I've been gone a while...now looking at botox
 

Hello all. Hello to Mark and Rae :winky:

Felt it was only fitting that as I just passed my one year anniv. of having my "twins" (lumbar and cervical SCS) implanted, that I pop in and say "yo" to everyone.

The twins have been doing fine. Did have a problem with one of the remotes, which was promptly replaced as it was under warranty. Now I get to start paying the annual warranty on both implants...about $400 is what I owe them annually now:eek:

Don't get me wrong, I'm not totally pain free and have still been dealing with pain. We came to the conclusion that I was receiving the best coverage for both lumbar and cervical areas and so have not been tweaked in quite some time. However, I do continue to have problems with upper back/neck area (just couldn't tweak the cervical to cover that pain), and have been receiving trigger point injections with Kenalog. Works, but only for a short time, so pain mgmt. dr. is wanting me to now go to Botox instead of the Kenalog as he says it will give me better pain reduction for longer periods of time. His office has sent in a precert. to my ins. co. and am awaiting the goahead. Was wondering, snyone had botox for spasms/trigger points? Any advice/suggestions?

Feels good to be back :hug:

Fiona!!!!
 

There you are, you wonderful lady you!!! And your twins, it is good to hear they are working although not Quite as well as originally hoped! It is so good to have you come home to say HI and share a bit. : o)

I must admit not knowing of a Botox injection to a trigger point for pain management. Only thing I ever read was the dermaplasty use for vanity's sake to eliminate those wrinkles ["oh my"]. So, they take Botulinin Toxin and inject it to the trigger point for you in order to basically "stun" the nerve trigger point? Is that the concept? It sure is amazing the uses to which minute amounts of toxins may be used for the good of select patients. I will assuredly pray that this works for you, my friend!

So good to see your name pop up on here again,
I have missed you,
A lot,
:hug:zzz
Mark56:)

Hi Mark. Thanks for the warm welcome back!

From what I understand they use a different type of botox for cosmetic purposes. Supposedly this type of botox is injected into the muscle in order to prevent it from contracting/spasming.

Hopefully someone will have some info. they can pass on to me or maybe Rae can suggest another site on Neurotalk where folks have maybe discussed this.

How are you doing?

Fiona

Fiona!!
 

I always do a FLIP
when I see you pop by!! :Head-Spin::Head-Spin::Head-Spin:
I'm glad you are faring well with the twins
I've heard Botox mentioned quite a bit on the forums. I did a forum
'search' and several threads popped up. This one stood out...
http://neurotalk.psychcentral.com/sh...ighlight=Botox

I'm anxious to hear more about this venture!

Thank you for making my day !

Thanks, Rae. Read through the thread you suggested. If you come across any other info., please pass it on to me. How are YOU doing?? :hug:

Fiona

Botox Injections for muscle pain
 

Hi Fiona,

I don't think we've met, i'm Sinéad, my screen name is Sophie. A friend of mine had a botox injection for shoulder pain, as it turns out she didn't like it one bit, she said she just coudn't do anything, that she felt absoultely nothing as if she didn't have a shoulder, I asked her after if she would have another follow up and she said no, she just didn't like it. She also said that it's a painful enough procedure as there are many injections into the muscle.

I suppose everyone is different and each person could have a different reaction to it and feel different about it.
As far as I know it's not permanent like cosmetic botox it needs to be topped up every so often.

How long does your doctor expect the effects to last? You've nothing to lose in trying it, if it works and it suits you then why not

Have you looked it up on the net? Is there any info there that would give you an idea of what it's like.

Whatever you choose I hope it works out for you,

Best of luck,

Sinéad :) :grouphug: :)

Hi Fiona
 

Tell you what Fiona- I am doing so well, that I have actively been looking for work for sometime now. Interesting, the market that is....... I had a "sure thing" job opportunity and went to meet with the company leadership today at their request only to learn they are not able to take me on because the market turned sour for them. ARGHHHHHHHHHH....... maybe I will take our cabin cruiser out to the Indian Ocean off of Somalia and take up piracy.... I probably even have better aim than the folks there proclaim.

Ahoy matey,
Mark56 :cool:

Thanks, Sophie. Nice to meet you:)

I have done some internet search and have come across mixed reviews. Not much out there to go by. Seems it only lasts 3 mos., maybe 6 mos. if you're lucky. One guy said it was the only relief his wife could get and others, like your friend, weren't so thrilled with it. I've got an appt. on the 8th to go in and talk to my pain mgmt. dr. to ask some more questions before going ahead with it. Unfortunately, I'm running out of options (or maybe have already and that's why he's suggesting the botox), so it may be worth a try. I know he plans on doing multiple shots in various areas so hopefully I won't lose use of an entire limb like you friend did...although it would get me out of housework:D I won't let my husband near the dr., tho', as he may try to convince my dr. that I need a shot in my lips:winky:

Mark: I may join you in the piracy thing...always wanted to make someone walk the plank....no sharks, of course. Hey, I could be the watcher of the rum (which would be used for purely medicinal purposes, of course) and occasionally sample it to make sure it meets your rigid quality standards...add in a pegleg, and you might be on to something:Ponder:

Peg Legs
 

Well matey, if it is sampler of the rum you wish, the job is yours. As for peg legs, and since my legs below the knees are numb, I could maybe just paint them some wood color and claim they are peg legs. ARGHHHH!

If our crew becomes too large, we might have to add a dinghy or maybe even get a larger cruiser. Pirate flag, the skull and cross bones, yes. And those dirty rags of pirate clothes with a snappy hat for the captain, cutlasses, and the whole gig.

Doable?
Mark56:winky::D

...................http://dl9.glitter-graphics.net/pub/...lkxbg6ydv3.gif

PASS THE RUM, MATE~ !!!
I've had a rough weeeek! :eek:

Yup
 

Comin at ya shipmate! Wow, have we Ever perverted the direction of this thread. Shame on us. But, 'twas fun, it was.

[hiccup]
Mark56:mf_swordfight::Sinking:

Hi Fiona, nice to meet you!

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/m...ark_pirate.png

Good one Joan, Good One!!
 

Har, har, har, har, har, har, hiccup. Pass the rum on around mateys.
Mark56:grouphug:

JOAN!! Where did you FIND that!
FANTASTIC! :ROTFLMAO::ROTFLMAO::ROTFLMAO::ROTFLMAO:

Rum
 

Hi guys I believe there is some Rum doing the rounds, can I have some too, I'll bring some Jameson Irish Whiskey!

Yum yum me likey xxx:cool:

Same place I found this one:

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/m...rae_Pirate.png

Playing pirates is fuuuuunnnnnn!!!!!

...............http://dl7.glitter-graphics.net/pub/...ntfeg5nzmg.gif

O. M. G. I am having the biggest
Conniption Fit!!



I'm sure we have some left, Sophie, but it's obviously goin QUICKLY!!

Our crew Grows!!!!
 

Gonna have to sail to the Caribe Isles to find more of that Rum, secreted away. Probably somewhere near Havana......... unless the brothers Castro have consumed it all.....

:ROTFLMAO::Head-Spin::ROTFLMAO::Head-Spin::ROTFLMAO::Head-Spin:

Mark56 ARGHHHH :mf_swordfight::Sinking:

You guys are a hoot!
 

You'd be great fun on a pirate ship:D:D and I'm sure the drinking would be purely for medical purposes:winky:

We're hoping to vacation in Mexico in Nov., and they have plenty of the ole' rum there...the good, aged stuff that we can't get here in USA. The best I've found here in USA is Bacardi 8 (aged 8 yrs.) but down there you can get Bacardi 12. Haven't tried it yet...tempted to give it a try when there if I can track it down. Again, purely for medicinal purposes as I'm sure I'll be sore from the trip there:winky:

Back to "real" medical-like issues so the powers that be don't think this thread has gone totally mad (too late)....go see my pain dr. Thurs. for some more trigger point shots and will talk to him more about botox inj. Have read both good and bad things about those botox injections...some swear by them (in a good way, aargh!) and some SWEAR by them (in a bad way...uugh!).

Botox for Fiona
 

May you learn ALL of the information necessary to make an informed decision whether to proceed with the botox. A HUGE question to ask your doc to discuss BOTH the Upside and the Downside of the injections with you so you can weigh whether the downside risks are worth the potential effort!

Nevertheless, we hope your Mexico trip is SAFE [if you are in a resort- STAY THERE] as we have friends with family down there and they are too fearful of going due to the drug lord wars which are consuming especially the northern provinces. The best word they give is stay on the compound of your resort- do not stray- people wind up not breathing any more when they do wander off. [Just a safety precaution].

Now maybe if we could take some pirates along you would be safer..... ARGHHH!

:D
Mark56:grouphug:

Thanks for helping us get back on track, Fiona! Good Lord.
Never know when we're gonna go off like that, huh :p I wonder how many folks we scare off when that happens!

I was wondering if your Dr has a way to provide you with some references or something like that.....maybe a few people who have had this done? With privacy issues tho, that may be tough. It would be nice to be able to speak directly with someone who's done this so you can get a better perspective straight from the source.

Sure wish I had better input to give you, my friend :hug:

Botox approved by ins.
 

Good news...botox has been approved by insurance. Bad news...my appt. for today was rescheduled to next Weds., so don't get to ask my long list of botox questions until then.

Mark...we've gone to the same resort many times and never go off the resort. For one, we're too cheap...can't see paying good money for going to the resort and then paying to go off and do things off the resort. Also, my hubby is very security minded so he just wants to stay on resort just in case.

Our resort (listen to me...sound like I own the place...if I did you KNOW there'd be a annual SCS/pain pumps reunion there...gives us a chance to try out the rum...oh my gosh, here I go again ) is about 1 hr. South of Cancun, so pretty safe over that way. Govt. knows that Cancun is it's major cash cow, so I think they guard it pretty well. About a mile or so after you leave Cancun airport, on the major hwy. you pass a "federali" checkpoint and the soldiers there all have M-16's so they're not taking any chances to their beloved tourism industry:Mexican: