Hello everyone. I recently have been thinking about going to pain management for management because of my daily pain. I have MRI proof of Ruptured disc and DDD and a BAD case of IBS, and am wondering about peoples thought process on if It is a good Idea to go to a pain management clinic.
Here is my story, summed up and full.
Basically I am a 22 year old recent college graduate who has been diagnosed via MRI with Degenerative Disc Disease, and 2 ruptured disc, between my L4-L5-S1. I have done physical Therapy at least 3-4 times since i was diagnosed when I was 16, have had numerous steroid injections, and actually recently had a Cortico Steroid shot into my Spinal cord (FUCKING OUCH). \Well, recently I was also diagnosed with IBS and it has just been KILLING me lately, it overrides my back pain and sometimes I cant even work/stand up.
I am in good shape, 6'2 170 ex collegiate athlete/high school athlete with a B.S in health and exercise science (so I know very very well about health and such). Since being diagnosed recently with IBS and a worsening in my DDD, my life has just seemed to fall to shit. Ive been through alot in the doctors office, from 3 MRI's proving my back is worsening, to steroid injections, to 3 CT scans for IBS, blood and urine analysis's and recently some medicine that is not helping my IBS, I have lost motivation for allot of things in life due to my pain. It used to be very manageable as a teen, but recently not one day goes by where either my IBS acts up or my back does not hurt to the point to where it makes life very difficult.
I have been prescribed Hydrocodone a few times (7.5, usually #30 or so) by a godsend of a Doctor (my last doctor was a total cockface and basically told me that I am to young to be in that much pain, even when the MRI showed i had herniated disc as a teen, and promptly gave me tylenol and muscle relaxer), whose husband had a spinal fusion so she knows first hand how bad the pain can be. The medicine helps somewhat, but I have NEVER had complete pain relief, even taking 2-3 of them at a time, they just kinda take the edge off, but I am still in pain.
So what I am trying to determine is if taking that next step to go to a pain management facility and see what they can offer. I honestly cannot live in this amount of pain that I am in on a daily basis, but I also am very concerned about addiction/tolerance if I am put on a bigger dose of pain meds, but its for legit pain.
What have other people in this situation done, what can I expect if I go to a pain management clinic, do they drug test you before they put you on something? I quit smoking weed a while back after I graduated college so I could look for jobs (God smoking made the pain so much more bareable) and I just want something regardless of future problems that will help put my life back on the right path. My life has seemed to fall apart because of the amount of pain I am in, I used to be a very active, great attitude person, but now I just feel like a 80 year old man crying and writhering in pain. THANK YOu