Chronic Pain members - Welcome, please introduce yourself

Hi, Another Elaine on board, Chronic Pain....I recently joined, just to cope with Chronic Pain. I had four surgeries in four years, lived with a colostomy bag and did a take down, then 11 weeks later, found more of the same, a leak, in the upper intestines, another surgery and that was a tough one, ended up with a ileostomy bag for almost another year, and then take down, but I lost my core strength and end up with terrible scoliosis, my back is bent into a inverted V, ended up also with nighttime incontinence. I also lost five inches in height. Two years after surgery, I went into see my Doctor, and he ordered a MRI, his first words after reading it was " Yours is the worst back I have ever seen". " Gee Thanks?" I have been on Oxycodone for a couple of years, started with a small dose and would love to keep it small, but that is not the nature of the beast, I have a good Doc, who listens to me, and helps me choose more options, I have tried it all, surgery is not a option for me at this time... I'm struggling, my family while supportive is sick of hearing about it, I understand that empathy has a shelf life, but I have to live with it, and find myself not always coping well. My husband takes the brunt of it, and while I apologize. I really need some people in my life who also deal with chronic pain. Reading about what you all are going through, makes me realize how much courage it takes to live this life. And I appreciate all of your stories, and what you are trying to do. Thank you. Elaine.

Hello everyone, my name is Elaine and I have been living with fibromyalgia for over 30 years. Because of the long years of dealing with chronic pain I have been through the gamut of pain medications. I am currently in a skirmish with a new insurance company for Medicare Part D that doesn't want to pay for Belbuca. I was put on this prescription in 2019 so it's not something new to me but they want to know what meds I tried and what did not work for me. Honestly, it's a pure miracle that I still have most of those files because I usually shred our tax
files after 6 years. If anyone has been through this denial process with an insurance company and won, I would
really appreciate any kind of hints on how to bring them on board so I can keep taking a long term pain medication.

@elaineinmontana60 Hi Elaine. I know what you mean about talking about pain. In my case, I'm now home most of the time except for visits for my back pain or glaucoma or my teeth. And pain dominates my existence. It's hard not to talk about it. And now I don't have many Activities I can talk about. I look for interesting things to send to friends. Past that, I don't know. I'm so glad to have this site now to compare notes and make suggestions when we can. I am amazed by the strength I read and think about here, too. It is so inspiring! I'm glad to get to know you, Elaine.

@painsurvivor
Thank you for responding, I do understand how you feel, as we age, our lives get smaller, especially after covid. And appointments are just about the only thing we do. I read a statement the other day, that said " I hope you heal hard enough that you rediscover hobbies and you want to clean and decorate your house." There is nothing that will change our pain, I think it is going to be a constant companion, so my thoughts are to do something I enjoy as much as I can, learn new things, and try not to dwell on feeling like crap....I will say that some days are easier, I try to be positive as much as possible, and everyone's stories have helped me. Keep going....keep breathing, and find beauty in every day. And I am open to talking to anyone, or just listening. Sometimes that is all we need. Validation. Have a great day.

@2brussels Thank you. On many levels. I had to go and look up what Duloxitine was, do you feel it has helped you? I am very nervous about taking more pills, I had enough of that for four plus years. How do you cope with your chronic pain if you don't mind me asking?
I do have a Ecoin, implanted to help with the nighttime incontinence. IT has done wonders for me, and recently had it turned up.
I also have a wonderful PT person, who works exclusively with scar tissue, that has helped,
I am also tired of going to the doc's, and have tried just about anything and everything....I recently went for a test to see if a ablation(sp?) would work, the test alone was so painful, six shots in the back, and the lidocaine didn't touch it, I screamed. And then had to endure five more, while they held me down....I still have some bad dreams about that one. And the test was inconclusive, yep, not going back there again.

@dognanny Hi Elaine. I wonder if you can get a note from the prescribing physician for Medicare. A call to them from your physician would be ideal, if your physician will take the time. I think providers calls are put through to Medicare much faster than the calls from patients. I think it's worth checking on.
Good luck and wishes!