Chronic Pain members - Welcome, please introduce yourself

Hi, I am new. I am relatively new to my chronic pain. I mean I have had my back issues for years but to me that was just something that was here and there type of pain.
Almost two years ago I went into the ER in the worst pain I have ever experienced(yes, worse than child birth) . I had two kidney stones, my first, I also had two ovarian cysts and was diagnosised with anemia. I know it's no where what others experience but since then I have constant pain. The pain is in my lower stomach but also can start under my ribs all the way down. It's a constant pain but some days I can deal while some it feels as if I am repeatly being kicked or stabbed in my stomach. My anemia has had me worn down. I did try iron pills but caused a bleeding ulcer. I recieved two iron infusions. I just moved about four months ago and so the process is restarting again. But some days I am ok and can do ok. Other days just doing one daily chore wears me down and can't do much.
I have chronic headaches 5/7 days. Sometimes the migraines come as well. I was also just recently diagnosised with hypothyroidism.
My back and hips are also an issue but I need to figure out more important things prior to dealing with that.
I just feel as if my whole body is fading away and not wanting to function. The difficult issue in all of this I do not know my health background, I am adopted. So this brings me to mayo and start my tests this coming week. I just hope to find out some answers.
Thanks for listening.

My name is Dilson B. Oliveira. I live in northern California. I am writing here in hope to find help for my beloved wife who is suffering with chronic mid-back pain that, we believe, radiates to her stomach. She's not been able to eat since May 2017. Such symptoms started right after a car accident we were involved in on 05/13/2017. A driver hit the rear of our car on a freeway. He was at least at 75 miles/hour.
She's been hungry since the accident and can't eat due to inflammation to the esophagus and severe reflux. A biopsy was completed during the endoscopy. The result showed inflammation to the esophagus. She’s been to 3 E.Rs. She did several exams: X-Rays, CAT Scan, MRI. All came out normal. The doctors we visited could not find any possible reason for her symptoms. I guess they are too busy with endoscopies, colonoscopies, etc. to be able to do a thorough research. Sorry for showing our frustration.
My wife describes her symptom as like a nail fastened to her mid-back that radiates to her stomach. It’s like the nail that penetrated her mid-back and stomach. We googled and found the following abstract released by “US National Library of Medicine National Institutes of Health”: Esophageal dysfunction in cervical spinal cord injury: a potentially important mechanism of aspiration.
“Format: Abstract
J Trauma. 2005 Oct; 59(4):905-11.
Esophageal dysfunction in cervical spinal cord injury: a potentially important mechanism of aspiration.
Neville AL1, Crookes P, Velmahos GC, Vlahos A, Theodorou D, Lucas CE.
Author information
Abstract
BACKGROUND:
Respiratory complications are a major cause of morbidity and mortality in patients with cervical spinal cord injury (CSCI). We hypothesized that patients with CSCI had esophageal dysfunction, predisposing them to aspiration. The purpose of this study was to characterize esophageal function in these patients.
METHODS:
CSCI and similarly injured control (spinal cord injury below T1) subjects were prospectively enrolled from two trauma centers. All underwent esophageal manometry to measure lower (LES) and upper esophageal sphincter (UES) pressures. A subset of patients had detailed manometry and 24-hour pH studies performed to evaluate dynamic esophageal function.
RESULTS:
Eighteen CSCI and five control subjects were enrolled. The groups were similar with regards to age, sex, injury mechanism, Injury Severity Score, and hospital stay. Resting LES and UES pressures were similar in CSCI and control patients and did not differ from established norms. Five CSCI and two control patients underwent detailed manometric assessment. Defective UES relaxation was observed in all CSCI patients but not controls. CSCI patients had increased UES relaxation pressures (18.4 +/- 5.3 versus 3.9 +/- 0.7 mm Hg; p = 0.01) and UES bolus pressures (23.8 +/- 2.2 versus 10.2 +/- 6.9 mm Hg; p = 0.006) compared with controls. Esophageal body and LES function were normal. Two of five CSCI patients had abnormal 24-hour pH studies.
CONCLUSION:
Patients with CSCI demonstrate significantly disturbed dynamic function of the pharynx and UES while resting parameters remain normal. Because adequate UES relaxation is critical to the clearance of secretions and coordination of swallowing, this is an important potential mechanism of aspiration in patients with CSCI.
PMID: 16374280
[Indexed for MEDLINE]”

The last gastro doctor we shared this information said: This is just an abstract! To this date we don’t know what he meant with his comment. I translate it as “I am too busy with endoscopies and colonoscopies.”
Anyway, if any of you know someone who’s going or went through the same symptoms and doctors who know how to treat it, please share your valuable information.
Best New Year to you all!
Dilson

I am laying in bed this morning having an anxiety/panic attack and trying to not let it get out of control. My heart is racing and I feel shaky all over. I just want to curl up in the fetal position and be unconscious right now. I won't let myself do that though. I know I'm in withdrawal as I'm in the process of getting off Tramadol 50mg. I was taking it 4 times a day, got down to 2 times a day, then had a setback after a 6 hour plane flight and added 1 tablet back. Now, I'm going back to 2 a day and it's really hard. I just know I have to get off this medication. My pain now comes from the Tramadol withdrawal. I know i can do this as I've successfully gotten off Gabapentin and Baclofen already this year. I am now at 10 hours between Tramadol pills. At 12 hours it is completely out of my system. I'm not sure what to do after I'm at 12 hours between pills. I guess I'll play it by ear at that time. I've thought about taking 1/2 pill at that point and going as long as I can using 3 half pills a day. I'm not ready to go there yet as I'm still reacting to going 10 hours between pills. I wait until I'm no longer having withdrawal pains at each level down before I decide to cut back further. My next goal is 11 hours between pills.

One year ago I had a laminectomy on my L5-S1, with remaining degenerative disk disease and herniated L4 that was going to require major surgery with rods and pins to repair. I was put on my three medications, plus diazapam in November 2016 for the pain from my disk impinging on my spinal cord. I had my outpatient laminectomy surgery on December 22, 2016. I remained on the meds until I could no longer stand the side effects of the Gabapentin. My pain doctor wanted to increase the number of Gabapentin pills each day, but I was losing large amounts of memory already. I did the opposite and cut back. My doctor was not supportive of my getting off it and gave me no advice or help with it to my complete surprise. I called my pharmacist who gave me excellent advice to withdraw from the Gabapentin. I succeeded and also got off the Baclofen during the same time. My pain was better after I was off the Gabapentin, which I found interesting.

The reason I am getting off all the pain medications is because other than the usual arthritis pain, I'm pain free. I dropped out of physical therapy after 4 months of not getting better. I read about on Mayo Connect about a therapy called "Active Release Technique" (ART) that some people had used successfully for chronic back, hip, thigh, knee, ankle and foot pain. I couldn't go up steps or walk without great pain. I was suffering that pain on my right side and couldn't find any relief. My surgeon told me to try everything short of surgery to see if I could get relief as he really didn't want to do the major surgery. I researched the technique on line, and decided to find a practitioner in my area. I reseached on line again and found a Chiropractor who had multiple certifications in ART, at different levels of specialty. I asked a naturalist and masseuse I highly respected about Dr. Todd Andrews, and my friend said that he actually used Todd for his Chiropractic treatments. That did it for me, and I started getting ART therapy from Dr. Andrews. After 3 weeks of 2 treatments a week, I was nearly pain free on my right side! I made appointments for twice a month for a couple of more months, and now I have one "tweak" a month. I am without pain as far as I can tell since I'm still taking the Tramadol. I am blown away by the effectiveness of the ART treatments. It's saving me from surgery at this point. I'm also looking for a Yoga class for 2018 to keep me moving and help my joints.

I'm telling my story so people know there is hope for chronic pain. I have had my back pain and weeks spent in a wheelchair or in bed periodically for 20+ years. When I was young I just handled it nd kept going. I'm 69 years old now and it was too much to just handle in 2016. I want to travel now that I'm retired and I don't want to be defined by my illness and pain. I don't want to be an invalid. So, I was willing to do what it would take to make my back better and my pain less. It's not easy, and I understand the toll that pain takes on your/our lives. I feel like I have my life back right now.

In addition, I just started using CBD Living Water the last 2 days. We only bought one bottle of the water (2servings) to see if it worked on my arthritis pain. It really helped so I will be getting the Tincture (less expensive than the CBD infused water) to use as needed. I'm hoping it will also help my withdrawal symptoms too. It doesn't make me "high" as I don't like that about marijuana in general. I'll let you all know the effects of the CBD tincture once I've used it for awhile. I live in California where it is legal to use marijuana, and I had a Medical Marijuana prescription this year. Couldn't use it due to the Federal laws and restrictions on prescription drugs and marijuana.

I hope this informationis helpful. With love, Gailb

@johnbishop, @gailb, @hopeful33250, et al, I don't know how helpful these two articles from the latest issue of "The Scientist" might become, but they feel like a collection of clues to some important improvements in understanding and treating certain prevalent forms of chronic and persistent pain.

The first article provides some basic insights on how pain pathways divide within the body: https://www.the-scientist.com/?articles.view/articleNo/51198/title/Infographic--Two-Pain-Paths-Diverge-in-the-Body

The second provides a long article detailing new insights on Glia cells as forms of immune cells operating in the nerves and the brain: https://www.the-scientist.com/?articles.view/articleNo/51172/title/Glial-Ties-to-Persistent-Pain.

I'll be interested in learning whether our chronic pain members find hope in these perspectives.

Hi I’m Ginny
I have had back for 5months since a car accident
that totaled my car.
I have been doing PT for 5 months and have had
2 epidural injections. None of which has helped
the pain in my right hip area .
I would like to hear of other therapies that might
help rid this pain.

@johnbishop, @gailb, @hopeful33250, et al, I don't know how helpful these two articles from the latest issue of "The Scientist" might become, but they feel like a collection of clues to some important improvements in understanding and treating certain prevalent forms of chronic and persistent pain.

The first article provides some basic insights on how pain pathways divide within the body: https://www.the-scientist.com/?articles.view/articleNo/51198/title/Infographic--Two-Pain-Paths-Diverge-in-the-Body

The second provides a long article detailing new insights on Glia cells as forms of immune cells operating in the nerves and the brain: https://www.the-scientist.com/?articles.view/articleNo/51172/title/Glial-Ties-to-Persistent-Pain.

I'll be interested in learning whether our chronic pain members find hope in these perspectives.

@johnbishop, @gailb, @hopeful33250, et al, I don't know how helpful these two articles from the latest issue of "The Scientist" might become, but they feel like a collection of clues to some important improvements in understanding and treating certain prevalent forms of chronic and persistent pain.

The first article provides some basic insights on how pain pathways divide within the body: https://www.the-scientist.com/?articles.view/articleNo/51198/title/Infographic--Two-Pain-Paths-Diverge-in-the-Body

The second provides a long article detailing new insights on Glia cells as forms of immune cells operating in the nerves and the brain: https://www.the-scientist.com/?articles.view/articleNo/51172/title/Glial-Ties-to-Persistent-Pain.

I'll be interested in learning whether our chronic pain members find hope in these perspectives.

@johnbishop, @gailb, @hopeful33250, et al, I don't know how helpful these two articles from the latest issue of "The Scientist" might become, but they feel like a collection of clues to some important improvements in understanding and treating certain prevalent forms of chronic and persistent pain.

The first article provides some basic insights on how pain pathways divide within the body: https://www.the-scientist.com/?articles.view/articleNo/51198/title/Infographic--Two-Pain-Paths-Diverge-in-the-Body

The second provides a long article detailing new insights on Glia cells as forms of immune cells operating in the nerves and the brain: https://www.the-scientist.com/?articles.view/articleNo/51172/title/Glial-Ties-to-Persistent-Pain.

I'll be interested in learning whether our chronic pain members find hope in these perspectives.

@johnbishop, @gailb, @hopeful33250, et al, I don't know how helpful these two articles from the latest issue of "The Scientist" might become, but they feel like a collection of clues to some important improvements in understanding and treating certain prevalent forms of chronic and persistent pain.

The first article provides some basic insights on how pain pathways divide within the body: https://www.the-scientist.com/?articles.view/articleNo/51198/title/Infographic--Two-Pain-Paths-Diverge-in-the-Body

The second provides a long article detailing new insights on Glia cells as forms of immune cells operating in the nerves and the brain: https://www.the-scientist.com/?articles.view/articleNo/51172/title/Glial-Ties-to-Persistent-Pain.

I'll be interested in learning whether our chronic pain members find hope in these perspectives.

@johnbishop, @gailb, @hopeful33250, et al, I don't know how helpful these two articles from the latest issue of "The Scientist" might become, but they feel like a collection of clues to some important improvements in understanding and treating certain prevalent forms of chronic and persistent pain.

The first article provides some basic insights on how pain pathways divide within the body: https://www.the-scientist.com/?articles.view/articleNo/51198/title/Infographic--Two-Pain-Paths-Diverge-in-the-Body

The second provides a long article detailing new insights on Glia cells as forms of immune cells operating in the nerves and the brain: https://www.the-scientist.com/?articles.view/articleNo/51172/title/Glial-Ties-to-Persistent-Pain.

I'll be interested in learning whether our chronic pain members find hope in these perspectives.