Hi, Peter B:

I, like ColoVet and many other people, have severe chronic pain caused by many different health conditions, the main ones being generalized internal chronic RSD, thyroiditis (also called Hashimoto's hypothyroidism), migraines and other types of headaches, and so on.

Imagine a house without a good foundation. What do you believe would end up happening to this house? I just think this house would, someday, come crashing down. I strongly believe it is the same thing with severe chronic pain, whatever the health condition(s) causing it is (are). For persons to have a good foundation for their chronic pain treatment, they need to find something that works for them, whatever this thing is (a medication or something else). This thing would be their foundation.

For me, this good foundation has been, since September 2002 (about nine years), fentanyl patches. Right now, the dosage of Duragesic I use is 125 mcg (one 100 mcg patch and one 25 mcg patch every 72 hours). I have tried about fifty different types of medications (having no medical insurance and not being able to afford paying for any, I only have access to some medications to control my pain). Without my fentanyl patches, I would not be able to take care of my two-year-old baby boy, I could not work, I could not do any of the activities I really enjoy (sky diving, horseback riding, water skiing, rock climbing, mountain hiking, reading...). My fentanyl patches are not my only pain treatment; I also take Tambocor, Inderal, Relpax, Keppra, Klonopin... I also do physical therapy. I also had seven surgeries on my left knee to help me with my RSD pain, which started there.

You are right when you say drugs do not cure anything (in most cases), but they do help many people keep their pain at a more tolerable level.

Quote: "Drugs mask the problem and don't cure it." It is true that drugs mask (I prefer the term "control") pain without curing it. However, one thing I never forget is that some chronic pain conditions cannot be cured, no matter how hard some doctors and scientists try. RSD is one of them. Of course, some RSD patients are lucky enough to live and see their RSD cured. It is wonderful for them. However, the majority of RSD patients will never see their RSD pain cured. Not only that, their RSD can go from a little area in their body to their whole body (this is the case with me and many others, young ones as well as old ones).

Quote: "Identifying and treating the causes of the pain might be an option, if they are treatable." Like I said in the previous paragraph, some chronic pain conditions cannot be cured. I hope that, soon, scientists will find a cure for RSD and other non-curable chronic pain conditions. I hope this will not just stay a dream!

Quote: "A poor diet will not give you the nutrients your body needs to repair itself. Determining what is a good diet is an interesting exercise in itself and is no easy task. As a start, avoid all manufactured products and prepare all meals from scratch." Unfortunately for me and for some other people, we might have health conditions that cut our appetite off. As a result, we do not want to eat, even the foods we like. This is the case with me. I almost never want to eat and I am almost never hungry, even though I have never been anorexic. The cause for me is my thyroiditis (Hashimoto's hypothyroidism).

Thanks for your information to us.