitting each other with rocks. These are not stupid peoples. They hung on to things like Qigong because they work.

I don't use Homeopathy. I do or have used Qigong, massage, Cranial sacral Release, Yoga, Tapping and Healing Touch. In fact, tomorrow afternoon I'll be receiving Healing Touch for an hour and a half and I'll be getting from a RN who has worked at our local Fairview clinic for years.

I'm in pain right now as a result of my workout. However the trade off is worth it. The exercise and the massage elevate my mood so much that dealing with my pain is easier. In many periods over the past 20 years I have been as miserable and hopeless as anyone who checks in here. I have all of modern medicine and several great doctors at my disposal and we have run out of answers. They do all they can and they do a great job but I still have significant pain. There are other answers to turn to and not just alternative therapies. It gets down to individual choices and attempts to improve ones mood and one's outlook of life. The only alternative I refuse to entertain is to give up.

I wish you all Love and Blessings.

Jump to this post

@wsh66

Hmm. My sister benefited from massage, but I've never tried it. I'm pretty sure Medicare won't cover it. I'm hoping to get my bicycle out soon and ride down to our mailbox. I can ride it without putting as much pressure on the balls of my feet where the pain is worst. Our driveway is about a quarter mile long, and it's a third of a mile down the dirt road to the neighborhood mailboxes. Downhill to the box, uphill coming home. It would be good exercise for my service dog at the same time. I haven't ridden the bike for a couple of years, so I don't know how it will go. First I have to put new tubes in the tires.

It's really nice to be having warm weather.

Jim

REPLY
GailBL, Alumni Mentor | @gailb | Feb 10, 2018
In reply to @grandmar "I feel your pain...literally! I am 63 (in a month) and I also suffer from chronic..." + (show)
@grandmar

I feel your pain...literally! I am 63 (in a month) and I also suffer from chronic pain. My lumbar and cervical spines are in real trouble! At one point I stopped walking for over 2 years because of the pain. I also had severe, I want to die pain in my left arm to fingers that came from my cervical spine. I went to a pain doc who gave me a shot. The shot was the answer and thankfully it worked for years!
As for my lower issues, I saw 4 docs. They all tried lots of things that didn't work. Three years ago I moved and went to one doc who was good for nothing. I searched and searched and finally found a pain doc who is about 1-2 hours away (because of traffic, it can be longer). He has worked MAGIC on my lumbar spine!. He uses a fluoroscope to find the sweet spot, based on my MRIs and what I tell him. His shots usually last 8-12 weeks if I behave.
I agree with Jim. You are too young to be homebound. Do some research in your area for a good pain doc. Read reviews by patients and other docs.

A couple of sites you can use:
vitals.com
Zocdoc.com
nationalpeerreview.com
WebMD.com
ratemds.com

Hope this helps.
Ronnie

Jump to this post

@grandmar I too have had problems with my spine, both lower and cervical. I have cervical radiculapathy from a compression fracture, and it causes "pain to die for". A little over a year ago I had a laminectomy to relieve the pressure from my L5-S1 on my spinal cord. It worked for my left side hip and leg acute leg pain. However, my right side hip and leg pain remained and it was going to need rods and pins to correct. My surgeon said I should try everything else first.

Two courses of PT, acupuncture and 3 pain drugs were not helping. Then I read about Active Release Technique (ART) on Mayo Connect. I checked it out on Google and decided to find a chiropractor in my area who was trained and certified to do it. I found a great chiropractor and in 3 weeks, going twice a week, my pain was basically gone! I was so surprised and happy. It's been 9 months now ; I see him once a month and I am off all the pain drugs and walking. I'm so very happy. I'm 69 years old. I recommend you check this out.

The theory is that our muscles and nerves get bound together due to some trauma at some point in time. Working the muscles with deep deep tissue pressure and movement of your limbs can release the bound muscles and nerves. It worked for me.

Gail B
Volunteer Mentor

REPLY
lioness | @lioness | Feb 10, 2018
In reply to @cognac "@Lioness, I envy your tenacity in seeking some sort of normalcy in life. I fear there..." + (show)
@cognac

@lioness, I envy your tenacity in seeking some sort of normalcy in life. I fear there are times when I'm not sure it's worth the trouble. But having people like you, and the rest of the people in this group, does help. Thank you, and take care.

Jump to this post

Thank you for your kind words.I'm a retired nurse and love sharing my knowledge I have also studied holistic medicine ,we can get through our dis-ese if we just keeping on ,keeping on in life My life wouldn't be what it is if my believe in God wasn't there He gets me through daily he can for you too onward@upward to us all

REPLY
Stephen | @wsh66 | Feb 10, 2018
In reply to @cognac "@Lioness, I envy your tenacity in seeking some sort of normalcy in life. I fear there..." + (show)
@cognac

@lioness, I envy your tenacity in seeking some sort of normalcy in life. I fear there are times when I'm not sure it's worth the trouble. But having people like you, and the rest of the people in this group, does help. Thank you, and take care.

Jump to this post

Tomorrow I'm going to start a discussion thread on alternative Therapies in managing pain I hope you will participate

REPLY
Stephen | @wsh66 | Feb 10, 2018
In reply to @jimhd "@timmckinney Parus is right. You're not alone. I had compression fractures in my lower back when..." + (show)
@jimhd

@timmckinney

Parus is right. You're not alone. I had compression fractures in my lower back when I fell several years ago, and have peripheral neuropathy pain in my feet. I had a spinal cord stimulator implant in June last year, and the pain in my feet has been reduced significantly, though certainly not completely. It's frustrating not to be able to walk like I used to. I take morphine sulfate contin and I'm trying Gabapentin again. I'm hoping that one of the medications for neuropathy will work, now that I have the stimulator. None of them did anything before.

Going to a pain specialist was one of the best things I've done. He took a sincere interest in helping me. I had been through all the neuropathy meds with the neurologist, with no success.

What doctors have you seen about the neuropathy? Keep pressing them to try everything they can. Don't let them give up.

Jim

Jump to this post

What about Lyrica?

REPLY
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