Any help will do !!

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maria16

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I have had a MRI scan and been told I have a prolapse disc (I have a hospital appointment next week with a consultant) and I can't believe how much pain I am still in, I am taking Morphine and am also on Buprenorphine 10mcg patches. This all started begining of Deceraber and has gradually got worse. I am now starting to find it very difficult to cope with I find just trying to have a shower is just too painfull, and end up in tears. I am trying to stay positive and finding this forum is helpfull and positive. Any advice or comments would be a great help, just to know I am not alone is a positive.

Thanks in advance.

Maria
 
Hi Scrappin

Thank you for your comments, I feel a bit of a whinger now I have been in pain for 5 months and a lot of people of these boarRAB as well as yourself have been in pain for up to 18 months, but I think time does tend to stand still when you are in pain and feel you are alone.

I have had a look at some of the other boarRAB and I must say it's been a great help, and just getting in there and talking to other people is great.

I am actually from England and my doctor has been great he did (while I was with him at one of my appointments) phone the hospital to try and get me an earlier appointment with my consultant but sadly with no luck, and if I ring him for any advice he does ring me straight back, so yes I have got a great doctor.

Well I do seem to be having a good day today, I do try and stick to a routine of doing things around the house and not end up sitting in front of the tele all day, I do try and stay focused that one day I will at least be able to get back to work.

Is your back problem something that hopefully will get better.

Take Care

Maria
XX
 
Hi Maria :wave:,

I apologize for taking so long to reply to your post :(.

You should never feel like a whiner, or anything else, for not being in as much pain as someone else, or for not being in pain as long as, or longer, than someone else...I think that makes you a lucky person, certainly not a whiner (or a whinger, what is a whinger? I guess I thought you were saying you felt like a whiner but when I read your post again I realized I was wrong...because you are British and I'm from the United States this may happen from time to time...lol.).

Before I created a username here on the board, I would come and just read all the different posts...I loved reading other people's stories and I honestly learned so much about my own back problems. Now that I've been around the block, so to speak, I try to offer advice to others that are new to this up and down world of back problems and chronic pain.

Did your MRI show that you only had the one damaged disc - the prolapsed disc? If that's the case, it sounRAB like you may need surgery, but you have a real chance to recover and get your life back...I hope so! I certainly don't want you to end up where I'm at.

My back problems are not going to get better, they're only going to get worse, I have DDD (degenerative disc disease)...I won't bore you with the details unless you post back and tell me you want to know.

What is your doctor going to do on Friday? It is this Friday, right? Please let me know what the outcome is. I will be thinking about you :angel:.

Take care,
Scrappin'
 
Have you been on any of the anticonvulsives? Like Neurontin (gabapentin) Lyrica Topamax? Narcotics often do not address nerve pain. If your pain is largely in your leg then it is nerve root pain and the anticonvulsive drugs can be more effective where narcotics don't help. Ask your doctor.
 
Hi Scuppin

Thanks for your reply, you certainly put a smile on my face.

I went to see my consultant on Saturday and you are right I do need surgery, which he said if all goes well I should only be in hospital overnight, the pain in my leg should go almost imediately then it should take between 6-12 weeks to recover fully then hopefully life should be back to normal, and the good news he is going to try and do this in the next few weeks.

It's amazing how positive news can really lift you, (for a minute when I came out of his office I wanted to jump up and down, but the look on my daughter's face said I better not even try it).

I am sorry to hear your problem will not get better only worse, the comments and advice that you have given me and I'm sure others have really helped so thank you for that.

I'll keep you updated, if there is any way I can be of any help to you please just let me know.

Take Care

Maria
xx
 
Hi Maria, and welcome to the board. My back problem is different from yours, so I don't know how much help I'll be, but I would probably try ice and/or heat in addition to what you're already doing. Maybe you can get a shower chair to make showering easier, and a grabber so you can reach things without leaning over or stretching. I'm glad you have an appointment coming up. I hope they can give you a good plan to help you for the long term.

Please let us know what they say and how you're doing. Hopefully, someone will see this who shares your problem and will give you better help than I can.

Try to take it easy,
Emily
 
Hi Pooby

Thanks for your comments, I will have a word with my doctor but hopefully if I do get to have my surgery in the next few weeks it may be worthwhile to just carry on with what I am on, since Saturday having got some good news I seem to having a good few days (I think sometimes when you get into a rut of feeling low things feel a lot worse than they actually are including pain).

Thanks for your advice.

Maria
x
 
Hi Maria,

Welcome to the board :).

I'm sorry you're having a tough time right now trying to control your pain. If you haven't done so already, I would recommend calling your doctor and letting him or her know that your pain level has dramatically increased. Explain how your current pain meRAB don't work as well as they once did, your doctor may simply need to increase your meRAB.

In addition, there are things you'll find on your own that will help ease your pain temporarily, things like using a heating pad (may not be a good idea if you're using a pain patch), ice, laying on your side with a pillow between your legs, hot bath...the list is endless...over time you'll learn different things that help relieve some of your pain.

I hope I've been helpful. Good luck to you.

Scrappin'
 
Dear Scrappin and Emily

Thank you so much for your comments they really helped, I had a good snooze this afternoon with a hot water bottle and a cushion between my legs.

I did call my doctor on friday as I was in so much pain and he told meto go to casualty, which I did and they upped my morphine dosage and just advised me to keep my appointment for next week.

It's just that feeling of being on my own all the time,( I do have a son at home that helps all he can, but it's usually me looking after him not the other way round )and thinking that no one else is in as much pain as me.

I will let you both know what the verdict is once I have been to the hospital and once again thanks for your help.

Maria :)
 
Maria,

I'm glad your doctor upped your morphine. It sounRAB like you have a good doctor and that's great when you have back problems b/c you never know how long you'll be having back problems. It's been 26 mths since my back problems started and instead of improving, new problems keep surfacing :(.

I'm sorry you are, for the most part, going through this alone. Even though I'm married and have a young son, I oftentimes feel lonely...I think it's hard for other people to completely understand what we're going through...we go from having a full life, free to go and do as we please, to a life of severe pain which limits every aspect of our lives...I know for me, I haven't been able to do simple things such as grocery shopping by myself in atleast 18 mths...heck, I don't even drive my car anymore b/c I'm afraid I'm too impaired from the pain meRAB and I certainly don't want to kill me and my family or someone else's. When I'm feeling down I find it helpful to post and/or reply to other people's threaRAB on this board or over on the pain management board...it makes me feel so much better once I talk with others going through the same things as me. As time goes by, you'll see what I mean, the people here are great, they're compassionate and knowledgeable and it doesn't matter what time of the day or night you need someone to talk with, it seems like someone is always logged on.

Do you live in the United States? I only ask b/c you mention in your previous post how your doctor told you to go to casualty, and I've not heard someone use that word here in the US before.

I hope your pain is easier for you to control today.

Take care,
Scrappin'
 
Hello Maria,

I'm glad your doctor was able to give you good news. It sounRAB like you could be enjoying life as normal by the end of summer, if your surgery and recovery go according to your doctor's plan. That's great!

I do agree with Pooby about your nerve pain. You may find a nerve relaxer to be helpful after surgery, while you're recovering...or even before surgery if you're experiencing a lot of leg pain...some well-known ones on the market today are Neurontin, Lyrica and Topamax...during surgery your nerves tend to get inflammed b/c your surgeon is working in the same area where your nerves are located. It can take a while for your nerves to calm down after surgery. I'm currently taking Topamax but I have tried all three nerve relaxers, the only one I didn't like was Neurontin, but we're all different so you may try it and find it works well for you. I would recommend discussing this with your doctor before you have surgery, simply b/c you may not feel up to it after surgery.

I do have another recommendation I would like to make now that I know you'll be having surgery...once you know your surgery date and what surgery your having done, I would recommend starting a new thread telling everyone here on the back board about it, that way you can receive a lot of support and encouragement and you'll also be able to easily update us throughout your recovery...it also might really lift your spirits if you have any bad days during your recovery...just a thought.

Keep us posted.

Take care,
Scrappin'
 
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