I'm through with this!!!!

Hey all!  As my topic says I am totally through!  I've been told that I am not a candidate for the SCS by the Psychologist that did the eval!  So I got so mad today when I heard that I decided that I will not be mentioning the SCS ever again!  To those of you who have had successful implants.....Bravo!!!  I am so proud of each of you!  But, this gal is through with the crap!  No more posts about the SCS or the bull I have been going through.

Apparently, the psychologist wants me to go through another 2-4 years of pain psych therapy and I am NOT going through this again EVER!  I feel so stupid!  I can't seem to get the tests right so that they actually show how much true pain I am in.  My disappointment has been compared to the psychologists son who in his 11th year of school was not picked for the hs football team.  I have had enough of this!

So.....I am off to see a massage therapist and maybe some acupuncture if all else fails.  I'm tired of fighting and tired of crying and tired of being in so much pain that I can barely move.  As the saying goes..."enough is ENOUGH!"  7 years I have been fighting each and every psychologist to get through to the trial and each time, though the doctors that recommended the SCS say it would be a great thing to try, I have been refused by a stupid psychologist that in my own opinion has the power to DENY a patient what their doctor says will help.  Ain't that a hoot???!!

So no more....no more psychologists asking me how I feel about this and that....no more doctors telling me that I need to go to therapy....and no more NO's!!!  Stick a fork in me cause I'm done!

Hugggss  Hope ya'll are having a better day!

Scarred

((((((((((hugs))))))))))

I'm sorry you've been put through so much. I wish you luck in finding something that works for you. And you're right, it does seem wrong that a psychologist can deny a patient a treatment recommended to them by their doctor.

((((((((Scarred))))))))))). I still don't totally understand your situation/why WC, etc is making it so hard for you to get an SCS, but I can understand your frustrations. The only last thing I have to say on the subject, is do you have a private insurance that could pay for the procedure -- aka, just screw WC & try to get it approved through regular insurance. Anyways, I can understand you just wanting to end this whole mess now.

Good luck with the massage! I hope it helps. Acupuncture is a good idea as well. It does help many people. Osteopathic manipulation & homeopathics are also things that you might try. However, if you go the homeopath route, I'd chose a homeopath that is also an MD.

hugs,
Skeye

Dear friends;

Thank you all so much for your concerns. Unfortunatly this began 7 years ago and I'm already loosing most of the details in my brain, thank you pain meds uggg. Okay so we started out with my neuro. After the last fusion was as he put it "good to go", no restrictions just listen to my back, I was sent to a pain doctor in Cheyenne. This guy said the SCS was perfect for my situation. Well, of course so did the neuro. I began reading and looking around for any info on this and once I figured I had an informed decision we took it to the next step....an eval.

The first Psych was a joke! All he wanted to do is talk about how his back was sooooo much worse then mine and how I needed to "Use the force, Luke!" to stop it from hurting. He denied that I was a candidate for the SCS. Okay so now we switch to my guy in Billings. WC sent me off for a eval again a year later. This time with one of "WC's own guys". Again.....denied because the testing showed I was not a candidate. But.....there was a bright side. He wanted me to go through counceling and biofeedback. Okay, I did that as well.

fastforward to another day.......KS two years ago. After finding out that no neuro will ever touch my back again even if the one above L-3-L4 herniates, I'm screwed, I was sent to my current Pain doc. No new meds for pain even though I have practically fallen into tears in her office because it hurt so bad.....nope I am on too high of a dosage already. Reason's given for denial of SCS: 1.....unrealistic expectations. 2.......understating her pain. 3.......needs to communicate her pain to others better. 4.....overstating her pain.

Those are the reasons after each SCS psych eval. Does any of it make sense?

   Good morning Scarred! If you don't mind, can I ask what meds and the dosage you are on?

   Wichita is getting pretty hard to be treated for pain management here. I'm sure you have seen the news stories on the PM that was convicted recently. My PCD made me sign a contract with him to cover his rear. He trust me, but the state is cracking down hard on them. Oxycontin is especially hard to get from a Dr.

   The clinic you went to only wanted to do epidurals and no meds, and were very rude to me. My PCD office called them, and they got into a shouting match. I saw my PCD just last week, and he says that several Dr are having problems with that clinic.

I don't know what the problem is, but I do know that the PM's are tightening their belts on the meds.

Where will it all end? I'm not sure, but untill then, we will suffer.

   Good luck to you, and I understand you're frustration.

   SE

Dear Scarred,
Gosh, you just can't win for losing. First understanding the pain, then overstating it. I can't fathom why it matters whether you can accurately describe your pain at all. But like Susie said, maybe it was just Someone/the universe looking out for you. The SCS's have mixed results and some people have to have them explanted they are so awful. Still, I wish you could've had a shot at it.

Have you ever tried a "turtle shell" back brace? I have pain at L3/4, L4/5 and L5/S1. The lowest level is usually only helped by epidurals, but the 2 higher levels were really helped a lot by the brace. When I first got it my NS told me to sleep in it & to try to keep it on as much as possible during the day time -- except bathing and meal times. It's not a forever solution, but it did give me enough nighttime relief to get some much needed sleep (which I imagine you probably are plagued by as well). I would get maybe 4 straight hours of good sleep with it on and some more semi-fitful sleep on top of that. It brought me down about 20% on my pain meds on most days. They're not cheap -- I think mine was $1600 -- but sometimes you can get them used for little to nothing and maybe WC would even cover it without the huge battle. My NS collected ones from people who healed from surgery & were done with them and would resell them for about $200 to those denied by insurance or the uninsured. The only real downside other than the cost for me was that it is hot (mine is wool-lined) in the summertime.

idk. just a thought. I know you've tried so much & I just wish they could find something to make you feel better. Also, I know you probably want to avoid more meds, but when I was having probs staying awake/alert, my PM wrote me for Provigil. It's not as good as sleep, but made a huge difference in the quality of my work & ability to get tasks done. They've got a new sister product "Nuvigil" and a lot of offices have samples but otherwise there's a 7-day free coupon at www.nuvigil.com/pat/wakefulness_resources/7_day_coupon.php.

peace & prayers,
frances

Scarred

 

I have a question for you. Isn't this a workmans comp case?  Are these Psychologist's selected by you? or your PCP? or by your personal pain Doctor of your choosing?  Or are they selected by the wc folks? I have posted this before, but for the life of me, I do not understand what a Psychologist has to do with anything when is comes tho having an SCS for Gosh shakes, all it is, is an implantable  TENS Unit!!! It is not an narcotic drug or something that is super dangerous or something that is going to alter your mind,  or any other exotic divice!  It is a TENS Unit it electrictly stimulates some of the nerve endings to confuse and block the pain singals.  So pray tell what is the big deal about them that you even have to have a Psych  eval at all? Let alone let them have the power to over ride a Doctors recommendation, and block a person from getting one!  What am I missing or not understanding here????  I know Scarred after fooling around with the TENS Unit, I was offered to try a SCS and I declined! I personally do not want one. But with that said, I do not feel that these Psychologist should be able to  stop a person from trying and getting one either! I was always taught althrough nursing school, never to judge a persons pain!!!,  Pain is what ever a person( patient) says it is!!!! Period end of story!!  Nothing more! Nothing less!! Because as of now we can't read a persons mind or feel what another person feels! We can not feel a persons pain, so we have no idea how bad pain is to another person. and not even a Psychologist  with all their fancy test can determine that! How does she or he know if you are underestimating or overestimating  your pain??? Do they have some psychic, or magical powers that the rest of us don't have? I....Don't....Think...Soooo!!!!!! It is a crock of you know what!!!  Plain and simple!  I think allot of these Psychologist  should go back to doing what they do best, figuring ways for companies to make their advertising and commercials more effective, so we will buy more of their stuff!!!

 

Just my oppinion scarred, but I am sorry for all that you have been through!

 

White Beard

Scarred I think I read here that you have been on the same pain meds for three years is that correct? Are your meds taking care of your pain pretty much or have you found them not to be so effective? If your pain is not under control why will your dr not change your medications up to find something better. Has she not heard of tolerance to medications? My current PM dr was floored when she saw that my prior PM dr never one time in 2 years changed my treatment plan up at all and my pain scale was a consistent 9. This was what she saw when she reviewed my medical records prior to deciding whether she would take me on as a new patient. She said I was not receiving proper PM care to have been left holding the bag like I was.

When do you see your PM dr again? I do hope now that this has been settled over the SCS she will want to help you out.

Susie

Hey Scared, So sorry I'm late on chiming in!! Those docs and shrinks suck! I've had so many that I've lost count that just didn't give a dam about people like us! Screw them! Sorry to be so blunt but they really piss me off! Why does it have to be this way??? What happened th Macus Welby M.D.???????
Hang in there Lil Sis!
Hugs,
Pete

Hey Stray sis! Yeah its been about 5 years since I've had a med change! Impossible so far to get them to change them up since she seems to think that I am on a much too high dosage of Kadian (morphine) and refuses to fix my now increasing pain. Today was a horrible day! Pain is at a 10 and I am laying here in my recliner wishing that I could just stop this insanity. So now I'm forced to think of other things to try and get the pain down. My massage therapist is doubtful that that will work but we are going to try it on Monday. Never been through a massage excpet by hubby who doesn't really get to the good spots.

Sometimes I so truly wish we could all go back to the way it was before we were in pain.

Hugggggs

Scarred

No they did not even do the trial....this was just For the trial! I got to thinking about my pain medication delema and I am wondering what I am going to do if she won't change my meds around. What do you all think I should do? Should I keep going there? Or should I look into a new pain doctor?

Thank you Screaming. I will keep that in mind when I go to see the PA next month. I am planning to tell her that I am done messing with trying to get SCS. Its just not going to happen and I have faced that fact. Then we are going to talk about my meds. They recently switched me from Percocet 10/325 because of the liver being elevated and placed me on Roxicodone. To tell you the truth, I rather like it. It seems to bring my out of control pain down a notch or two and that helps. But, that is my BT meds not my long term pain meds.

I was put on Kadian 200mgs 5 years ago and I really think that is titrated in my system for too long. I take 2 a day and she says that is a way high dose. They won't even try something different for sleep. She says they don't usually perscribe sleep medications. Gosh, I hate to think that a whole bunch of people are not sleeping well.

Oh....and I was told that they do random drug screens and that everyone has to do 4 a year. However.....since I have been with them.....I can't remember a time I haven't done a UA. Do they not trust me????? I see her once every other month and the nurse the month in between and for me that is a lot of gas money. But, if that what they want....okay. I'll do pretty much what they ask me too.

Hugggsss

Scarred