chronic pain from crohn's disease...

Hi mtgman

Well I think going to a Pain Clinic is just the thing for you to do! They will evaluate you, and most pain doctors have a whole bag full of tricks they can use to treat your pain! How exactly they will treat yours, well who knows, it all depends on what the Doctor thinks is needed, and usually they will start off rather conservatively and then over a period of time change or increase dosages or meds, or treatment, till they get your pain under control. Usually you will find relief after just the first visit, but that is not always the case, but going to a pain clinic means that your pain will be monitored, and hopefully it will be relieved! I know I have to go monthly, for prescription refill, every month I have to give a urine sample, as they monitor your pain med usage, at first I was insulted by having to do this, as I do not use or abuse drugs. But then I found out that some people say they are having pain and they get prescribed pain meds, but when they come in their unine screening shows they are not using the meds, so what are they doing with them, I know on individual came in ranting and raving because the Doctor would not give him any more pain meds, well after he had made such a scene in front of every one in the waiting room, the Doctor told him that he did not need the pain meds, because the last two months, his urine was completely clear of any of them, so if he wasn't using them, then he did not need them! When the Doctor asked him whatr he was doing with them, the guy quickly left the clinic! Now not all clinics are so strict as the one that I go to, but my pain doctor also does Epidural Spinal Injections, and nerve blocks and a host of different things, besides prescribing pain meds. It all depends on what is needed by the patient, my Pain Doc also orders test, of all kind to find out what is causing a patients pain, so he can better treat it! Every time I go in my Doctor asks me how I am doing , and if I have any problems, heck just this past Thursday, when I went to my scheduled appointment, I told him about some problems I was having with pain in my right hip and leg and lower back, and he checked me out and order a bunch of X-Rays and blood work and an MRI of my lumbar spine and then a follow-up appointment the 24th to go over all the results with me! A good pain Doctor really cares about you and takes care of you and your pain! I think I have one of the best! Anyway I really think this is going to be a step in the right direction for you mtgman to finally get your pain under control! I do wish you the best!

Good Luck to you, and I hope that you will come around here more often we have a really GREAT group of people here on this forum!

White Beard

thanks guys! the crohn's forum has offered tons of support and i thank you for your responses as well! hopefully i don't have to hang on the pain forum too long- no offense!! i can see why the pain clinics can be strict as you hear about addicts etc and some of the powerful drugs out there. i just hope we can get this figured out fast- i've had 6-7 kidney stones (i guess people with crohn's are a bit predisposed to get them) and the pain was horrible...BUT i passed a few with no meds so i know my pain tolerance is pretty high...this crohn's related pain brings me to tears...and i'm not a real emotional guy! haha.

i hope you are are successfully dealing with your issues as well!!!!

take care!

thanks Skeye!

Hi Mt and welcome to the chronic pain forum. My gi is like yours he will not rx pain meds either and I really do not blame him.  After being in pain mgt for so many years you really can get an education at the lengths some people will go just to get their hands on pain meds. Its that kind that has ruined it for the legitmate folks that need help.

 

It sounds like your appt went very well with your PM dr today . As long as you are doing what you are suppose to be doing, you will not have any problems with your dr. Pain Contracts, pill counts and random UA's are all part of the PM program these days. Also, I am sure you were told to use only one pharmacy too. That is wonderful that this dr has several crohns patients that he treats, not all drs know much about this lovely condition.

 

When I first joined HW I was over at the CD forum. I had just had an emergency resection and was dx'd with crohns. I had no clue about it except I had never been so sick and in so much pain in all my life. I have dealt with many different kinds of pain in my life but none can compare to what crohns can set off. Therefore, I can relate to what you are saying when you talk about the pain. You are right the folks at the CD forum are a terrific group and many of the older members are still hanging their hat over there. Those people helped me so much. My drs all suggested that I get online with a reputable forum because they did not have the time needed to really give me  info I needed. Also, please be aware that many times pain medication causes constipation. I wanted to give you the heads up in that dept.

 

I do hope the Remicade does the trick for you. I did the infusions every 4 weeks for 3 and a half years and that was the only thing that gave me any kind of relief. After a while though it lost its effectivenss with me, I built up antibodies to it and developed Lupus from it, but it was sure good while it lasted. Also, don't know if you know this or not, but your infusions should be tailored to your needs, not everyone can go 8 weeks in between infusions, mine was bumped up to every 4 weeks.

 

Take care and keep us posted on how you are doing.

Yes people with CD have a higher chance of getting kidney stones. Been there & done that and never want to go there again. Now, that is a pain that will get your attention if nothing else does.

ok procedure was not bad at all...even without the 2nd dose of xanax since the lady at the doc office who called last Thurs and said i could take the pill at the office was wrong since there was no time for it to kick in...was a bit painful but was over in about 3 minutes...next one in two weeks.

i'll keep you posted. i was so nervous but it really wasn't such a big deal- just deep breaths and it was over before i knew it...back was pretty sore later that day and evening. doc said it will be a few days before i notice much but today was a pretty good day. next shot is in a couple of weeks. thanks for the support!

 

  Dear MT,

 

   I hope by now you are feeling a little bit better. I do not know if your "shots" are like my cortisteroid treatments, but if they are, my steroids take about 5 to 8 days to "kick in" and bring the inflammation levels down. Anyway, I just wanted to stop by and wish you a speedy recovery from your injections.

 

*warm hugg*

     dani