chronic pain

Welcome to Healing Well Chronic Pain Forum! What your describing is exactly why I don't use the VA for my pain management. I am Retired Military and on Disability. I also receive disability through the VA. I was told by my VA doctor that it was very difficult to get pain medications through the VA. So I use my civilian doctors, for just about everything! I guess I am fortunate in that I have also Medicare and Tricare for my medical coverage.  I have been on pain meds for my Chronic Pain for over ten years. I also have problems with my back, upper lower and middle and have had three fusions in my neck and just had surgery on my lower back this past January.  I have been researching the Pain Pump as a viable alternative to taking oral medications. If I am a viable candidate for one, I will not go through the VA for it. I am not even sure that they offer it.

I am getting ready to move and it is getting more and more difficult to find doctors and pain clinics that will provide their patients with oral pain medications, that is why I am looking into getting one.

I would suggest that you do your research on the Pain Pump, and see if you think you would rather use that than oral medications. There are Pros and Cons to having it. Also check with the VA and see if they will provide you with one. They are surgically implanted in your body. It is something that might be worth your time considering.

I am sorry that I can not be of more help to you! But I am glad you found this site, this is a fantastic forum to come to, for support and advice, also a good place to vent your frustrations about your pain! I personally think we have some of the most caring and compassionate people on the internet right here on this forum. So I do hope that you stick around and become an active member of our CP family!

White Beard  

I take thirty mg of morphine 3xday and Percocet 5/325 4 times a day as needed for break through pain. It hasn't been put in my chart because I check to make sure. But I do there drug tests and there pill counts and have never been off or done anything I shouldn't. Not to say I haven't thought about it but that stuff isn't for me. I wish that the va would take better careb of all its veterans but hey don't. It is so frustrating knowing that when I wake up and hear my daughters crying to get up I can't just get right up. I have to work to get up to get them and pretty much cry while dong it. And they wonder why I'm depressed. I know ill never have a normal life but a tolerable o e would be nice. I just feel at an end. I am 100% disabled and just want to be able to enjoy my children but can't do that with just va insurance and dr.s. it is nice to vent. I hate to unload on my fiance about all this all the time.
]What are the doses of the morphine and percocet?

If your doc is refusing to increase your medication and is calling you a "drug seeker" I doubt you'll be able to get any help from him. And it sounds like if you bring it up, you could be out of meds entirely so...is that a risk you're willing to take?

I don't know what doses you're on, but my advice is to either increase the doses of your current meds, or switch to different ones.

Pain pumps are a good option for some, but most drs wont even consider it unless that patient has a dire need, or has tried everything else first with no success. Plus, as hard as it is to find someone who will script pain meds, it's even harder to find drs who will treat patients with a pain pump (or so I've heard).

I'm really worried about your current dr situation. If he called you a drug seeker to your face, then he probably has that written in your records too. And those will follow you if/when you seek treatment elsewhere. Even if the accusation is completely and utterly false, it may still make it really hard to get your foot in the door somewhere else.

I'm not sure how the military works, but how hard would it be to find another doc? It doesnt sound like the one you have is willing to help you any longer :(

Thank you for your service!

Why don't you try OTC meds. Some of them can be near good, such as codeine.

The thing here is that, when you change your meds everytime, you feel some expectation that it is going to work. This feeling alone can ease your pain by some much; see the placebo effect. So keep changing your meds whenever it doesn't seem to work anymore.

Jon when going in to see a pain mgt dr the best thing to do is to make a list of all meds you have tried, what dose and whether it helped you or not. Be sure to include your current meds on that list. Be as open & honest with the dr as you can. Explain that after being on the current meds as long as you have that they are not longer effective in controlling your pain. Tell the dr that your quality of life stinks and with his help hopefully he can get you back on track. Are you going to see a civilian PM dr?

Keep us posted....Susie

I have back pain upper and lower along wiith arm and shoulder pain. I was injured in the army and had to have a shoulder fusion because of the GSW. And I have degenerative disc disease and compressed disc because I liked ti jump out of airplanes. I just wish that the VA would treat us like people instead of numbers. I have used OTC and try herbal remedies but it seems they only go so far just like everything else. All I want is some relief I know it will never go away completely just want to be able to function and enjoy my babies.