Hey Fireman ~ VERY few pain patients get addicted to their pain meds. There is the physical dependency, as you noted, but that is a WHOLE lot different than addiction. There's NO comparison.

Also, like the others said, I don't get the disagreement between the Neuro & the radiologist! This Neuro must be a real arrogant S.O.B. if he thinks he can read the films better than the radiologist! You need a 2nd opinion - or a 3rd, LOL

And Soma did help me too for spasms. In fact it was the ONLY muscle relaxer that I tried that worked -- and I tried a LOT of them. But it sure was difficult to come off of. I weaned off, but I still had withdrawal symptoms about a month later.

You sure have had your share of troubles, Fireman. I sure hope that you can get some relief soon! Being in THAT kind of pain is awful !! I pray they can give you some relief and FAST! You can't live like this! Please keep us posted, will you? I know everyone would like to know what happens. God bless and PLEASE take care! Hugs, Lee