Haven't been able to sit for the past 5 years

[james163ca]

Harrison,

I have tried Celebrex and Relafen and used to take Aleve daily. Celebrex was useless. Relafen stopped some of the tingling. I developed ulcer as a result of taking Aleve and was told to stop taking it. Right now I take Vicodin, whenever I have high pain.

I was told acupuncture may help, but haven't tried it.

Thanks,
J.

[james163ca]

Harrison,

I have tried Celebrex and Relafen and used to take Aleve daily. Celebrex was useless. Relafen stopped some of the tingling. I developed ulcer as a result of taking Aleve and was told to stop taking it. Right now I take Vicodin, whenever I have high pain.

I was told acupuncture may help, but I couldn't find a reliable one.

Thanks,
J.

[Dingie]

Hi,

First, so sorry for the pain you are suffering. I certainly inderstand the feelings of hopelessness that a non diagnosis, non treatment plan brings. I spent 4 years chasing my tail..no pun intended

I think you will find on this forum many if not most have received mixed signals from a variety of MDs. My last appt with a US neurosurgeon, he spent more time quizzing me on how much Dr. clavel charged and did I pay the hospital separate..well you get the idea....

I will say that if you have the resources getting some opinions outside of the states may be a good option if just for diagnostic and treatment plans. I paid about $250 USD for a phone consult with Dr. Clavel after he had reviewed my records and sent a free email recommendation. He spent a full hour discussing my case, options, cost, everything I could think of to ask with 2 other family members conferenced in and chiming in. I was the one who intiated completion of the call. Obviously I like him as I chose him to do my OR. But there are many other docs out there, Dr. Zigler in Texas, Dr. Pimenta in Brazil, Germany not sure.

I guess what I am trying to say is that as hopeless as you may feel, I believe there are options for you. Unfortunately you are going to have to be your own advocate and go to find them. I agree, the MDs, I encountered had little to no interest if they could not make a quick diagnosis. my pain was different but yet similar in that it was difficult to find the pain generator.

I would send my records to as many as you feel comfortable with and just see what you hear back. In the meantime, depression is sooooo common for us with chronic pain. I am 7 weeks postop and still fragile emotionally. 5 years is a long time, coping mechanisms wear out. There is no shame in seeking assistance, there are psych docs who specialize in chronic pain patients. might be an avenue while you work on getting your plan together. If you feel like you are planning on hurting yourself please seek help immediately!

Life is still worth living, I think finding this forum saved my life! Full of hope and information, prayer and support. I will add you to my prayer chain and send positive energy your way!

Please feel free to PM if there is anything I can offer to assist!

Laurie

[james163ca]

Does anybody know what are typical symptoms of facet joint disorder?

[annapurna]

The classic facet joint indication is pain when bending backwards, loading the facet joints. Unfortunately, it's pretty difficult to separate out pain sources when you have multiple problems going on. I'm completely pulling a blank on the technical term but basically the strongest pain source is what your brain "tells" you is the problem and you don't always even sense the lesser sources; kinda like how your radio only picks up the strongest FM station even if there's multiple stations right next to each other.

I fully understand and agree with your comment about conflict of interest in the American, insurance-driven, medical system. On the other hand, it's probably smarter to suggest a path for healing than start another rant. On that note, it's well worthwhile to look at foreign surgeons. If you're fighting with getting diagnostic time from your local docs, the foreign docs work directly for you, as you're paying them directly instead of involving insurance. That means you're more likely to get the time you need and a complete answer. The flip side of that is that you'll need to be able to cough up the money on your own.

[james163ca]

The funny thing is that I feel really good, when bending backward. I feel good doing Mckenzie press, or bending backward, when standing. Bending to my left side is a nightmare.

At the moment I have a relatively good insurance. But I don't have the money to pay to the out-of-network doctors.

There is a service offered by bestdoctors.com (another insurance scam). They collect all of your medical history, and give it to few expert to find out what is going on. The reviewed my case and came out with a 30 page document, which basically says "we don't know. see a pain management doctor!" . I guess they charge heck lot of money for that, (my company paid).

[MRLucky]

James,
Keep looking for your answer, there are tons of knowledgeable people in and around San Diego and they can help you with your pain. I had a similar issue although mine was very obvious on MRI, I had surgery and I am so much better! You will find some solace when you develop an action plan and start to take the steps necessary to complete it. The depression will melt away when you begin to get some answers and figure out what you are going to do about it. I am in SD and know many amazing people, let me know if I can help.