[LuvinMy11]

I am 38 yrs old and was told by my regular doc who looked at an old xray and said that he seen a slight bulg at L4&L5. also decenerative joint disease. needless to say the pain is really bad. he did set me up with a orthopedic specialist....on a waiting list to see him.....well today i went to er. cant fold clothes with out pain. no sleep...actually in pain rite now laying in my bed. they did xrays and said that they seen that i have no curve in my spine. but brushed it off as something i was born with. told me to follow up with orthopedic...which i will in november thats when the waiting list is up. dont know that i can deal with the pain that long. any suggrstions?btw...new at this so bare with me.

[Dr. Smith]

LuvinMy11,

If your PCP (Primary Care Physician/regular doctor) can/will not prescribe something for your pain, ask if there is another orthopedic doctor you may be able to see sooner (though there may not be), try to get on a cancellation list for an earlier appointment (some PCPs can request your appt. be moved up based on need - some cannot) and/or ask to be referred to a pain management doctor or clinic.

Doc

[Leesa]

Hi ~ I agree with Dr. Smith. Talk to your doctor about the pain -- tell him how it affects your every-day life, and keeps you from doing daily chores. Perhaps he'll prescribe some pain meds to help you thru until you see the Ortho-doctor.

If he won't, I think I'd see another doctor. Any doctor who cannot understand that kind of pain isn't someone I want to keep going to. Best of luck & God bless. Hugs, Lee

[Dr. Smith]

Originally Posted by Leesa

Talk to your doctor about the pain -- tell him how it affects your every-day life, and keeps you from doing daily chores. Perhaps he'll prescribe some pain meds to help you thru until you see the Ortho-doctor.

If he won't, I think I'd see another doctor. Any doctor who cannot understand that kind of pain isn't someone I want to keep going to.

LuvinMy11,

Google: talk doctor pain

Before making any hasty decisions, I would ask/talk to the doctor about why he won't prescribe anything (if that turns out to be the case). Some doctors simply don't/won't prescribe powerful pain medications because of fear/intimidation/hassles from the DEA. There are still other options.

Google: politics of pain

Doctors are especially leary of new patients seeking pain medication lest the new patient be doctor shopping.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Doctor_shopping

If, after a discussion with the current doctor, a change is desired/warranted, it should be done above board/bythe book.

Google: changing doctors

Hopefull, this will not be necessary.

Doc

[spirit-of-shiloh]

Originally Posted by LuvinMy11

I am 38 yrs old and was told by my regular doc who looked at an old xray and said that he seen a slight bulg at L4&L5. also decenerative joint disease. needless to say the pain is really bad. he did set me up with a orthopedic specialist....on a waiting list to see him.....well today i went to er. cant fold clothes with out pain. no sleep...actually in pain rite now laying in my bed. they did xrays and said that they seen that i have no curve in my spine. but brushed it off as something i was born with. told me to follow up with orthopedic...which i will in november thats when the waiting list is up. dont know that i can deal with the pain that long. any suggrstions?btw...new at this so bare with me.

Hi,most doctors are script shy,especially with new patients or young ones like yourself. When I was in my 30s I had bad neck pain but was blown off and told to take an NSAID. I am 63 now. I finally found a doctor in my 40s who did tests and found I had DDD and pinched nerves. I managed the pain with OTC meds until my first car accident at 52. An MRI showed lots of pathology and I had ACDF,Anterior Cervical Diskectomy w/Fusion using my own hip bone. Well,that was 10 years ago. I have since been a patient with an Internist for the last 6 years. He prescribes Norco 10,4's daily,Soma,4's daily,and Butabutal when I get a bad headache.
He said that acute pain,when not treated in a speedy manner becomes chronic. Also,I had failed surgery as I did not fuse. I am supposed to have two more fusions but I refussed and will continue my meds and ice my neck and use a hot water bottle for my low back. Sorry this was so long. I hope you can find a good pain management doctor that will send you for the diagnostic tests needed,and give you pain meds. Another thing is folks suffering real pain are less likely abusers than thoses who just want a quick high. When you find a good doctor,use ONLY him/her for all your meds.Good luck and I hope your back is taken car of. Shiloh

PS
You really need a current MRI as an old Xray cannot show if the spinal cord is impinged,or narrowing of the foramin,etc.One person can have a 6mm bulge and hardly feel pain while the next person can have a 3mm but it is leaking or pressing on a nerve causing great pain.

[RobotDarger]

Our conditions sound different but your pain and how it is affecting you sound very familiar. My story is long so I won't post it here but I'm going to post it in a new threat (I hope that's the term). My journey started about four and a half years ago and while things are going well now, my life at one point had degenerated into merely existing. I will do my best to post it today...if anything from my situation can help or prevent some of what happened to me from happening to you it will be a blessing! Just in case I don't get it done or you don't readmy story the best I can say is be proactive! Do your homework!! Narcotics are absolutely necessary in some cases just to maintain some form of quality of life but make sure they figure out why the pain is there and that they will do everything they can to fix the problem instead of merely temporarily addressing the symptoms (the pain).
I'm typing this on my phone so I don't know how this post looks but I hope it helps.

[eva5667faliure]

hello fellow suffer

i am bed ridden today and trying 2 do my typing while lying on my left as well as the pc standing on its left
there is no way of life when suffering with PAIN
you might go through conflicting methods with different doctors
do not let anybody minimize your pain
we all suffer differently
listen 2 your body as you are given your medicine
log things down as your experience with the medicines you may take
for example
i have fibromyalgia and am unable 2 take lyrica
omg the side affects were horrible, blisters burning, and when i stopped
u could see each one of my nails had a indentation at the time i omitted it from my body
i decided just 2 live with it, that scratchy fall asleep part of my upper right back and that painful dead like skin it goes on and on for me
we are all different
do not let it go on untreated
a good doctor is need no question
keep asking all the questions u want
much luck on your road no reason 2 be in pain

[noblecrest]

Originally Posted by LuvinMy11

I am 38 yrs old and was told by my regular doc who looked at an old xray and said that he seen a slight bulg at L4&L5. also decenerative joint disease. needless to say the pain is really bad. he did set me up with a orthopedic specialist....on a waiting list to see him.....well today i went to er. cant fold clothes with out pain. no sleep...actually in pain rite now laying in my bed. they did xrays and said that they seen that i have no curve in my spine. but brushed it off as something i was born with. told me to follow up with orthopedic...which i will in november thats when the waiting list is up. dont know that i can deal with the pain that long. any suggrstions?btw...new at this so bare with me.

Having gone thru 4 back surgeries, 3 of them being done by an Orthopedic Surgeons...and 1 a Neurosurgeon, I would strongly recommend seeing a Neurosurgeon. They know all about the spine and the back itself. Your back is made up of mostly nerves. Then He could refer you to a Pain Management Dr. from there. Good luck . I am in constant pain even after 3 different fusions... they say that 95% of all back surgeries are a failure and this was from my Dr! And, I can attest to that.... I am so sorry for your pain, I understand.

[cath1]

Originally Posted by LuvinMy11

I am 38 yrs old and was told by my regular doc who looked at an old xray and said that he seen a slight bulg at L4&L5. also decenerative joint disease. needless to say the pain is really bad. he did set me up with a orthopedic specialist....on a waiting list to see him.....well today i went to er. cant fold clothes with out pain. no sleep...actually in pain rite now laying in my bed. they did xrays and said that they seen that i have no curve in my spine. but brushed it off as something i was born with. told me to follow up with orthopedic...which i will in november thats when the waiting list is up. dont know that i can deal with the pain that long. any suggrstions?btw...new at this so bare with me.

Hi, I agree with above posts about talking with your dr about pain, but also, I recommend a neurosurgeon. I had an ACDF also... c5,C6, C7 are fused with titanium plate and cadaver bone, I had a neurosurgeon perform my operation, and it seems to be somewhat successful. I'm still in pain, but not as severe, but I'm also still healing (surgery was just in march). In my opinion the neuro's know more about nerves and spines then the orthopedic surgeons do, and have a higher skill level. See if you can request from your family doc a referral to one, or go back to the ER and request a referral and an MRI, it will be necessary anyway to see what is going on. Xrays are not good for seeing nerve issues.

Don't over do activities that cause you more pain, you may end up hurting yourself worse. If your body is telling you it hurts, then it's a warning not to do something so you don't injure yourself more. Pay attention to what your body is telling you, you know yourself better then the drs do. Take care of your spine, it's the only one you get!

Also, you can alternate heating pads and ice packs to see what works best for some pain relief, and I find that biofreeze (a cooling gel available for purchase at physiotherapists and chiropractors offices, rubbed on the painful areas gives me temporary relief.

I hope you find some answers soon.
Take care,
Cathie