couldnt justify starting a new thread since this one had some great stuff. first off, OP, sorry you are or were dealing with that. i hope you are feeling better now. i would love to hear any insights/advice.
bear with me and only read the below if you are bored or have a while - im going to be annoyingly long with this one haha.
i have been dealing with chronic pain for like 5 months and wouldnt wish it on my worst enemy. starting around november i have been absolutely miserable and consumed by pain unless the distractions were helping (those being weed and alcohol). when things are the best, it feels like i was stuck in the back seat of a small car for 4 hours on a road trip type pain. other times i could literally cry from the pain. i'd say its somewhere in between those at all times, and leans more toward the latter. its weird how a somewhat dull pain can actually be an insane pain at the same time after a while.
started with an upper shoulder blade and rotator cuff thing that would progress to neck pain thats always bugged me off and on but then it just got unbearable. i was getting migraines, felt like i had clogged ears, couldnt think straight. went to the doc around thanksgiving and got a doc who specialised in orthopaedic stuff, so i've felt very well taken care of. i prob have not been to the doc since i was in high school and im in my mid 30s. this shit has had me at the doc/PT at least 10 times since thanksgiving and i am basically going at least once a week to somebody.
the xrays showed arthritis everywhere in neck/shoulders and then degenerative discs in c5/c6 of my neck, which means they were basically touching. also diagnosed with carpal tunnel and de quervain's tenosynovitis and a sprained rotator cuff. doc said he's confident that its a structural thing and we can fix it. he did OMT every couple weeks, saying that all my muscles have been doing the wrong thing to try to help me from feeling the pain i should be from whatever nerves are pinched from the disc thing. i think it would help but it was not significant. after a few months, i do feel like it helped my neck/shoulders from being rock hard. the PT was doing dry needling a few times which again, maybe it helped but at this point ive lost a gauge on pain.
the doc put me on a few diff things (welbutrin?) and then most recently pregabalin. the pregabalin seemed like a game changer and ive been taking a lot of walks with the dog and able to live a little without being consumed by the pain. im also taking some prescription anti-inflammatory (been doing that a couple months, would not say i can feel a difference).
the interesting thing is that all the docs seem like they immediately know where to go when i explain it all, whether it be the dry needling or OMT. i felt pretty stoked that they must know how to fix this. but at this point im at my wits end because it hasnt really resolved the issues. i have random bruises at all times because i catch myself subconsciously pressing into my arm or thigh because it might relieve the pain in my hip or neck (im learning that bodies are nuts).
im still dealing with this shit even when it starts getting better. if its not my neck/shoulders, its my hip flexors or entire left side, like sciatica. it feels like every part of my body is trying to hold up a different part at a different time based on which muscles have gotten the most rest from their last shift.
i treated my body like shit jumping down stairs for 20 years but this cant be normal. im going to a couple new docs on monday to see what they think but so far everyone just says something different. its starting to become wildly depressing and frustrating to have an invisible injury that won't get better. its a mind fuck on so many levels.
most of this was to just get this shit off my chest. i had today off work and laid on the floor for about 4 hours with the home screen on youtube still pulled up because all i could do was lay there and try moving into different positions to get the pain off one area (it would move to another eventually). i wasnt having a good time lol.
i dont want to do any opiates and would much rather solve the issue vs masking it with medication. aside from venting, i also was curious to hear if anyone else has ever experienced something similar or heard of anyone who did.
some days im good with saying "yea its a pinched nerve in your neck and carpal tunnel and sciatica" and other days im like "convenient that those all showed up out of nowhere at once, the week after you had covid that included the craziest muscle cramping of your life". then i worry i have parkinsons or MS. feels weird to even consider but michael j fox was younger than me when get was diagnosed.
i feel kind of crazy, this shit sucks. but doing this helped so thanks for reading. any insights/advice is appreciated.
edit: i forgot to mention the pins and needles in my arms and hands, the muscle spasms in my neck, and that i am actively trying to stretch/take 10 min walks a couple times each day to make sure i dont just turn into a potato. if this is anyone's field of expertise i am very willing to pay for advice or a telehealth type zoom meeting.
Topic: Chronic Pain (Read 1425 times)