Dismissing doctors: How do you find a doctor who can help?

I have psoriasis and a positive ANA and have suffered from tight, contracted muscles and pain for years. The worst part for me is the tight trapezius muscles in my shoulders, which were giving me severe headaches 2-3 times a week. I’m a plant based very fit person, and it’s been very frustrating and has definitely affected my quality of life. I still don’t know what is causing the pain - my rheumatologist has done a lot of tests but we’re still chasing a diagnosis. My suggestion is not a cure but it has really helped with the pain to the point that it is no longer much of an issue. A few months ago I began adding a big piece of fresh ginger root, peeled and sliced to my morning smoothie (kale, frozen pineapple and mango and banana and flax and hemp seeds). It was about a week before. I realized I wasn’t having any muscle pain or headaches and just figured that, for some reason, it had subsided for the time being. Then I saw an article about ginger root being a good pain reliever and migraine preventative in the news and a lightbulb went off in my head. I now make a point of adding the ginger root to my smoothie daily and use more if I feel a pain flare or headache coming on. It has changed my life — no more muscle pain and no more stomach pain and upset from too many NSAIDS. Hopefully this will help someone out there — my pain had been chronic for years before this and even narcotic pain relievers didn’t work. I’m happy and relieved and surprised that something so simple and without side affects has helped me and wanted to share with all of you. If you are interested in learning more, Dr. Neal Barnard has a book that I subsequently purchased called “Foods That Fight Pain.” It has quite a bit of interesting info on the pain relieving attributes of many foods. Who knew? Of course it doesn’t get studied extensively because there’s no profit in it for Big Pharma!

I have psoriasis and a positive ANA and have suffered from tight, contracted muscles and pain for years. The worst part for me is the tight trapezius muscles in my shoulders, which were giving me severe headaches 2-3 times a week. I’m a plant based very fit person, and it’s been very frustrating and has definitely affected my quality of life. I still don’t know what is causing the pain - my rheumatologist has done a lot of tests but we’re still chasing a diagnosis. My suggestion is not a cure but it has really helped with the pain to the point that it is no longer much of an issue. A few months ago I began adding a big piece of fresh ginger root, peeled and sliced to my morning smoothie (kale, frozen pineapple and mango and banana and flax and hemp seeds). It was about a week before. I realized I wasn’t having any muscle pain or headaches and just figured that, for some reason, it had subsided for the time being. Then I saw an article about ginger root being a good pain reliever and migraine preventative in the news and a lightbulb went off in my head. I now make a point of adding the ginger root to my smoothie daily and use more if I feel a pain flare or headache coming on. It has changed my life — no more muscle pain and no more stomach pain and upset from too many NSAIDS. Hopefully this will help someone out there — my pain had been chronic for years before this and even narcotic pain relievers didn’t work. I’m happy and relieved and surprised that something so simple and without side affects has helped me and wanted to share with all of you. If you are interested in learning more, Dr. Neal Barnard has a book that I subsequently purchased called “Foods That Fight Pain.” It has quite a bit of interesting info on the pain relieving attributes of many foods. Who knew? Of course it doesn’t get studied extensively because there’s no profit in it for Big Pharma!

My daughter is an ER nurse, was a paramedic and 911 dispatcher before that. She says that depends entirely on the hospital. That said, we had occasion last fall to make numerous ER trips, for myself & my daughter, and it was definitely NOT true then. Paramedics were seen several times transferring patients from gurney to wheelchair and placing them in the ER waiting room with the rest of us. The same happened when I took my husband to the ER in Texas this winter. I asked one triage nurse, and she said "non-emergency" patients were using it to try to jump to the head of the line and their medical director put a stop to it. So, it may have once been true, maybe still is in some places, but not so much these days.

Also, insurance companies have been known to decline to pay for the ambulance if, in their judgment, it was not medically necessary.

I have psoriasis and a positive ANA and have suffered from tight, contracted muscles and pain for years. The worst part for me is the tight trapezius muscles in my shoulders, which were giving me severe headaches 2-3 times a week. I’m a plant based very fit person, and it’s been very frustrating and has definitely affected my quality of life. I still don’t know what is causing the pain - my rheumatologist has done a lot of tests but we’re still chasing a diagnosis. My suggestion is not a cure but it has really helped with the pain to the point that it is no longer much of an issue. A few months ago I began adding a big piece of fresh ginger root, peeled and sliced to my morning smoothie (kale, frozen pineapple and mango and banana and flax and hemp seeds). It was about a week before. I realized I wasn’t having any muscle pain or headaches and just figured that, for some reason, it had subsided for the time being. Then I saw an article about ginger root being a good pain reliever and migraine preventative in the news and a lightbulb went off in my head. I now make a point of adding the ginger root to my smoothie daily and use more if I feel a pain flare or headache coming on. It has changed my life — no more muscle pain and no more stomach pain and upset from too many NSAIDS. Hopefully this will help someone out there — my pain had been chronic for years before this and even narcotic pain relievers didn’t work. I’m happy and relieved and surprised that something so simple and without side affects has helped me and wanted to share with all of you. If you are interested in learning more, Dr. Neal Barnard has a book that I subsequently purchased called “Foods That Fight Pain.” It has quite a bit of interesting info on the pain relieving attributes of many foods. Who knew? Of course it doesn’t get studied extensively because there’s no profit in it for Big Pharma!

I am sorry to hear your frustration with doctors.I think most of us with chronic pain go through the same long process of getting the proper diagnosis.In my seventy two years I have had many doctors that really disappointed me in their indifference and a few that were excellent.Right now I am in the indifference category LOL , but I have my first appointment coming up with Physiatry and hopefully some answers.Don’t give up, I have become discouraged by doctors too many times which only made me depressed.Then I have to pick myself up and pick up the phone and Google some doctor and start all over again until I have answers. I know just like you know that something has gone terribly wrong.