[A18793715]

So I found out the cause of my constant lower back pain is that I have disk degeneration. The doctor said it was genetic. My dad has it in his neck. I started looking for pain medicine after trying all I can otc because of this new back pain that is killing me some days. But I've had constant lower back pain for 6 years, since I was 17, but since I'm young and say I've had pain that long without actively seeking help until now makes me look like a pill seeker. At least that's how I feel. The orthopedic doctor told me he couldn't prescribe me oral medication because of how they'll react with my psych meds. (Viibyrd, Xanax, Valium, hydroxyzine and triliptal). He prescribed me a compounded cream that had to be special ordered and it turns out I couldn't afford it. I live off of ssi. This cream was $87 for a weeks supply and that was with my dad's good insurance. I told the orthopedic that I couldn't afford it and he said he didn't know what else to do. So I went to a pain specialist today. He said the same thing about the psych meds and ordered two mris and told me to come back in 3 weeks. He prescribed me some cream but I forgot to tell him that I can't take NSAIDs due to having weight loss surgery. So now I have to call tomorrow and see what he says. I feel like they all look at me like I'm a pill seeking junkie. I have panic disorder, so I'm currently taking 2mg of Xanax up to 4 times a day, 20mg of Valium and 200mg of hydroxyzine for sleep. They all say it's because of my antidepressants but I know it's because of my benzos and their amount and my age. I just turned 23 on nov 6th. The pain specialist said it could be nerve problems with my upper back. If they are truly concerned about the serotonin sydrome, I would stop taking my antidepressants in a heart beat. A big part of my depression is the pain because it's another constant thing in my life that I don't get any relief from. Same with voices. Antipsychotics don't work. So my doctor and I have agreed to not bother with them after 4 years of trying. This upper back pain is killing me. I've gotten stuck sitting and couldn't get up because it hurt too bad to try to get up. First time it happened, I was home alone and I had to call my mom, who was at work, and she couldn't leave so I had to call 911. They told me I just had a kidney infection but the pain has been there and constant ever since that day. Some nights I just lay here and cry because of the pain and knowing there's nothing I can take to help it or even do. Besides lay however I find comfortable and not moving, it hurts. Am I just being paranoid about doctors? Does my age matter? Do they care or will they believe me that my severe depression kept me from actively looking for pain relief for my lower back in the past 6 years? I feel like the pain is just another nail in the coffin.

[healingme4me]

If worried that's what they think, have you either called a pharmacist or searched online, for a drug interaction chart?

Certain meds, certainly shouldn't mix. Couldn't the doctor recommend a way, that you could apply for financial assistance for copay help? Or maybe ask the office staff?

I'm feeling pain, just reading of your condition and upper back pain. C-spine, T-spine, L-spine MRIs are so long.

[A18793715]

I've looked up interactions and it's nothing major other than my anti depressant. Which has a rare chance to give you a syndrome that suddenly kill you. I have Medicaid that picks up the cost of my medicine normally but some things they don't cover. My dad's insurance is good and I don't know what I'll do when I turn 27 and don't have it anymore. It's impossible to live off ssi alone.

I looked at pharmaceutical companies websites. Some have assistance. But it's usually not much and I still can't afford it. :/

They're supposed to call me to schedule a MRI. The doctor warned me since he seen that I've been diagnosed with panic disorder that it's a tight space and it's loud. How long are the mris? He said I needed like a general one and some special one that will look at my upper back.

[Rose76]

Sorry for what you are going through. Degenerative disc problems can ruin your quality of life. Find out exactly which of the psych meds are in conflict with the pain meds. I found out that different doctors have different opinions.

My PCP was prescribing Vicodin (hydrocodone/Tylenol,) which helped my neck and lower back tremendously. Then, one day out of the blue, my PCP said he would not order any more Vicodin, until I got completely off Restoril (a benzodiazepine sleeping pill.) I had to make a sudden decision. I thought the pain control was the more important thing. It took me a while to wean off the Restoril, but I did. He also told me to get off Ritalin, which I did. I was taking a antidepressant, which he seemed to have no problem with.

I haven't heard of doctors seeing a conflict between antidepressants and narcotic pain killers. I'ld be very interested to hear if others have found doctors that don't want to mix the two.

Here's another tip. If you have never taken Indocin (indomethacin,) then you might want to see if someone will order it for you. It is an NSAID, so it is in the same family of meds as Motrin and Aleve. However you need to have a prescription to get Indocin, and it is a way, way, way beyond Motrin or Aleve in what it can do. This drug is not a controlled substance, but I am absolutely blown away at what it did for me. It was prescribed for me by an orthopedic surgeon. One problem is that it can be bad for your kidneys, so doctors don't like to keep you on it for long. It can be very effective at interrupting a pain pattern, so that you still feel better, even after you stop taking it. It's used for major flare-ups.

[A18793715]

I can't take NSAIDs because I had weight loss surgery and it feels like I have an ulcer. So that would be very bad mixture. The doctor said it was called serotonin syndrome. He told me the FDA looks badly at doctors who prescribe narcotics to people on antidepressants for that reason. He didn't say anything about my benzos.

[Angelique67]

I can't get pain pills for my bad back (I have the DDD too) because they thought I was addicted to them previously when I was dependent on benzos. They forced me off everything and now I'll never be able to have relief again. They really wrecked my life.

[Rose76]

It's not being paranoid to have concerns about how you come across to doctors. That is being smart. They do care, but they also have their own concerns about the short and long term consequences of the various meds and combinations of meds that they put you on.

I'm so sorry that you are having such severe pain issues at your young age. The MRI will better establish just what is going on with your spine, and that will lend more credibility to what you complain of. Some places let you listen to music while in the MRI machine, which helps a lot. Ask them. If they don't provide music, ask if you can bring your own. I see no reason why they would object, but ask ahead of time. It could make all the difference in the world, as to how you feel going through this test. Long MRIs are very boring, and music can very greatly alleviate the boredom that can lead to anxiety. In some people, a mind that is not occupied tends to drift off into anxious thoughts.

I would agree that you might need to prioritize your problems. Maybe getting the pain treated should take precedence over staying on the Viibyrd that is your antidepressant. There are other antidepressants that might not be so concerning, as far as putting you at risk for serotonin syndrome. I think part of your problem is that doctors don't like to step on each other's toes. To my great dismay, they also don't always try to work together as a team, whereby they could discuss the trade-offs of dropping one med, in favor of another. That leaves an awful burden on you to try and coordinate achieving the different goals you are addressing through the different doctors.

Tricyclic antidepressants (such as nortriptyline) are sometimes used to help alleviate pain, and they may not be as worrisome with respect to the serotonin syndrome. I take a tricyclic A.D. and none of my doctors have ever had a problem giving me Vicodin, while on this type of A.D. Besides that, tricyclics are very effective against depression.

I'm a little confused as to what you are aiming at. Would you like to be on a narcotic pain killer, if that is what it takes to control your pain? Are you hoping that there might be a non-narcotic pain killer that would help?

[A18793715]

I don't care what kind of pain med it is. I'm just so tired of hurting. Since I can't take NSAIDs, that eliminates a huge chunk of pain meds doctors can give you. I read saying that you can't take NSAIDs is a huge red flag for doctors look for in pill seekers. But even though I have proof that I can't take NSAIDs, the doctor told me to do so anyways.

My first appointment with the pain specialist was Friday, nov 14th. He said the MRI people would call me on mon or tue. I didn't realize the cream he prescribed me was an NSAID until after I left. So I called on Monday and I told the lady my problem and she said I needed to reschedule to talk to the doctor and tell him (even though I swear I'm certain I wrote on my forms and told him I had the gastric sleeve) that I had surgery and see what else I can take. So we rescheduled my appointment for last wed and canceled my follow up appointment that was supposed to be on dec 1st to talk about my MRI results. Last wed came and that morning, a nurse called and asked why I was coming back so soon and I told her and she told me to hold on and that she would "ask the doctor". I'm not even exaggerating. She put me on hold for not even 5 seconds and told me the doctor said that I should just use the cream anyways because even though it's an NSAID, it's "minimally absorbed". And that I didn't need to come into my appointment. So I did my research to make sure I was correct. I already think I have an ulcer. I'm making an appointment with a GI doctor tomorrow. I've had two in the past so I know how they feel. Even topical NSAIDs go into your blood stream and thins your stomach lining. The MRI people didn't call me last week. I have a feeling they're not going to call this week either. I don't think this doctor is really willing to try to help and I feel like he's already put me down as a drug seeker. Should I just go to another?

I don't care what kind of pain medicine it is or if it's addictive. I've never been addicted to anything and I've never abused any substance, so I'm not worried about any of that. I don't even care if the drug was experimental at this point.

I've spent the entire weekend, just laying in bed with a heating pad and eating more Tylenol than I should in 24 hours because the pain has been so bad since Friday. I've gotten maybe 9 hours of sleep since I woke up at 1pm on Friday. So it's been 55 hours since this pain spiked and I barely sleep 3 hours when the pain calms down enough. No amount of sleeping pills will put me to sleep. My stomach pain is adding to that. I feel so pathetic just laying here, crying.

I've never been so depressed in my life. I would rather repeat some traumatic events to feel okay. At least then my depression wasn't even close to this.

[A18793715]

I don't even know if there is anything strong enough for my back. When I had my gastric sleeve surgery, I had liquid Vicodin and prescribed basically at 15-30mg a dose for pain. It stopped all post op pain but it didn't even touch my back pain.

[Rose76]

It's good that you're going to see a GI specialist. You need to see if you do have an ulcer. If you've had ulcers in the past, or have one now, then I could see where you probably shouldn't be on any NSAIDs.

Narcotics are actually pretty safe meds. Seems to me that's what you need for the pain. You should stick with the pain specialist and ortho specialist until you see for sure what they will, or won't, do for you. I'm sorry you are in such distress. Sounds like you need some kind of help for sure.

[A18793715]

The hard thing is that this was the last Medicaid doctor I could find. Now I have to use my dad's insurance, which is my primary, and pay $35 for each visit. Each MRI will be $150 each. I only get $461 a month on ssi. Having to go to a non Medicaid doctor will hurt me finically for sure. Sigh. I guess that's the only upside of living at home but I'm not sure the stress of my family is worth it either.

Each direction I turn, every problem I have, there's something blocking the exit.

[Rose76]

When you do get too old to be on your parents' insurance, you should be eligible for Medicaid. That's no help to you now, but it is some security for the future. In the meantime, maybe your parents can help you finance some of these costs. They must be concerned that you are in so much pain.

[A18793715]

I do have Medicaid. They cover my copayments and everything as long as that doctor accepts Medicaid.

As for my parents, my dad is the only one who works. He makes 3k every 2 weeks, but he gambles so much of it as soon as he gets paid, he's pretty much broke 3 days after he gets paid. Bills go unpaid. He hasn't made a house payment is 6+ months. I could go on forever to show you that we live at a low income level, despite his actual paycheck. So even getting $10 for my anxiety meds, he yelled at me and *****ed me out because I "have my own money".

[Rose76]

Sounds like a tough home situation. I guess you'll have to make the best of the doctors that are available to you. That's tough. I'm kind of stuck in a system that I'm not always happy with. I was recently denied further scripts for a pain med that was helping me, the Indocin. It can make you feel like you are at the mercy of these docs.

I would suggest you get a spiral notebook and start keeping a pain journal. That would give you more in the way of evidence to substantiate that your quality of life is very compromised by your suffering from the disc problems. Be persistent.

[thickntired]

You are not paranoid. I'm flagged by the DEA because I take adderal and percocet. Doctors are losing their license and going to prison for pill mills. It started the heroin epidemic. I'm blood tested all the time for no reason except probably a drug screen. I had a doctor check my arms for track marks and a receptionist tell me not to SELL my percocet script. It's very insulting. People with chronic pain are being persecuted for idiots. I have a recent xray and mri with major damage to back up my need for meds. I'm staying far away from a pain specialist because I'm 44. This will be a must at some point down the road. People confuse tolerance with abuse. My meds don't work because I've taken them for years,.but asking for something stronger is impossible.

[thickntired]

Originally Posted by A18793715

So I found out the cause of my constant lower back pain is that I have disk degeneration. The doctor said it was genetic. My dad has it in his neck. I started looking for pain medicine after trying all I can otc because of this new back pain that is killing me some days. But I've had constant lower back pain for 6 years, since I was 17, but since I'm young and say I've had pain that long without actively seeking help until now makes me look like a pill seeker. At least that's how I feel. The orthopedic doctor told me he couldn't prescribe me oral medication because of how they'll react with my psych meds. (Viibyrd, Xanax, Valium, hydroxyzine and triliptal). He prescribed me a compounded cream that had to be special ordered and it turns out I couldn't afford it. I live off of ssi. This cream was $87 for a weeks supply and that was with my dad's good insurance. I told the orthopedic that I couldn't afford it and he said he didn't know what else to do. So I went to a pain specialist today. He said the same thing about the psych meds and ordered two mris and told me to come back in 3 weeks. He prescribed me some cream but I forgot to tell him that I can't take NSAIDs due to having weight loss surgery. So now I have to call tomorrow and see what he says. I feel like they all look at me like I'm a pill seeking junkie. I have panic disorder, so I'm currently taking 2mg of Xanax up to 4 times a day, 20mg of Valium and 200mg of hydroxyzine for sleep. They all say it's because of my antidepressants but I know it's because of my benzos and their amount and my age. I just turned 23 on nov 6th. The pain specialist said it could be nerve problems with my upper back. If they are truly concerned about the serotonin sydrome, I would stop taking my antidepressants in a heart beat. A big part of my depression is the pain because it's another constant thing in my life that I don't get any relief from. Same with voices. Antipsychotics don't work. So my doctor and I have agreed to not bother with them after 4 years of trying. This upper back pain is killing me. I've gotten stuck sitting and couldn't get up because it hurt too bad to try to get up. First time it happened, I was home alone and I had to call my mom, who was at work, and she couldn't leave so I had to call 911. They told me I just had a kidney infection but the pain has been there and constant ever since that day. Some nights I just lay here and cry because of the pain and knowing there's nothing I can take to help it or even do. Besides lay however I find comfortable and not moving, it hurts. Am I just being paranoid about doctors? Does my age matter? Do they care or will they believe me that my severe depression kept me from actively looking for pain relief for my lower back in the past 6 years? I feel like the pain is just another nail in the coffin.

Oh, if you can try neurotin or gabapentin.

[Angelique67]

Skelaxin might help, albeit not much. That's what I'm currently using along with ibuprofen and Tylenol.

[Rose76]

Something is wrong with the PC website. The thread title after Re: reads as follows: I can't get elief beca se f sych eds.

Never saw this happen before.