Connect
Chronic Pain members - Welcome, please introduce yourself
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.
Like
Helpful
HugInterested in more discussions like this? Go to the Chronic Pain Support Group.
Connect
Yes Jim, everything I mentioned is at one of two dispensaries I use. The staff is very helpful. My physicians know of my use and are supportive.
And I o not smoke anything. I use the purist oil in a pen that creates a vapor.
@artscaping
In Oregon, I have to pay $200 annually for an appointment with a doctor who writes a scrip, another $200 annual fee to the state, and the cost of the product, with a ridiculously high tax. I haven't decided it's worth it. My pcp would stop prescribing my morphine - if I still needed it - and Clonazepam and Percocet. He might even drop me as a patient if I started using mm.
For now, I'm kind of on hold, waiting to see how much benefit I'll get from the spinal cord stimulator, and for how long. I don't want to burn any bridges.
Jim
Hello, I an new and was wondering if this group is still active? I was looking at a couple of the topics and it seems like they do not have any recent posts, looks like last ones were in 2016. Thank you
-
Like -
Helpful -
Hug
3 ReactionsWelcome, @lyssia
This is actually a very active group. I think it depends on which discussion you're looking at. What subjects do you have in mind?
Jim
-
Like -
Helpful -
Hug
2 ReactionsHi Jim, thanks for responding so quickly. I have cervical facet joint problems and myofascial pain syndrome and was just looking to see what other people do to help their chronic pain. I get facet joint injections about every 6-9 months and they work very good for me at this time. I used various other things to help with the myofascial pain.
gailfaith here........you might be responding to the wrong person. I am not familiar with Tramadol.
Hi Geneo,
Sounds like I have similar symptoms and diagnosis to you. Leg pain is horrible and I have both stenosis and scoliosis. Can you tell me more about the types of lower back exercises you are doing? I just started tumeric and don't have a Jacuzzi but have a bath tub and I know that ice does help. But am interested in your lower back exercises. Also, why did they tell you that surgery was not an option? I have been told that the only surgery they could do for me would be a fusion and a rod in my back from lumbar to my neck and so I am not at all interested in that. Shots never work for more than a few days. I was looking into the new Burst spinal cord stimulator but don't really like the idea even though some say it helps. Wondered why they ruled these things out for you. Sounds like you found something better but just wondering since we have similar diagnoses.
Thank you and good work.
Gail
-
Like -
Helpful -
Hug
3 ReactionsI can't say which of the four items that I do has the most benefit or it maybe just time,it's been six months from walker to cane to normal the excersiizes I use are on the Internet, you tube,I do ones that do not hurt.and the Ice pack that I made using water and salt,which takes the ice to a much lower temperature is an immediate relief.
@gailg @geneo I too have scoliosis, cervical spondylolysis, cervical compression fracture at C7, lumbar degenerative disk disease, spondylolisthesis of lumbar region, lumbar canal stenosis & bulging lumbar disks. Whew, that seems like a lot now that I have copied it from the doctor's report. I had excruciating pain for about 3 months until I had a laminectomy of my L5-S1 on December 22, 2016. After that all the pain on the left side of my lumbar, hip, leg, knee and foot was relieved completely. I am very happy with the results. My disk had been impinging on my spinal cord, so they cut off a small amount of the disk. It was outpatient & I have a small 2 inch scar.
However, the chronic and heavy pain on my right side involving my L4 was going to require a major surgery with rods and pins, which was not something my surgeon or I want to do. (By the way, Gailg, my understanding is that they cannot put a rod from your lumbar to your cervical area because you would not be able to move or bend. I hope your surgeon knows that.) In my search for alternatives & pain relief for my remaining problem on the right side, I joined Mayo Connect. One of the posts here reported on a technique, ART, which sounded interesting. I researched ART, Active Release Technique, and decided it was worth a try. I'd already done 3 mo of Physical Therapy, and acupuncture to no avail, as well as pain medications (Baclofen, Gabapentin, Tramadol), of which I only take Tramadol now. ART is done by chiropractors who get special training in the technique. It involves very deep muscle massage at the same time they are moving your body part they are working on. In my case, they worked on the large muscle/ligament (?) in my right groin, my right side sciatic nerve, IT band, and calf muscles. They don't do bone manipulation which is their normal area of expertise. The muscle work is VERY painful at the time they do it, just on the edge of being unbearable. What they are doing is working to release the muscles and nerves that have gotten bound together due to some trauma, even from surgery. He told me it would take 6 sessions over 2 weeks, so I said yes. To my complete amazement, I felt better after the first session. At the end of 6 sessions I was nearly pain free! It's been 3 months and I am even better than I was at the end of my initial sessions. I see him once a month now for a tune up. I can now walk and go up and down steps completely without pain. Yesterday at my pain doctor's appointment, he discussed how to taper off the Tramadol now. I feel so great and I want to shout it to everyone who has back pain. I know everyone is different and this might not work for you, but it's worth a try. I do still have pain that awakens me at night, but I can handle that. I hope if you try ART, you'll let Mayo Connect know if it works for you.
Thanks, Gail B Ledesma