How do you deal with severe pain?

MickeyBoo

I am in a lot of pain. As a general run down I have slipped discs in my back, crushed nerves which cause nerve pain in my legs as well as major loss of feeling in my legs and feet, the muscles in my upper right calf don't activate, my right heel has collapsed, I have next to no cartilage in my right knee, and left knee is on the way out as well. Constant aching pain radiating through my back every day on the good days and severe stabbing pain making me not want to move at all on the bad days. I have more bad days than good

I do have a very high pain threshold, but this non-relenting pain is wearing me down, it's been 5 years and there doesn't seem to be an end in sight, my Dr's have certainly told me that they can't do anything to change things and I have to resign myself to being like this permanently. I know people have it a lot worse than me and I just don't know how they do it!

Through all of this I am trying to lose weight, trying to move more and gain strength, but finding that it's still a case of 1 good workout, 2 days rest when it's not so good, and when it's good I can get a decent workout in each day for a week and then the next week it goes downhill again. I'm finding it difficult to maintain momentum physically, and even though I have lost a decent amount of weight so far and some awesome cm's I am struggling to keep my head focussed on the positives and keep getting sidetracked with pain. I can do weights within limits and the only cardio I have been cleared to do is swimming and X-Trainer.

I just want to know what other people do to work through severe pain, do you just take the pain killers and push on through, are there any other natural remedies that work to relieve muscle pain? I do yoga once a week and find it helpful, my gym has just started a second yoga class at a time that suits so I'm going to do that as well, are there any other exercises people use to alleviate back pain? Or even just anyone else who knows where I'm at and has been successful with losing the weight they need to and whether that has been the ultimate thing of benefit in the long run?

MrsCZM138

You don't have to work out to lose weight. I'd suggest with the amount of injuries and pain you have that you do as much as possible and not beat yourself up on bad days. What kind of pain management are you and your Dr doing?

Daisyisacat

So basically your doctors have told you to "Suck it up". Unacceptable! Get a second, third or fourth opinion. Go to a doctor that specializes in pain management.

bicyclerchick

^this

sanzza

Your first 2 paragraphs are pretty much me too... except i cant do as much as you re exercise by the look of it.

i just started to do yoga, tai chi and gentle walking again.

I didn't exercise before now, i couldn't, so I lost a few stone in a few months from just eating a 1200 calorie diet, healthy food, low carbs, sugar, sodium and fat than i was having normally. Not very low i just kept to logging on mfp to make sure i had the correct amounts.

As for severe pain.. I have a low pain threshold too.. i was on a bunch of medication plus epidurals, hydrocortisone injections, tramadol ,diazepan, amitriptolene, gabapentin, codine and antiinflamatries like naproxin... prescription drugs are all good for back and neck and joint pain, but come with bad side effects , its finding the right ballance for each individual, they also just made me sleep my life away. Id rather live and feel pain trying to solve the problem.

add me if you like.

Unknown

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Caitlyn_0211

Mickeyboo I've just started taking magnesium which can assist in treating muscular soreness, I'm not sure how effective it would be on chronic pain but it could be worth a shot. I'm so sorry you have to live with this, it sounds terrible. Maybe try some yoga or other low impact exercise and focus on eating instead of working out for now. Good luck!

MyChocolateDiet

I agree on getting more opinions. If you find a dr. that specializes in "pain management" just be careful it's not someone who's just dispensing med's like candy.

I also agree that you could focus on diet alone for your initial weight loss.

When I had steady and constant pain for years it was hard. Here's what helped:

Ice- the body can only send one signal at a time, so when you apply ice or any touch sensation it lessens the perception of pain b/c the pain signal is interrupted

Massage- still helps

Chiropractic care- depending on the issue this can provide great temporary releif or even complete releif.

Surgery- My chronic pain condition required surgery which when finally approved healed it completely.

Stretching- but this was harder during my injury as my nerves were very delicate and sensitive.

Patience, Honesty, Persistence, Organization: it is hard to be all these things when one is sick, in pain, and worn down but they are what will lead to the long term solutions.

Sleep- whenever I could get adequate sleep I was in a much better position to have a better pain day as I had the energy to move correctly.

caspercb

Similar situation.
I have 3 prolapsed discs. Been through 18 months of specialised pain management (took 6 months for my GP to refer me) I've had Caudal Epidural injections on top of Codine, Ibruprofen and Paracetemol. Demanded another MRI and finally I have been referred for surgery. Microsdiscectomy, I go in for surgery 8th May. No amount of massage, physio, Chiro, ice, heat packs, hocus pocus etc. will make it better, the disc is compressing the nerve. I can't feel my right leg and have constant pain down my left, not to mention back and buttock pain,
I've lost 25lbs since January 1st by just counting calories and walking.
I hope you find a resolve to your situation.

Michelle_Padgett13

I don't think I have any great advice, but I just wanted to pop into this thread to congratulate you on your work so far. You've lost 15kg -- that's a lot! I think your perseverance through severe pain is indicative of your future success. You can do this (you already are!).

I wish you relief from your pain and many successes along your journey. :flowerforyou:

GertrudeHorse

When I have severe pain I take lots of prescription drugs, find the least-painful position (e.g. lying down in bed) and don't move until the pain has gone. Unfortunately it sounds as if your pain is here to stay for a while so I would suggest:

- get a second, third or fourth medical opinion because your current doctor doesn't seem to be helping much
- keep doing any small movements you can manage without extreme pain
- embrace the good workouts and don't push yourself when your body won't cooperate
- accept your body has placed limits on you and work within those limits
- don't push yourself to the point of agony -- there is no prize for "pushing through" excruciating pain; it is not character-building and will just wear you down over time
- get physiotherapy and rehab advice
- explore alternative forms of low-impact exercise like hydrotherapy
- find a good drug regimen that minimises side effects and maximises pain relief
- and when it all gets too much just go to sleep and deal with it another day

CipherZero

So basically your doctors have told you to "Suck it up". Unacceptable! Get a second, third or fourth opinion. Go to a doctor that specializes in pain management.

This. Your doctor is an incompetent boob.

Turtlesallthewaydown

Have you already looked into new doctors? Whoever is managing your care is not a good fit. Being only 32 you are in a better position to benefit from any kind of therapies / surgeries than you will be later on in life. And you shouldn't have to be suffering like this with no options. Even if there really isn't any proven cure, there must be things they can try. The 'suck it up' approach is not appropriate for such serious conditions. How are these conditions going to improve in 10, 20 years if the doctors don't do something about it now?

With so much going on physically I couldn't recommend any specific exercise but I can share that saying I've heard passed around which is something about success being 70% diet and 30% exercise. So if you can't risk too much physical stuff just focus on getting optimal nutrition and adjust your calorie intake to your activity level.

MickeyBoo

Thanks for the replies

Unfortunately I'm one of these people who also struggle with food and binging which is one of the main reasons I am this overweight, I struggle to stay on track with a lower calorie diet without exercise, I've tried it for years when I was unable to do anything at all exercise wise and while I had initial success, in the long term I failed miserably. It's only been since I've been able to introduce some exercise into the equation that the weight has finally started shifting. I also really do enjoy exercise when I'm able to do it and find that it keeps me more motivated. I have a lot going on in my life and feel better mentally after a workout too, it's a big de-stress, so it's not something that I want to give up, although I do agree with slowing things down, and taking a softer approach.

There's a new aqua aerobics class starting up at my gym at the end of the month so I'm going to give that a go, the water exercises do help, but there are very few options for pools around here, they're either overly expensive, too far to travel to multiple times a week, or like the one at my gym, is overtaken with swimming lessons, school carnivals, and swimming squads.

I'm in Australia so we have the option of private health which I don't have and can't afford and public health which has the same options as private health, but longer waiting lists. I have seen both a private Dr and one through the Public system, as well as numerous physios, I see a remedial massage therapist regularly, and three GP's who all agree with the diagnosis and that there is nothing that they can do other than alleviate the pain for short amounts of time. The last hospital appointment I had, the Dr was talking about the limitations of their ability to help and I actually said to him, "So I just need to suck it up" and he said quite simply yes and that he would refer me to the pain management clinic for a schedule of pain medication to manage my pain once they have exhausted all other avenues, of which there are few.

I have had two microdiscectomies, and two lots of steroid injections into my spine, I am awaiting a third steroid injection into the other side and then have to see about whether they will do a third microdiscectomy. I am currently researching spinal fusion and going to approach them with that to see if it's an option. I have also done my own research into these types of injuries and found that the Dr's are pretty much right with what they're offering in terms of treatment. The fact that I am 32 is the reason why I have been pushed ahead for the 2 surgeries I've had so far, as horrible as it sounds, older people with less chance of good recovery are bottom of the list and are waiting up to 2 years for an operation, whereas I've been lucky enough to have the ops within 6 months of being referred for one.

The prospects for my quality of life for the next 30 years and beyond are dramatically diminished. I've been told that I will need a knee reconstruction sooner rather than later and that is on the cards in the next few years I'd imagine. My back is done and dusted, aside from spinal fusion which comes with it's own list of risks and cons there is not a lot the medical world can do to fix it and there is no advancements in nerve reconstruction so they have their hands tied there. They do ultimately just have to do their best to alleviate the pain and make life as comfortable as possible. I want to do as much as I can on my end to improve my quality of life so that I am not in a wheelchair at age 50 and an even bigger burden on my family, and losing weight, gaining strength is the best way I can do that, which I why I've asked the question, surely there are things that I haven't tried that people have found helpful, even just mentally being able to push through the bad days would be an advantage at this stage.

Sanzza - I can't take codeine based meds and every anti-inflammatory I have tried (about 6!) I have reacted badly to. I am currently taking panadol and nurofen 3 times a day, tramadol 1-2 times a day, valium after a workout or when muscles are really tight and making everything worse, endone when it's really bad, although I refuse to take that for longer than 5 days in a row, it makes me feel very loopy :noway: And you're right, I hate taking painkillers everyday and ending up feeling sleepy or slow and I'd rather try to fix it then continually mask it.

Thanks for the suggest Caitlyn, I'll look into that and give it a go!

Patience, Honesty, Persistence, Organization: it is hard to be all these things when one is sick, in pain, and worn down but they are what will lead to the long term solutions.

I like that, they're important points and think I will print it out and put it up somewhere to keep myself in check.

Caspercb, thanks for sharing your story, and congratulations on losing the weight you have! I hope that you get some relief after your surgery, I did have nerve pain relief but the numbness is permanent due to how long the nerves were compressed for. Unfortunately for me the scar tissue left behind and further continual prolapses have made the back pain come back again, and the nerve pain is intermittent, although thankfully not as bad as the initial nerve pain when I had the major disc blow out, at that point I was being taken to hospital for pethadine injections because I couldn't move out of a fetal position without breaking down in pain

Thank you Green Goddess, I needed to hear that too, it's had to remember the positives when there's so many negatives, but you're right, I have gotten this far and should be able to make it the rest of the way.

When I have severe pain I take lots of prescription drugs, find the least-painful position (e.g. lying down in bed) and don't move until the pain has gone. Unfortunately it sounds as if your pain is here to stay for a while so I would suggest:

- get a second, third or fourth medical opinion because your current doctor doesn't seem to be helping much
- keep doing any small movements you can manage without extreme pain
- embrace the good workouts and don't push yourself when your body won't cooperate
- accept your body has placed limits on you and work within those limits
- don't push yourself to the point of agony -- there is no prize for "pushing through" excruciating pain; it is not character-building and will just wear you down over time
- get physiotherapy and rehab advice
- explore alternative forms of low-impact exercise like hydrotherapy
- find a good drug regimen that minimises side effects and maximises pain relief
- and when it all gets too much just go to sleep and deal with it another day

Thank you GertrudeHorse, all very sound advice that I will be taking on board.

Oops that was a bit long!

jenilla1

Whatever you do, don't stop losing weight. I have a friend with horrible back problems for years. He's lost 100 pounds, and although he still has pain, he says it's much, much better since he's lost the weight. It's tolerable now. Good luck, OP! Chronic pain is demoralizing, but I'm hopeful that you can have a better quality of life! :flowerforyou:

AllOutof_Bubblegum

So basically your doctors have told you to "Suck it up". Unacceptable! Get a second, third or fourth opinion. Go to a doctor that specializes in pain management.

THIS.

It is you Dr's job to help you get healthy and comfortable. If he/she's not doing their job, fire them and find one who can help you better.

MonaRaeHill

Wowy, that's a LOT of pain meds, I'm surprised you don't have raging migraines from all that tramadol, yikes. I am allergic, myself, to any drug ending in "OL", and I DO live with chronic pain, as well.
On the really bad days, I take 2 oxycodones in addition to the other stuff which I take on the good days= A gapapentin suppository and amitryptaline, as well as muscle relaxants (1) to help me sleep at night.
Apparently, even though amitryptaline was originally used as a anti-depressant, it's not used so much like that anymore, and instead it is wonderful for nerve pain. Has anyone mentioned this to you?
The drawback to that, is that every time I go up on it, I am exhausted for 2-3 weeks, until my brain/body, adjusts to the increase. I guess it beats walking around feeling like you've got a hot knife in your gonads, but geez.
So, yes, I know your pain and frustrations with western medicine.............I've personally been to over 8 doctors who were supposed to be specialists and none have a clue what to do for me (i.e. how to fix the surgical nerve damage in my pelvis).
I guess I'm thankful, after reading your story, that I am able to walk and function (sort of) as a rule, most days.
Sounds to me like the yoga could be a life saver for you.........I personally came to the conclusion (with my physical therapist) that stretching is just about the ONLY thing that really helps to keep the pelvis open and the blood flowing to the compromised areas.
I also suffer (but only periodically) from neuropathies, which tend to move around. One day, it'll be my hands, the next day, my feet. I haven't actually figured out which part of what I am doing, affects which syndrome. I DO know that I HAVE to hunker down with my feet up, at least 6-8 times a day, or I can't eliminate on my own.............sheesh.
Anyway, the things I've done, that you may also find helpful:
I splurged on myself last Christmas and bought one of those massage recliners. Best piece of furniture I've ever owned! You better believe that when I plunk down for the night, in front of the bube-tube, that chair has MY name on it. lol. Sooooooo incredibly helpful, to keep things from locking up.
Also, a personal thumper, which I use on my pelvis and back, while meditating. It helps to keep general blood flow and things in my back from seizing up (which causes the lower body to go to sleep).
Another thing you may want to investigate is Pilates. I personally think that Joseph Pilates was a genius.
I've got lots of stuff in that department, but the most important one is the Pilates Arc. I tried it at the Physical Therapist and what a gem of a piece of foam. Ingenious! Even just laying on it a few minutes each day, is so incredibly awesome.
The thing I am doing with my diet is IF'ing (Intermittent Fasting), and it really seems to be working. It's hard on the skimpy days, but I figure it's good practice at flexing my resistance muscles and it's really hard to feel deprived, because anybody can do anything for a single day. I believe that's the magic of it.
Well, good luck and add me if you want. Cheers. Mona.

AllOutof_Bubblegum

Also, keep in mind that you do not need to work out several days a week in order to get fit. Every single workout is one more drop in your bucket of awesome, and that bucket does not diminish or expire.

So even if you are only able to get some exercise in once every three or four days, you are still making progress, and still lapping those thousands of people out there who are still sitting on the couch--people who are perfectly pain-free and have no good excuse to not work out!

You will get there, just do what you can on the days that you can, and take it one day at a time. :flowerforyou:

vjohn04

CBT

http://www.webmd.com/women/cognitive-behavioral-therapy-for-pain-management

Love62

I have Small Fiber Neuropathy and have been dealing with nerve pain for 8 years. I find water aerobics is the best exercise for me. I like to get a water noodle and just "ride a bike" around the pool. Just remember to take it one step at a time. Just do what you can.
www.myneuropathyandme.blogspot.com