Dealing with Chronic Pain

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Let me start out by saying it's an honor and a privilege to be a member of this group. This really is a great community.

My real name is Dan. That's why I sign my posts as Shadow/Dan, so I don't get mistaken for our founder. I'm a 41 year old Male. I have a beautiful Wife named Sue and 14, soon to be 15 year old Daughter named Cassie. Sue and I have been married for 20 years this past June 25th. I get my nickname from my Dog, Shadow, but also because that's the way I like to be seen. Only on sunny days. LOL I have another nickname, but my brother gave it to me years ago and it's not fit for print here. LOL

My pain is mostly from a back injury that happened way back in June of `82, and has been down hill ever since. I've had five operations on my back, the latest being a fusion at the L5-S1 level. Actually, the last one was to make sure the fusion had worked. If not the Doctor would have put in another screw in the back of my spine to help the two "Barrels" in the front of it. If I could turn back the clock, I wouldn't let a Surgeon near me, as none of them seemed to do me any good. I also have Fibromyalgia, Cluster Vascular Migrain Head Aches, Irritable Bowel Syndrom and a few others I can't think of at the moment. My biggest complaint now is my inability to sleep when I'm supposed to, and falling asleep everywhere ACCEPT my bed. My pain level is tolerable most of the time now thanks to a Medtronic Syncromed Drug Infusion System. In other words, a pump that gives me a steady stream of Morphine and Baclofen 24 hours a day. I have other medications for breakthrough pain that I rarely have to take. That's about all I can think of for now. I'll try to keep this as up to date as possible.

Lots of people say they wish no surgeons had ever come near them, but really, it's hard to say how bad you would be if they hadn't stabalized your spine. You might be in a wheelchair, totally paralized. You really don't know. I know I would be if the surgeons hadn't taken the tumor out.

It's hard to know one way or the other. I just think it's best not to dwell on it and just get on with life. Right? And you seem to be doing that, my friend.

We're sure glad to have you here. For one thing, you got a great name. For another, I need some help dealing with all these females.

Dan (the founder, or as one of the members used to call me, the "flounder". LOL)

I was injured at work way back in June of `82. I was moving coat lockers with another worker and they started to fall in his direction. I tried to stop them from falling but they hit me and broke my right leg. The pain in my leg never went away so after two years of hurting I was sent to a Neurosurgeon to see if the nerve in my leg was tied up in scar tissue and causing all the pain. I found out later that I was sent there so the neurosurgeon could prove I was faking, then the company was going to fire me. That's when they found the ruptured disc in my back at the L5-S1 level. I had the first Lamenectomy shortly after that. I never had any pain in my back before, but after that first surgery is when the back pain started. I ruptured the disc again a few years later, again at work. I had another Lamenectomy that really made no difference in the pain. I've been to a pain clinic where they taught me how to "avoid pain behavior". In other words I've been trained to make it look like I'm not hurting. Yeah, right. The pain in my back just kept getting worse and caused me to miss more and more work. I had a B.A.K. Implant Fusion don't at the L5-S1 level about 1994. The surgeon went in through the front and drilled two, 3/4 inch holes into my spine at the L5-S1 disc. Then he put two titanium barrels in the holes and filled the barrels with bone scrapings. The barrel sides were like a mesh. Over the following six months my spine fused together at that level. I still had pain so the same surgeon went in through the back and was going to put in a screw to strengthen the fusion. He said I didn't need one as the fusion was "Rock Solid". Well that's about my whole life story, lol. After seeing too many doctors and being called a drug addict I found a pain clinic that was willing to give me the medications I needed to quell the pain. Of course it wasn't right away. The doctor had to try a few other things first before resorting to the narcotic pain meds. Then he started me out on various pain meds that didn't really help. The doctor thinks my body doesn't absorb medications in pill form. So He put me on liquid Methadone. After I reached the maximum amount I could take of that, I had the pump put it. I've had it since Dec. 14th, 1999. I hope this is enough to explain everything. If it is, please let me know as I'm thinking about saving it and putting it in my bio so I don't have to keep repeating it. Not that I minded doing it here.

Looks, Good Dan. I would use it just as it is. Use both posts together.

hello i want to say hi and to let me say i see that you realy get around on this computer thing hey i must say thanks for the support and with the chat that misha abnd you had with me helped out greatly just wanted you to know you made me feel wanted and a freind even thow we never met each other in my life i want you to know meto says thanks

I have been looking for someone that has the Medtronic pain pump. I was hurt in 1994. I've seen multipal doctors. All of which said surgary was not a option. It involved 3 disks. Most of the time since I have been on oral meds. About two years ago, I started with a pain doctor. He put me on the fentanel patches. That gave me back a lot of fredom, but my clarity has not been something I'd wish on anyone. I would sit and fall alseep at the table, while eating dinner. In March I had the Medtronic Pain pump put in. They keep telling me it's going to work. Every week I go in for a tweek. Does anyone know how long it takes before it works right? I'm getting discouraged. I don't like to talk to my family about it because I'm sure they are sick of hearing about my being in pain. I know I am. ccsag

Tell me about your having the pump put in. I've had mine since March 2, and I've yet to get the relief they said I should get. I'm worse off now than before, I've lost so much ground already, I;m really getting concerned. Tuesday I'm going in nd they re going to run dye theough the whole system to make sure everything is workung right, If you hve tine mabe we could meet in a chat room and talk, thanks

Important Announcement The MSN Groups service will close in February 2009. You can move your group to Multiply, MSN’s partner for online groups. Learn More
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