Originally Posted by firegirl

So, Friday night my RSD got really bad and I had to go to the ER. I was in EXTREME pain, couldn't move or speak, was SOAKED in sweat, shaking for hours that looked like a seizure, trouble breathing, etc. This lasted from about 10pm to 4am & was not letting up at all. It kept getting worse. So, I went on to the ER. Normally the ER gives me iv or im dilaudid, iv ativan, and sometimes phenergan or some other random medication. I will tell y'all what my parents remember of last night bc I was out of it bc of pain. When I got there & doc walked in & saw what condition I was in, his first response was "what do u want?" My parents thought that was very rude & went on to tell him what is normally done in the ER for my RSD flares. Doc said he read all my records for a couple months back. They were trying to explain RSD to him & answer his question of why did they think I was in a flare. They told him it could be a number of things. One being barometric pressure change. Mom related it to how someone w/ arthritis gets affected from weather changes, just alot more pain. Doc said that he has never believed that barometric pressure changes ever can cause pain. What an idiot, this has been scientifically studied and proven for a long time. All computers at the nurses station had Facebook pulled up. Then he goes into talking about how the last several tests I had had on random stuff had came up normal. My lymphnode biopsy, random stuff like that. My RSD has moved internally so it causes all kinda unexplained problems in my body that are eventually attributed to the RSD. The way the doc said how these tests came back normal (even though I have way more tests that were not normal) made my parents feel like he was saying i was a hypochondriac or something, just making this stuff up. Nurse started an iv & gave me Ativan to try & stop the shaking. Then he tells my parents that he is not gonna give me Dilaudid. They said ok then give her a non-narcotic pain med or something. Doc said that he thought my pain was "cognitive", which to me means made up in my head, despite the undisputable evidence of how much pain I was in. So, parents asked then what are you gonna do to help her? He said well I can give her more iv Ativan & iv Vistaril & just knock her out, is that what you want? Parents said they didnt wanna simply knock me out, they just wanted me to get some pain relief. He said he didnt wanna give me a iv pain med bc when it wore off I would have rebound pain & would be in even more pain when it wore off??????? Never happenned to me!! So, since it was 4am & I had not taken my bedtime Oxycontin, he gave me an oral dosage of that. It's extended relief though, so no help there. I had been so bad off for so long that night that it was time for a dosage of my instant relief pain meds too, but he didnt give me any of those. He came back in to see if the iv Ativan had stopped the shaking & it hadnt so he gave me another 2mgs. After that kicked in, he asked me how I was feeling. I said shaking has gotten better, but not stopped, but that I was still in alot of pain. So, he told nurse to give me im shot of Vistaril in my hip. Vistaril is basically Benadryl so no clue what he was thinking there. His earlier statement of do u want me to give her ativan & vistaril & just knock her out.....didnt work. May have been bc I take a high dosage of Vistaril 3x day for Anxirty, as well as Xanax. He knew what meds I take. So, basically, I went in to ER to stop the shaking & get some pain relief so my other symptoms (breathing, sweating, etc) would get better. I left wide awake with 2 dosage of iv Ativan, im Vistaril, & oral dosage of Oxycontin ER that I take anyways. I was nauseous from all the pain, but he wouldnt give me anything for that. So, when I got in the car, parents gave me oral Phenergan & Oxycodone since I was late on my dosages anyways & he wouldnt give it to me for some stupid reason. So, this is just another story of my adventures with RSD and the ER. Got home at 7am and slept til 10:30pm when my mom woke me up. So, now it's 2am & I am wide awake & in alot of pain still.

Originally Posted by AintSoBad

As has been said. This situation needs to be dealt with before it happens, and it needs to be planned for.

Here's how my Doc works it.
I have a 'serious issue', I call him. He sends me to the ER, and, when I arrive, they're ready for me. If they need to converse with my doctor, (a Wonderful neurologist), They can and will, immediately! (I simply cannot, will not trust PM doctors!)
They can get him on the phone immediately, but, they usually know the deal, because he's already told them!

What a cool set up, huh?
But,
It's been almost a decade since I've needed to go to an ER, since my Doc has done one better!
He asks, that I 'save' some meds on 'good days', and that, I surely do!
So, that makes ME be responsible, For Break Through pain.
What a difference that makes, Too!

Hope all are well!

Love,
Pete

asb