Originally Posted by Nanc

neuromodulation, neurostimulation, spinal cord stimulators, etc, they are all the same thing.

A psych evaluation is always required prior to getting stimulators implanted permanently, most insurance companies will not approve the procedure without one. Like chaos said, they want to make sure your expectations are realistic and they want to make sure you are not suicidal. They don't want to pay a $100,000 claim and then you off yourself.

I was not happy with my evaluation either. The dr doing the evaluation said I was depressed and she was "concerned" about my mental state...REALLY??? She drug out of me things from my childhood, bad things, that I have dealt with already and moved on from. At the point I saw her, I was very angry at the drs I had seen up to this point...like 12 drs in a year until I was correctly diagnosed and at that point treatment was not effective. My pain dr told me that she didn't know me, just go thru the additional appts she required so she will get to know me better and approve the evaluation. So, I went to a few more visits and she approved it. It ended up being fine.

So, don't worry about it, it is part of the process. Also, I need to add this - you need to be 100% comfortable with your dr before you allow him to implant a SCS in you. If you are not comfortable with him, find a new one!

All the best,
Nanc