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  • BDD Moderators: Keif’ Richards

Chronic back pain

Lord Armagoth

Lord Armagoth

Bluelighter
Joined
Jun 30, 2010
Messages
89
I have chronic back pain and the city I live in is hard pressed not to give out pain meds. Tylenol, ibeprophen, tramadol, vicodin or any low dose pain meds dont work. Vicodin helps if i take a high dose like 60 plus mg but then im overloading on acetaminophin. I've seen a few docs and they just push me off like a drug seeker without saying it outright. Anyone have any advice on getting help for this? I've had a disc removed from my spine and another disc is bulging. I wanna avoid surgery at all cost.
 
Can't give any advice on how to get your doc to rx you anything.

My advice is to find a doctor and be completely honest about your pain levels and what you take and have taken. It helps to have documentation such as MRI rather than just subjective personal experience.

You have to build a relationship with a doc built on honesty and trust. You may not get what you "want" but you may get closer to getting what you "need"
 
Yea the last doc gave me an mri gave me some vics but after that script he wasnt trying to give me nothing. I didnt ask for more until i could have taken the script like 3 times over as it was prescribed. Im looking for any alternative as well to deal with the pain, not just meds
 
Quite. Healing and treating symptoms are two different things.

However, if you are afraid that the APAP is harming you at that dose, which is probably not far from the truth, try the cold water extraction method. It's around here somewhere.

edit: curcumin from turmeric (a yellow, earthy spice) is said to help with inflammation. Physical therapy (or just regular stretching of the muscles around the spine) will strengthen the area. There are many natural ways to reduce pain and inflammation, but it really needs to be tailored to you. I would ask your doctor about this as well.
 
Oh,cool, well I too am a chronic back pain sufferer. Look into a TENs unit, it has helped me immensely. Also, acupuncture seems to help. And find a doctor that understands the problem and will give you the tools you need both medicinally and with other therapies, like epidural steroid shots. Those help, too. Good luck to you, I feel your pain.
 
Good luck - Beachcat is right - it is worth trying to find a doctor you can build a trusting relationship with, maybe don't go in making suggestions immediately, let them try what they think and report back if it isn't enough..

There is a chronic pain megathread here which might help you, or if you want some general/emotional support feel free to pop over to TDS (forum for addiction, mental health and any emotional issues plus general support when you are having a bad time - link in my sig) - there are a lot of chronic pain patients in there at the moment who will understand what you are going through..

Have you tried non-opioid options? Gabapentin or pregabalin (Lyrica) can work wonders for neuropathic pain, which is the main pain caused by a bulging disc.. NSAIDs can be good, try something stronger than ibuprofen perhaps as long as your stomach can handle it? Then there is physiotherapy, TENS, various procedures such as nerve-blocks and epidural injections of steroids/local anaesthetics..

Your state of mind can have a huge impact on your pain (and ability to deal with pain too) so if you are feeling depressed or anxious, it would definitely be worth addressing that as well.

Good luck <3
 
You shouldn't/can't expect the types of opioid pain medication that you are "hinting" towards from any family physician or even surgeon. These types of Docs are not there to treat chronic pain. They are usually willing to treat acute pain, which is why you've been Rx'ed things like you mentioned. So, it sounds like they've probably done their job, and if you've had a new MRI taken at a new doc - may I ask you what kind of doctor he was? If it was a generalist, and you had pathology, he shouldnt have Rxed you any more vics necessarily, but he should have offered you a referral to a pain clinic and/or opinion of a surgeon, or eventually both. Something doesn't sound right about your story? ANd if you're being up front and legit, then yes you have been mistreated.
How many different urgent care, ER, family practice doctors have you been to with the intention of treating this pain you speak of?
What about the surgeon who treated your back before? Where is he? What about the generalist who referred you to THAT surgeon?
You had a "disc" removed? Well, in that case - it would have been replaced with something. So are you saying you had a fusion? Or are you saying you had a portion of a disc removed, aka a discectomy?
 
No I had a disectomy they took the disc and a peice of bone out and didnt replace it with anything. The doctor who did the surgery 5 years ago doesnt practice here anymore. The last doctor I saw was at a spine associates office here where i live. He said if it got worse come back and he would do the steroid shot thing in the back. Ive done IV drugs but Im not excited about a needle in my spinal area, plus most people Ive talked to says that it dont work to good. There is a fine line in addiction and actually treating pain, and me being an opiate addict im on that line. opiate pain meds have worked the best so far but I havnt tries garbapentin and the other meds that yall mentioned. I do alot of physical work at my job which doesnt help but jobs are hard to find right now for a convicted felon without a highschool diploma. So why do you think my story doesnt add up? because I just mentioned a few things and not the whole story? please tell me.
 
As was mentioned, Neurontin (gabapentin) and Lyrica (pregabalin) can help a good deal. Stronger NSAID's, perhaps just Aleve (naproxen), or maybe something rx'd like Mobic (meloxicam) or Celebrex (celecoxib) could help, careful with your stomach though. Opiates obviously would help, but since you say you are an addict, and indicate a tolerance, the right dose might be hard to get. Suboxone/Subutex (buprenorphine) is rx'd for opiate addicts by "bupe" or "sub" doctors, that is an opioid and you could get a dose sufficient to control your pain better. Just a suggestion. Soma (carisoprodol) could also help a bunch. Just some ideas.
 
If you were more interested in relieving your pain vs feeding an addiction, you would take the steroid epidural injections. it may or may not work, but those with legitimate pain woud give it a try. ive had 9 of them, as well as radiofrequency nerve ablation.
a drug seeker would ask to skip the injections and go straight for the opioids. your docs know this.
 
Yea the reason I havnt done the steroid injection is Ive heard they are really bad on the body. Though Im leaning towards it regardless. And as far as feeding my addiction that wouldnt happen. Id have to be seriously hurt to get what I take to get high, like dilauded, or fentanyl, and even then I doubt they give me anything like that. Im going to see a new doc thats cheaper in a couple weeks. I'll see about that meds yall suggested and see what they think. Opiates do work good and easy to obtain, I just dont like getting sick and everything else that comes with it.
 
I have a really bad back... It's hard to find a dr that will listen to you. Tramadol is garbage for back pain so is hydrocodone... If you take too much ibuprofen you will trash your kidneys. I take Opana ER 40mg twice a day and Roxis for BT pain.. Soma for a muscle relaxer, Ibuprofen for an NSAID.. Valium for a muscle relaxer and for anxiety and klonopin for anxiety. I think I got it all typed in there...

Best advice I can give you is this. Do not see a chiropractor!.. Get an MRI and go to the best Rheumatologist you can find. They can find shit on your MRIs that neurologists and regular doctors cannot see. Your primary care dr is required to manage your pain until you are in pain management. Keep a journal of your pain. Rate it on a scale from 1-10, note whether it is stabbing, throbbing, burning.. if you have that numbness in the hands arm feet legs ect... Note activities that make your pain worse... bring it in and show this to your dr every month or every time you see them. Before I went to pain management I thought my pain was "A normal part of aging"... because I am stupid when it comes to my own body.. lol.. Apparantly it was not normal to have every disc in the neck bulging or herniateed.. decreased bone marrow througought your entire spine... Begginings of spinal stenosis.. a disc collapsing on another... bulging and herniated discs in the thoractic spine... super herniated l5 s1... Fibromyalgia... Nerve Damage... the list goes on.

Before you get on opiate medication... WATCH WHO YOU TELL ABOUT IT... everybody you know will want to ask you for some. They will all be your BFF but when you're laying there dopesick... they will be nowhere to be found and wont give a fuck until it's refill day once again. I am only telling you all of this because it happens really really fast! I wish you the best of luck and hope you are pain free soon enough :)
 
The attitude you presented in your latest post was much more positive, and the type of thinking that a Doc would be more perceptive to...
you have legitimate concerns regarding the injections, there can be some minor side effects and rarely some major side effects. most are short lived. this is why you are limited to 3 shots per year. i had limited success with the first two. the first one id go as far to say as that it was worth doing it. you are given a local anesthetic prior to, and it is a pain free experience. in some instances people are sedated. if you are really anxious about it (a 5 min procedure TOPS) then perhaps an oral anxiolytic is in order, and the doc would Rx you something to take beforehand. Id say that a lifetime on meds to treat the symptoms are far worse for you than the ESI's. Docs would also be more perceptive to trying more things to treat your pain after theyve seen your dedication at trying the gauntlet of traditional (and for some very effective) methods like the injections.
 
Violenza gave some good advice. I feel for you, btw, Violenza! My wife has already had 4 spinal surgeries including a fusion and shes only 26. Damn, You're on quite the # of benzos!

Anyway, inline with what he suggested, your real focus should be how the pain affects your life, how it keeps you from doing the things you'd like to be doing otherwise.
 
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