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I have been referred to pain management.

Posted , 9 users are following.

lisa04688
lisa04688

In January, i hadan appointment with the MCAS. The second time in 12 months. I suffer with Ostioathritis in Hip and Spine,i am in constant pain.

MCAS have reffered me to the pain management team for injection in my spine, I phoned the centre today to ask how long for an appointment, and was told approx 26 weeks. I am unable to sleep at night with the pain, i take Tramadol, Naproxen 500 , Amtriplatine 25mg, Co_codomol 30/500  i lost my job due to sickness and really am fed up, Has anyone in the swansea area been reffered? and how ong did they wait,? and do the injections help????

I have also been told that unless my hip is fractured they will just keep giving me pain relief as i am only 49 years old.....

I am at the end of my tether.......

0 likes, 38 replies

38 Replies

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  • Sunshine2777
    Sunshine2777 lisa04688

    Posted

    If you are in that much pain from the arthritis and its in your hip, I'd lookin to getting your hip replaced. That's crazy just to load you up w/ all that medication. I hope you can find a good dr to see to get it taken care of. I'll say what I said in another post, I had an uncle that had a few surgeries on his back because he was in pain. The surgeries did not get rid of his pain and he knew he was headed for a wheelchair. His last resort what the Mayo clinic. They promptly found that the pain was not from his back, but his arthritic hips. He had them both replaced and no more pain. He was only 52 when the hips were replaced. From what I've seen, arthritis does not get better with time but just worse. I hope you can find some help. 
  • grandmaDylan
    grandmaDylan lisa04688

    Posted

    I asked my gp (a locum I've never seen before) to refer me to an orthopaedic surgeon about my knee. She immediately said no, I'm too young, I'm 56 so they wouldn't give me a knee replacement for at least 10 years. I rang our local private hospital to book a consultation with a orthopaedic surgeon who also works for the nhs at our local hospital. If he thinks it's necessary to operate he will transfer me to his nhs list. His secretary told me that age isn't an issue, it's purely down to the xrays and the pain and mobility problems which should make a consultation necessary. The consultant will print off my xrays whilst at his nhs clinic so will ne able to look at them before I see him on Wednesday.
    • Jan999
      Jan999 grandmaDylan

      Posted

      It's shocking that you were refused a referral because your GP had absolutely no right to refuse. All NHS patients are entitled to a referral if they request it. I would have complained first to the Practice Manager and if that got me nowhere then my next port of call would be to the Health Trust.
    • EileenH
      EileenH Jan999

      Posted

      No more to add to Matron's reply! No GP would treat me like that without having the odd question to answer to.

      If the man's SECRETARY knows it - why doesn't a GP? 

      I've mentioned somewhere else - here where I live if I have any x-ray or other imaging it is mine (for the princely price of 5 euros) to take away with me on a DVD. I may collect the results of any tests I have done - free, except if I ask for them I must collect them - or I will have to pay for the test in full. If I say just send them to the GP that's fine. But she will also print them off if I ask.

  • jan24575
    jan24575 lisa04688

    Posted

    Hi Lisa, sorry to hear of you troubles. I can sympathise about the pain, I'm waiting to see the surgeon (two weeks time) and am desperately hoping for a replacement, I have congenital hip dysplasia but after reading the comments here about budgets etc I'm feeling very despondent. I'm in Devon, don't know if that's good or bad re. budgets. 

    I don't want pain relief, I've already had to give up one job so have lost a chunk of money plus a small pension and being self-employed for the rest of my income I'm frightened what will happen if I can't work through ongoing pain. I have no husband to support me. Very worried about this and can't afford private.

    I too am 49. I messed about for four years with my doctor and got nowhere so changed doctors and got sent for an xray immediately so that was a huge improvement. I suppose if you're already going to MCAS you're past the doctor stage -  would changing make any difference?

    I'm told that injections can be good, my friend's husband had a knee replacement but prior to that he had 3 injections, the first one was brilliant for a year but the subsequent ones did nothing.

    I know what it's like to feel at the end of your tether, and what's so bad is that I've been paying into the system for 30 years so I feel I've earned the right to some treatment.

    Will report back what the surgeon says when I've been!

    Good luck in the meantime.

    Regards, Jan.

    • Enna1
      Enna1 jan24575

      Posted

      Hi Jan if I disappear its my connection!

      I can't tell you about the times I was not referred to a consultant in the uk and I see that there are articles in the mail today highlights the problem. Even when a consultant said he would see me socially the Dr would not refer me.I told my Spanish friend who is a physio and she took me to the Dr and she didn't mess about straight to the point. Unfortunately the consultant after new MRIs said he would do a fusion as I had a scar tissue problem so now waiting for pain clinic in 2 weeks.ànot much hope they can do anything except stronger pills. But injections were a bit erratic some did work some didn't 4 in the right thigh and 3 in the other even when I paid 1000 for a spine injection. I can walk for about 15 mins and thats it . terrible ads creeping in

    • Enna1
      Enna1

      Posted

      Unfortunately the consultant after new MRIS, said he couldn't do fusion as here was too much scar tissue so now I am waiting for the pain clinic in 2 weeks but I don't know what they are going to do because I have had 5 different injections in spine and thigh (latter good) and I don't want to go onto stronger medication.  The last I had was 4 in the right thigh and 3 in the other.  I was fine for over a year, but.... I don't know what strength they were and I am hoping there is some record of what the other dr did.  I also paid £1,000 for a spine injection. I can only walk for about 15 minutes and then the pain comes in, but I have managed in Valencia oday and achieved my shopping objectives (lol) and got home OK.  But... I will pay for it tomorrow.   Just wish I didn't have the pain.

      Deborah, I went to a lot of trouble years ago reading up on spine issues and came to the conclusion the surgeon nearest to me was the best in the area.  So I went to Middlesborough Lovely staff there, and the Greek Specialist was nice too, so off I went to have MRIS and X Rays and finished in the late afternoon and the Registrar called me in. He said sorry, but I can't find anything wrong with your spine. So did the consultant.  Thats when I think my practice dr got the idea I was lying. How do you put on pain?  In the end I went onto ADRSupportUK and found a surgeon and went private as I was also coming to Spain and wanted to be OK when I came.  I had decompression I think you call it Microdisco something or other except it wasn't in those days Micro lol. 

      He said he had done lots of spinal surgery (but they all say that) and although I had no insurance I paid £7,000 for this operation L3/4 L4/5 and L3/S1.  But..... when I rang him up to ask him which levels he had done, he didn't mention the L3/S1 which is one of the worst to decompress i understand.  Anyway to cut a long story short, I was never the same and before you go into hospital they want the cash up front, oh yes.  So when I had such terrible pain afterwards I rang the secretary and she said oh he did L3/4 and L4/5 never mentioning the S1 bit.  Whether he saw something in this level, whether he couldnt do that level because when you think of it, he could hardly come back to me after the op and say, oh by the way...... and ask for another £5,000 could he. So I came to Spain in the most terrible pain ever.  I will never forgive him and I would NEVER recommend him, Ian shackleford at Warrington but at the private hospital not the NHS.

      So thats part of my story and wish I hadn't to relay it to you, I haven't actually heard anyone have a successful spinal fusion yet.  In Spain a private surgeon said oh you will be walking out of the hospital, a few months later the State surgeon said he wouldn't do the op because I had too much scar tissue, so who was kidding who.

      I am 72 coming up to 73 and if I have to live to 94 like my mother I don't know what I will do with this pain.....

  • Sparkyknowsnot
    Sparkyknowsnot lisa04688

    Posted

    ?Hmm my posts to you were deleted and I have no idea why?

    It says I put links in maybe but I did not??

  • Sparkyknowsnot
    Sparkyknowsnot lisa04688

    Posted

    I think that I will complain to the moderator and see what it is going on.
  • grandmaDylan
    grandmaDylan lisa04688

    Posted

    Hi Enna1, I'm so sorry to hear about the terrible pain that you're suffering. At the moment I'm in bed having just taken amytriptiline and dihydracodeine to help me sleep and have a hot water bottle tucked into my lower back! I feel completely miserable because of this non stop pain. I'm going out with my mum and sister tomorrow as it's my sister's birthday and as much as I'm looking forward to it I'm also dreading it as the last time we all went out I was in so must pain that I came home and cried. When my mother had her first knee replacement she was wheeled down to the bathroom an d left on her own. She fell and broke her back, although they didn't realise this til two days later as they didn't xray her til the following day and then only because my sister insisted. The day after, having done the stairs test with the physio she returned to her bed to be told you've broken your back, you need to lie flat on your bed!!!! Fortunately it was a stable fracture and she wasn't paralysed although she suffers with severe pain.
    • Enna1
      Enna1 grandmaDylan

      Posted

      Deborsh and Lisa sitting here waiting for my connection ....
    • Enna1
      Enna1 grandmaDylan

      Posted

      Hi Deborah and Lisa you will see what trouble I am in. First of all I don't understand why they said your mothers back was broken what a stupid thing to say. I actually like the web site spine health. I know its american but they are very sympathetic I get it through Facebook but you can go into the site. We all seem to be clutching at straws with this subject and today I read where there is a condition of the back that drs don't often know about its quite rare and affects l4/5 L3/4 & s1 so I am going to ask if they can read mY MRIs again. The next thing was I am no expert but codeine went out with the arch and so did diclafdnic ask pain clinic to reassess your meds but I use a hot water bottle especially. when I go to bed. Be careful not to burn!! Don't buy a tens machine you are wasting money.I know what its like I did a lot of Valencia on wed and GEF into a state. You really need to go to a baths yoga class. Whenu next have pain sit down and just stretch your back forward like being sick between your knees. It will help but not for long. It gets me to the car park and to hell with anyone watching no body knows me.....see what the ain clinic says about gr pain. I forget what yr MRIs said....

    • Enna1
      Enna1

      Posted

      Sorry girls I'm back....thinking about it yr mum should not have been left alone please reply time and I will reply at the weekend. Going to Alicante for the day. Partners birthday too and then we have a medieval MKT in the evening....don't know whether it makes up for the connection. Chin up girls as I say when you feel the pain kick the dog its only metaphorically speaking.....just think this pain won't last forever. Before I go have you tried extra strength pain cream I can't think what its can!led but think u will know. I belong to adrsupportuk and the saying is. Slowly s

      Wins the race. Can you both tell me what u think of spine health. They have excellent videos of bad backs. You can send me a message on Anne Barnett in Spain if you like.....

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