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Chronic Pain members - Welcome, please introduce yourself

Posted by Kelsey Mohring @kelseydm, Apr 27, 2016

Welcome to the new Chronic Pain group.

I’m Kelsey and I’m the moderator of the group. I look forwarding to welcoming you and introducing you to other members. Feel free to browse the topics or start a new one.

Why not take a minute and introduce yourself.

Interested in more discussions like this? Go to the Chronic Pain Support Group.

HazelBlumberg | @hazelblumberg | Aug 12, 2017
In reply to @boourbonman "I promised you all I would let you know when I got approved for Medical Marijuana...." + (show)
@boourbonman

I promised you all I would let you know when I got approved for Medical Marijuana. Judi and I did it. We then went down to Edgewater FL. and got two 500 mg bottles. $70 each. So we were suppose to start with 5 drops (each drop is a mg.) three times a day and slowly work up to 10 drops 3 times a day. Do the math. 16 days for $70. We are both at 5 drops 3 times a day and no relief. I sure hope it starts to ease our pain. Will Keep you posted.
Hoot

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My mother turned me into a chocolate addict when I was a kid. (OK, I've gotta place the blame somewhere.) And now that chocolate with a high percentage of cacao is considered Good for You, then I say, let us eat on!

Yep, attorneys are everywhere. They're not all evil. It's the rotten ones who get all the attention, alas. Sometimes they do wonderful things. I volunteered for quite a while for Legal Aid here in town. I was so impressed with the dedication of the attorneys who worked there. No snazzy offices. No snazzy pay. Just working with a lot of folks who desperately needed legal help but couldn't afford it.

Hazel

REPLY
HazelBlumberg | @hazelblumberg | Aug 12, 2017

I'm sure your summers must be killers! Do you have the humidity that we do here in Florida? Being inland, we have very little breeze--except if a hurricane is passing through--which just intensifies the misery. I do indeed miss winter. I'm originally from Utica, New York, smack dab in the middle of the snow belt. And yes, I really do miss snow at Christmastime.

Hazel

REPLY
19 replies
HazelBlumberg | @hazelblumberg | Aug 12, 2017
In reply to @hazelblumberg "I developed earaches in September 2016. My primary care found no ear or sinus infection and..." + (show)
@hazelblumberg

I developed earaches in September 2016. My primary care found no ear or sinus infection and sent me to an ENT, who diagnosed TMJ pain. I went to my dentist for help. He gave me weekly anesthesia shots into trigger points (OUCH!) and exercises to do, including massaging the trigger points and opening my mouth as wide as I could numerous times in the shower while my face was warm and wet. (I have been wearing a night guard made by my dentist for over 20 years; he replaces them as they wear out.) The pain continued and only got worse; it was at the top of my head, in my ears, in my jaw, above my palate (as though I'd eaten hot food). My dentist sent me to an oral surgeon, who did 360-degree x-rays and found no joint damage. He told me I was therefore not a candidate for surgery (YAY!) and prescribed Flexeril, a muscle relaxer. The pain only got worse, and I continued to wake up in the night with horrific pain. Ibuprofen didn't even touch it.

My dentist then sent me to a physical therapist, who didn't listen to a word I said. I came in on a "good" pain day: my pain level was about a 5 out of 10 (10 being the worst). After his examination and showing me how to do various exercises, he triumphantly told me that my pain level was now reduced. I said "No. My pain level is now about 7.5." He said he didn't believe me. He attempted to push me to go to his outside clinic to get "magnet therapy," and he tried to push me to see a friend of his who is a naturopath. Two days after this session, I was still in excruciating pain and doubt I'd ever return to this physical therapist, although he had me schedule 4 more 1-hour sessions with him.

I called my dentist again, and he called in a prescription for Tylenol plus codeine, which I can take every 4 to 6 hours. My dentist seems to have no further solutions for me.

My primary care is currently out of town, but I will see her when she gets back (in August); she may be referring me to a pain management specialist, which my dentist recommended--however, my dentist refuses to give me a referral to such a specialist, even though the specialist will take referrals from dentists or doctors.

I have been treated for many years for clinical depression and panic/anxiety disorder by my psychiatrist, and the meds have helped me immensely. On Monday I see my psychiatrist for my usual 6-month med check, and I'm going to ask him for help with the terrible TMJ pain. I have also had fibromyalgia and chronic fatigue syndrome for a long time. The fibro pain has greatly lessened over time and hardly bothers me, but the CFS continues.

The TMJ pain makes it difficult to concentrate. I'm self-employed, and I enjoy my work. But pain gets in the way, as it does in every single situation: work or pastimes. My dentist mentioned massage therapy, but I'm in too much pain right now to try it. Another friend mentioned using a TENS unit. I feel as though I'm not living; to be in constant pain is hardly living, at least to me.

Any other suggestions? Would a TENS unit help? I'm more than willing to purchase one. I'll try just about anything to be pain free. Sometimes I am pain free. But I spend about 2 weeks out of every month in serious pain. I am feeling very discouraged.

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It is indeed scary how drugs affect different people. Prozac, just one tablet, made me feel completely insane. I couldn't wait for the results to wear off. (My husband takes Prozac for clinical depression, and it's worked wonders for him.) Clonazepam controls the panic/anxiety disorder I've had probably my entire life; I can remember the symptoms even when I was a little kid. I'm on Wellbutrin, and it helps immensely. But our bodies all metabolize things differently.

I am thankful to BigPharma (only now and again) for having come out with SO many medications to treat panic/anxiety disorder and clinical depression. Perhaps some day both of these diseases will be cured. Wouldn't that be terrific? I am willing my body to a medical school in hopes that poking around in my brain will be of help in finding a cure.

And of course, finding an excellent psychiatrist is paramount. I've been seeing mine for years, after having seen a bunch of worthless ones. I adore my psychiatrist, who actually has told me about his own panic/anxiety disorder and clinical depression, so he knows whereof he speaks. He's doing a lot of work with electrical brain stimulation, which has helped so many people. (You have to be in the throes of severe depression before insurance will pay for it. I'd love to go through it in hopes that it would knock out my depression and make me drug-free, but no such luck.) He has one of the machines in his office, and he's invested in the best one possible. He took me in to see it and explain, with the help of his nurse practitioner, how it works. I was awed. He's 70 years old, and I don't know what I'll do if he ever retires! But thank goodness, he seems to enjoy his work so much, he's up on all the newest treatments, he's open to alternative medicine (he'd suggested lavender capsules to me for panic/anxiety disorder; I tried them for at least three months, and they had no effect, alas), and he's eternally curious. A great guy! Just referred one of my friends to him, who loves him just as much as I do.

Hazel

REPLY
HazelBlumberg | @hazelblumberg | Aug 12, 2017
In reply to @boourbonman "I promised you all I would let you know when I got approved for Medical Marijuana...." + (show)
@boourbonman

I promised you all I would let you know when I got approved for Medical Marijuana. Judi and I did it. We then went down to Edgewater FL. and got two 500 mg bottles. $70 each. So we were suppose to start with 5 drops (each drop is a mg.) three times a day and slowly work up to 10 drops 3 times a day. Do the math. 16 days for $70. We are both at 5 drops 3 times a day and no relief. I sure hope it starts to ease our pain. Will Keep you posted.
Hoot

Jump to this post

Yes, I think it's supposed to be dark chocolate, as dark as you can stand it. I don't like the really really really cacao laden stuff with 90% cacao. But less cacao than that, and I'm there! Also hot chocolate is wonderful! Try it with a little nip of cayenne in it. Or cinnamon.

Hazel

REPLY
peach414144 | @peach414144 | Aug 12, 2017
In reply to @boourbonman "I promised you all I would let you know when I got approved for Medical Marijuana...." + (show)
@boourbonman

I promised you all I would let you know when I got approved for Medical Marijuana. Judi and I did it. We then went down to Edgewater FL. and got two 500 mg bottles. $70 each. So we were suppose to start with 5 drops (each drop is a mg.) three times a day and slowly work up to 10 drops 3 times a day. Do the math. 16 days for $70. We are both at 5 drops 3 times a day and no relief. I sure hope it starts to ease our pain. Will Keep you posted.
Hoot

Jump to this post

hazel, i am still having the same problems as you are. even when i unsubscribe and change my site. it is overwhelming. very overwhelming. is there something wrong or am i just very computer illiterate?

REPLY
peach414144 | @peach414144 | Aug 12, 2017
In reply to @boourbonman "I promised you all I would let you know when I got approved for Medical Marijuana...." + (show)
@boourbonman

I promised you all I would let you know when I got approved for Medical Marijuana. Judi and I did it. We then went down to Edgewater FL. and got two 500 mg bottles. $70 each. So we were suppose to start with 5 drops (each drop is a mg.) three times a day and slowly work up to 10 drops 3 times a day. Do the math. 16 days for $70. We are both at 5 drops 3 times a day and no relief. I sure hope it starts to ease our pain. Will Keep you posted.
Hoot

Jump to this post

hazel. we might be twins but born a century or 2 ago. same for the computer. also will not have a smart phone have a flip phone for emergency (i would need a 5 year old to help me with the smart phone). all this helps me to keep my mind off pain. ha ha

REPLY
HazelBlumberg | @hazelblumberg | Aug 12, 2017
In reply to @boourbonman "I promised you all I would let you know when I got approved for Medical Marijuana...." + (show)
@boourbonman

I promised you all I would let you know when I got approved for Medical Marijuana. Judi and I did it. We then went down to Edgewater FL. and got two 500 mg bottles. $70 each. So we were suppose to start with 5 drops (each drop is a mg.) three times a day and slowly work up to 10 drops 3 times a day. Do the math. 16 days for $70. We are both at 5 drops 3 times a day and no relief. I sure hope it starts to ease our pain. Will Keep you posted.
Hoot

Jump to this post

I hope one of the moderators can help you with this! It may take a while for the changes to kick in, but I don't know. I doubt you're computer illiterate!

Hazel

REPLY
Moderator
Justin McClanahan, Moderator | @JustinMcClanahan | Aug 12, 2017
In reply to @boourbonman "I promised you all I would let you know when I got approved for Medical Marijuana...." + (show)
@boourbonman

I promised you all I would let you know when I got approved for Medical Marijuana. Judi and I did it. We then went down to Edgewater FL. and got two 500 mg bottles. $70 each. So we were suppose to start with 5 drops (each drop is a mg.) three times a day and slowly work up to 10 drops 3 times a day. Do the math. 16 days for $70. We are both at 5 drops 3 times a day and no relief. I sure hope it starts to ease our pain. Will Keep you posted.
Hoot

Jump to this post

Hello @peach414144,

To not get as many email notifications from the Chronic Pain pain group, follow these instructions:

- Click this link, https://connect.mayoclinic.org/group/pain/
- In the top box that explains what the group is about, click on the Following button in the bottom right corner
- Choose the "Include messages in my email digest only" option

This should slow down some of the email notifications from the Chronic Pain group (and any other group you choose to complete the same process for)

To not get as many emails from the Welcome conversation in particular in the Chronic Pain group, follow these steps:

- If you are responding by email, click VIEW & REPLY on the bottom of this notification
- Scroll all the way to the top until you see the original message posted by Kelsey
- Click on the +Following button
- Choose another option besides receiving an email each time a post is made.
- Be sure to click on Update after both of these steps

These steps can be applied to any conversation and group. Whenever you participate in any discussion you are automatically subscribed to receive email notifications for that discussion so you would need to complete the above steps to try and limit your notifications. I hope this helps and I hope I made this as clear as possible. If not, do not hesitate to ask me to clear anything up or explain it a bit better!

REPLY
Moderator
Justin McClanahan, Moderator | @JustinMcClanahan | Aug 12, 2017
In reply to @boourbonman "I promised you all I would let you know when I got approved for Medical Marijuana...." + (show)
@boourbonman

I promised you all I would let you know when I got approved for Medical Marijuana. Judi and I did it. We then went down to Edgewater FL. and got two 500 mg bottles. $70 each. So we were suppose to start with 5 drops (each drop is a mg.) three times a day and slowly work up to 10 drops 3 times a day. Do the math. 16 days for $70. We are both at 5 drops 3 times a day and no relief. I sure hope it starts to ease our pain. Will Keep you posted.
Hoot

Jump to this post

@peach414144, I forgot to mention, the best way to view these conversations and to not get lost is to always click VIEW & REPLY on the bottom of the notification so that you will be taken to the website. Once you are on the website you can see the conversation in its entirety and the responses make far more sense when they are laid out in order on the website.

My trick is to click VIEW & REPLY, read through the discussions in order, and then you can simply delete the notifications as you have already read through the updates on the website! Always clicking on VIEW & REPLY really does make things much easier and more understandable.

REPLY
Mentor
John, Volunteer Mentor | @johnbishop | Aug 12, 2017
In reply to @boourbonman "I promised you all I would let you know when I got approved for Medical Marijuana...." + (show)
@boourbonman

I promised you all I would let you know when I got approved for Medical Marijuana. Judi and I did it. We then went down to Edgewater FL. and got two 500 mg bottles. $70 each. So we were suppose to start with 5 drops (each drop is a mg.) three times a day and slowly work up to 10 drops 3 times a day. Do the math. 16 days for $70. We are both at 5 drops 3 times a day and no relief. I sure hope it starts to ease our pain. Will Keep you posted.
Hoot

Jump to this post

Amen to that! That's exactly the way I navigate through the discussion email notifications. It does make it easier.

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