Hi, I'm new here!

Hi, this is my first post. I found this forum due to suffering with chronic pain. The most recent pain is due to bulging discs L4-S1 and arthritis is in same place! I have had epidurals, facet blocks, and most recently (over last two months) radio frequency ablation. My last RF treatment was on December 29th and I am still in severe pain. When I had the first treatment in November on my lower back, left side, I did experience some pretty bad pain for almost two weeks, and I am almost at the two week period from having my lower back, right side done, but this time the pain is much worse. I have gone from taking one Percocet 10/325 per day to taking two. This still does not help much. I am also on Baclofen for the muscle spasms experienced after RF. I felt like the first RF helped, but after having my right side done, now my left side is hurting again. Now I am wondering if the RF helped at all?!? I don't know what to do, my follow up with my pain doctor isn't until the 20th and I am getting very emotional about this pain. Has anyone else had RF done? What was your experience with it? I am glad to have found this forum!

Yep, had the RF procedures done, two weeks out try a combination of heat then ice packs, like a one two punch
to see if that can help better...it's still early on so it might take a week or longer til you feel the relief, so
give yourself some time...try the heat and ice and at your next appointment maybe ask about
ultra sound physical therapy to help with any scar tissue....hope this helps...others will come by,
many well wishes and I hope you get relief soon, keep us posted as we do care...

I've had luck with just using tramadol for the pain for a couple of years; then the pain stops when the disc is absorbed by the body.

I've had ablation was for painful slipping ribs, which still slip (slide over each other) after 2 1/2 years (accident). They started hurting again a year after the procedure when the nerves grew back. I'm considering getting it redone.

It's not a permanent cure, according to what my anesthesiologist pain doc told me before doing the procedure and I've read. Also my doc told me sometimes the nerves grow back in a bad way and cause worse pain than what the ablation was supposed to stop.

I've got a new bad disc, waiting for MRI report. I was thinking of surgery but will consider leaving it alone if my regular pain doc thinks it might resolve like the other one did.

It would be best to approach the dr with asking to be put on an extended release med. Usually if a patient goes in and gives the dr a specific name of a medication that raises a red flag with him and then you get looked at like you are a drug seeker. So, with that being said just ask for something that lasts longer.

I do not understand why you cannot drive while on Percocet unless you are very sensitive to it and it makes you groggy. You are not on a high dose at all. Most of us drive while on our BT meds. i have a pain pump implanted and drive when ever I want to, my meds do not interfere with that at all.

Ultrasound therapy is a heat treatment that goes deeper into the tissue than a hot pack will. It is machine with a wand and they put gel on the wand and glide it across the area of the body that needs treatment. This is usually in all drs offices that do PT on their patients.