Chronic Pain members - Welcome, please introduce yourself

My connection name is Fifi. I have narrowed space between C5-C6, perhaps a little in C1 too. I also have TMJ and some fibromyalgia. I don't think my nerve is pinched in the neck but I have chronic headache travel from left shoulder thru the neck to the bottom of my head. Sometime, my ear and eye also hurt on the left side. I have tried everything over the years- acupuncture, steroid injections, facet injection, Botox, physical therapy, and chiropratic. Nothing really helps too much. I went to Chiro who manipulate your neck last year. It helped but I was worried about stroke possibility. I quit for a while but went back this year. It's not working anymore and cause more pain. The reason I went back because the headache got worse and I can't worry about stroke anymore. I am getting more desperate. I take low dosage doxepin every night and Valium occasionally. I also take hydrocodone when the pain is really bad. I don't like medication and very sensitive to most of other med. I am thinking about disc replacement. Any one can recommend where to go and what dr. To see? Thank you

Rob here. Back pain for 27 odd years. 3 major operations including a double spinal fusion l4 L5 L5 S1. In 94 96 and 97. Narcotics changed to Oxy from codeine several years ago (good thing). Have a nerve blockh done at local hospital every 4 months. I use bridge, the card game as a distraction. take Naproxene for arthritic pain. have inversion table. Pain specialist gives me iMS needles and some frezzing every 2 weeks. Anti depressant. We just got a new Lab puppy and I am sore from playing and training. Had accupuncture/chiro/physio, gravity chairs, epidural needles with coctail of freezing and cortisone. But siatica pain went after disc removal. yah! Still unable to do most things. Take care out there.

Hi, I have suffered with chronic pain since 1992. I injured my back at work and was unable to stand up straight, by noon I was seeing my doctor. He refered me to an orthopedic specicialist, within 6 months I had physical therapy, all kinds of test, then they did back surgery. The surgery took 8 hours, and I woke up on pain pump & unable to turn myself for a week, left hospital with no rehab. being done and in a wheelchair. Within 30 days I was back in ER in excruating pain, bone fragments had gotten loose and were down in my sciatica area. They did another 9 hour surgery right away. I woke up in ICU with spinal miningitis. Left hospital again in wheelchair, determined not to stay in wheelchair because my youngest son was only 2 at the time. I did make it out of that chair, and was able to hold my son again, but was never able to work again, ( really miss working), and found out that the metal put in my back during surgery was not FDA approved for backs only for hip & knee surgery. So they removed the plates & screws, and my back began falling apart literally...so now my strengh in my back is awful, disk are all falling apart, herniated & ruptured. I am on total disability now, I had a very good pain doctor for 13 years, he went on to become a Medical Director for Hospic. So I haven't been able to find a good pain doctor since, that has been over a year. I suffer daily with pain so bad that I am not even hungry anymore, can't sleep, No Quality of Life at all!!!!! Can no longer live alone, have caregiver, alot of depression...I have a 2 1/2 year old grandson that I seldom see because of my pain. I don't want him to see me in all of this pain, it just makes me cranky & so not myself. In fact I have not really been myself since my first back surgery. How do they expect us to keep fighting to survive when doctors won't help us to fight the pain, it really gets old and very hard to keep on going...can anyone relate??!! God Bless All..Gina54

Hi, I have suffered with chronic pain since 1992. I injured my back at work and was unable to stand up straight, by noon I was seeing my doctor. He refered me to an orthopedic specicialist, within 6 months I had physical therapy, all kinds of test, then they did back surgery. The surgery took 8 hours, and I woke up on pain pump & unable to turn myself for a week, left hospital with no rehab. being done and in a wheelchair. Within 30 days I was back in ER in excruating pain, bone fragments had gotten loose and were down in my sciatica area. They did another 9 hour surgery right away. I woke up in ICU with spinal miningitis. Left hospital again in wheelchair, determined not to stay in wheelchair because my youngest son was only 2 at the time. I did make it out of that chair, and was able to hold my son again, but was never able to work again, ( really miss working), and found out that the metal put in my back during surgery was not FDA approved for backs only for hip & knee surgery. So they removed the plates & screws, and my back began falling apart literally...so now my strengh in my back is awful, disk are all falling apart, herniated & ruptured. I am on total disability now, I had a very good pain doctor for 13 years, he went on to become a Medical Director for Hospic. So I haven't been able to find a good pain doctor since, that has been over a year. I suffer daily with pain so bad that I am not even hungry anymore, can't sleep, No Quality of Life at all!!!!! Can no longer live alone, have caregiver, alot of depression...I have a 2 1/2 year old grandson that I seldom see because of my pain. I don't want him to see me in all of this pain, it just makes me cranky & so not myself. In fact I have not really been myself since my first back surgery. How do they expect us to keep fighting to survive when doctors won't help us to fight the pain, it really gets old and very hard to keep on going...can anyone relate??!! God Bless All..Gina54

I wanted to try desperately but we live in Florida. It is not legal here yet. I don't know how to get some. I know lots people here use but I have no source. I don't know why. May be because I don't look like the type. I am not worry about addiction. I think I am not the type.

Hi, I have suffered with chronic pain since 1992. I injured my back at work and was unable to stand up straight, by noon I was seeing my doctor. He refered me to an orthopedic specicialist, within 6 months I had physical therapy, all kinds of test, then they did back surgery. The surgery took 8 hours, and I woke up on pain pump & unable to turn myself for a week, left hospital with no rehab. being done and in a wheelchair. Within 30 days I was back in ER in excruating pain, bone fragments had gotten loose and were down in my sciatica area. They did another 9 hour surgery right away. I woke up in ICU with spinal miningitis. Left hospital again in wheelchair, determined not to stay in wheelchair because my youngest son was only 2 at the time. I did make it out of that chair, and was able to hold my son again, but was never able to work again, ( really miss working), and found out that the metal put in my back during surgery was not FDA approved for backs only for hip & knee surgery. So they removed the plates & screws, and my back began falling apart literally...so now my strengh in my back is awful, disk are all falling apart, herniated & ruptured. I am on total disability now, I had a very good pain doctor for 13 years, he went on to become a Medical Director for Hospic. So I haven't been able to find a good pain doctor since, that has been over a year. I suffer daily with pain so bad that I am not even hungry anymore, can't sleep, No Quality of Life at all!!!!! Can no longer live alone, have caregiver, alot of depression...I have a 2 1/2 year old grandson that I seldom see because of my pain. I don't want him to see me in all of this pain, it just makes me cranky & so not myself. In fact I have not really been myself since my first back surgery. How do they expect us to keep fighting to survive when doctors won't help us to fight the pain, it really gets old and very hard to keep on going...can anyone relate??!! God Bless All..Gina54

My connection name is Fifi. I have narrowed space between C5-C6, perhaps a little in C1 too. I also have TMJ and some fibromyalgia. I don't think my nerve is pinched in the neck but I have chronic headache travel from left shoulder thru the neck to the bottom of my head. Sometime, my ear and eye also hurt on the left side. I have tried everything over the years- acupuncture, steroid injections, facet injection, Botox, physical therapy, and chiropratic. Nothing really helps too much. I went to Chiro who manipulate your neck last year. It helped but I was worried about stroke possibility. I quit for a while but went back this year. It's not working anymore and cause more pain. The reason I went back because the headache got worse and I can't worry about stroke anymore. I am getting more desperate. I take low dosage doxepin every night and Valium occasionally. I also take hydrocodone when the pain is really bad. I don't like medication and very sensitive to most of other med. I am thinking about disc replacement. Any one can recommend where to go and what dr. To see? Thank you

My connection name is Fifi. I have narrowed space between C5-C6, perhaps a little in C1 too. I also have TMJ and some fibromyalgia. I don't think my nerve is pinched in the neck but I have chronic headache travel from left shoulder thru the neck to the bottom of my head. Sometime, my ear and eye also hurt on the left side. I have tried everything over the years- acupuncture, steroid injections, facet injection, Botox, physical therapy, and chiropratic. Nothing really helps too much. I went to Chiro who manipulate your neck last year. It helped but I was worried about stroke possibility. I quit for a while but went back this year. It's not working anymore and cause more pain. The reason I went back because the headache got worse and I can't worry about stroke anymore. I am getting more desperate. I take low dosage doxepin every night and Valium occasionally. I also take hydrocodone when the pain is really bad. I don't like medication and very sensitive to most of other med. I am thinking about disc replacement. Any one can recommend where to go and what dr. To see? Thank you