Hi Jen,
It's strangely comforting knowing that I'm not the only one going through all of this. To answer your questions, I had a general allergy test done several years ago and the results indicated that I am highly allergic to nickle (amongst a long list of other things, silver, gadolinium dye used for MRIs w/ contrast) which is in surgical steel. Some of my pain is caused by facet joints, damaged tissue, and nerves... this I know from physical examinations, MRIs, Xrays, and the fact that I've been living with two herniated discs since 2006 and had a failed C5-6 Discetomy and Foraminotomy in October 2011
I wish you the best of luck.