Anybody else with CHRONIC PAIN?

Question

Hello everyone.

I was diagnosed with a disease called Reflex Sympathetic Dystrophy in my right leg in 2006.

It started off in my ankle and is now up to my hip,

BUT

I'm having some of the worst pain in my life in my left leg.

Its got me in tears and vomiting and i just can't stand it.

If you have chronic pain, what do you do personally?!?!

How do you get yourself to get your mind off the pain.

I've tried everything

and please dont say advil/tylonel etc. i know you're just trying to help, but with chronic pain/rsd, even a billion shots of morphine won't work. thank you

Answer 1

I have chronic pain from cervical dystonia, a movement disorder that causes one or more neck muscles to constantly tighten and/or spasm. Botox shots are the standard treatment to both loosen the muscles and relieve pain. I don't know if Botox shots would be right for you, but you might ask your doctor about it. It's not cheap, but Botox is very effective for pain management. Without it, I would still be in severe pain.

I've also tried aspirin/tylenol/advil, and they were worthless. I wish I had some useful advice, but all I could do before Botox was try to sleep as much as I could, try to distract myself, and cry a lot. I hope you find some relief soon, and that these links will  be helpful.

Answer 2

I don't have any just yet, but my wife is loaded with pain. She has Fibromyalgia, Osteoporosis, Arthritis, needs a knee replacement, she's a mess. I take her to our local Hospital Pain Mgt Dept. They have her on MS Contin 45 Mg's a day, four Percocets a day, she takes Nuerontin for the nerves in her legs, she has bone spurs in her neck, and is now in need of hernia surgery. She has an umbilical hernia that is about the size of a small tennis ball, waiting for a Surgeons visit for that. She has curviger of her spine. She has high blood pressure, a diabetic. She needs to exercise, which would help her, but with all the other problems, she can't even do that except walk. She talks a lot on the phone and on occasion, goes out for lunch with her friends. The worse thing you can do is be alone with nothing but time to think about your condition. Talk to people, go to church, get some narcotic pain relievers and if you can, exercise those legs. Ride a stationary bike. Go swimming, best thing in the world. Makes exercising much easier with the legs and arms under the water. See a physical therapist and see what can be done for you. Swim only though in a heated pool. Cold water will make things worse. If you can do this try it. Lay on the floor and place your legs up on the cushion of a chair or sofa. Keep them elevated like this for at least 10 minutes. Move your fett forward and backward while up there, make a cicular motion with the toes and front of the feet. This will help blood flow quicker back toward the heart and through your legs. When you stand up, you may feel like you are walking on a cloud. I know it's excelent for people with just tired and aching legs. I wish I could tell you more and something helpful. Have you read about your condition. Go to Medline Plus Health on the internet and click on Health Topics and then click on the letter R and scroll down until you find your condition, click on it and read all about the treatments and medicines etc. I wish for you the very best alieeca and you can find the much needed help you so deserve.  

Answer 3

Like the other individuals who responded, I too understand and wish you the best. Even by posting here you have taken a step toward making the effort to feeling better as I agree that one cannot feel "alone" in this state of being. To get my mind off of the pain, I use guided imagery techniques and thought field therapy, more specifically, I follow a series of "tapping" on certain areas of the body (i.e.between the thumb and pointer finger, above the upper lip/under the nose, etc.). As ridiculous as this sounds, it does help. As we know, nothing is a magic, instant cure but the best thing to do is to be open to trying new things besides drugs (although they are a necessity as well; don't let people, despite their intentions tell you otherwise). Finally, I also do put my legs up as another person suggested. It really does do wonders! I'm a neat freak so don't feel bad about asking someone, anyone to clean an area up for you to make space to do so. I also have taken ginger in the past for the stomach although it currently contradicts a Rx I'm on so I try to eat lightly and if I do feel as though I'm going to be sick, I no longer fight it and I just go with it. I know I'm not telling you anything new; just wanted to say that there are so many of us out there that can relate and that where and how you're feeling today is not how you're going to feel down the road; everything does and will get better. Just remember the old cliche that nothing worthwhile comes easy.