New Looking for info

Hi i usually post on the Rhumatoid Arthritis page and someone sugested i pop in here to get some help or advice

ok where to start;

 i have had RA for aprox 25 years and had many problems with drug reactions

i also have Osteoporosis and Vertabral Hemagianoma's & Degenerative Disc Disease this is where alot of my pain is comming from seems the RA pain is almost controlable but the Back pain i just cant get on top of and cant find anyone who wants to touch it

i constantly rupture discs and now at point where if i turn i wobble and fall can't sit can't stand get back pain & aching legs

i also have a problem with my knee "Locking up" this seems to happen more when my back plays up so i was confusing the issue if it was a Rhumatoid issue or a tendon issue with my back.

But it is so bad i have been bed bound for 8 weeks and when i do get up to go doctors etc i use a walker frame and then next day i'm worse.

i went to a Neurosurgen he didn't want to know and sugested the knee and back were not related and said i'd need an orthopedic surgen (but we don't have any here - oh correction aparently there is one that visits but Wont do Backs)

my Rhumatologist  didn't want to know about my back, my GP(primary care Doctor) is suportive but tends to think i wont get anyone to operate due to the osteoporosis & RA

and to make matters worse we live in Country and have limited specilists and when they do come here they are so busy the waiting list is Very long to get an appointment you can literaly wait months

i am really getting down and see a life only from my bed

any ideas i'm open 

 

I live in Durham,NC "The City of Medicine" I have been a pt @ Duke univ and a pt @ University of North Carolina and my background is in healthcare for 15yr's until I became disabled. Now I know that both of these University hospitals have programs for pt's that live in the country,Many of the pt's in North Carolina live hours away from any hospital or specialists. The programs they have are usually 5-day programs were they evaluate your condition and get you on the correct medications then you follow up with them every 3-4 months.. Look at your larger hospitals in your state to see what programs they offer.Also in N.C. they have hotel rooms for family members that are being treated in the hospital. Hope this helps...Feel Better RB

That prednisone is aweful stuff, my grandfather traded his back for the ability to breath, now he too has severe osteoporosis, and his back is slowly crumbling, he's fractured 8 different vertebrae so far.

Wow Australia, I really don't know much about the country, but I was looking into some work there once, and found out that it was really "in the country" and I would have been my own medical or mechanical help for most things. Wasn't very appealing being as I dont have sufficient enough of a background to sustain that sort of thing. I've heard that emergency services are getting better, but not near what they are in more populated areas.

I know if I had to travel further than I do to get to my doctors, the trip alone would be debilitating. I have to drive an hour one way, and when I get home, I'm in bed for at least a full day until the pain gets manageable again. I wonder if it would be worth the trip to try some more radical treatment like nerve blocks or something that would be more sustainable?

I wish I had more to offer, our healthcare system in the US is plagued with flaws, especially on the payment side, but its pretty easy to find healthcare in most parts of the country without traveling too far, unless you're dealing with rarer conditions, I know my uncle had to travel 2000 miles to get effective treatment for his cancer that he got from the chemicals sprayed in Vietnam, and ended up losing everything he and his family had in order to pay for it.

I really hope that you're able to find some form of help, I know this may not be possible, or desired, but if I had that many health problems, I would strongly consider relocating to a more rural area that had more to offer to give you better quality of life. But I understand that may not be an option for whatever reasons, I know I just dont have the income or physical capabilities to live away from my family, there support and aid is crucial for me right now.

Keep us posted on what you're able to do, I wish you luck and hope you find some improvement and relief somehow.