Hi Ya'll,

The reason I am asking this questions is because I have conclusivley come to the point where AGE makes a huge difference in whether you get treated well or treated poorly. The reason I say this is because I herniated a disc when I was 17. I had gone through at least 3 doctors that would not prescribe me anything more than Darvocets and Tylenol 3's. I was in so much pain, but all they did was treat me and street me basically. They told me I was too young to have surgery so they just gave me medication and when I needed to refill it, they ALWAYS denied it. Finally, I went to a Pain Doc, who understood me better and told me that age does NOT matter when you have pain. I finally had Laminectomy, but it failed so I saw a multitude of physicians and almost 99% of them treated me like a drug addict. Finally I saw this good Pain doc and he performed a discogram and found 2 herniated discs and as well they were both torn. So basically this was not all in my head like the previous doctors suggested. I saw a N.S. who was extremley kind and he did a 1 Level Fusion at the L4-L5 level. I am still having problems with the disc above. I am going in for a Myelogram tomorrow to see exactly what is wrong with it and find out if something can be done or not. I just wanted to hear from anyone if they had a problem because they were TOO YOUNG to be in pain....

Joe

I originally hurt my back when I was 16. I saw my pediatric doctor many times for the back pain and she always said that I bruised a muscle. I even seen a different doctor in the same office when I had to go in as an emergency. I woke up and could bearly walk. They never did anything for me except give me many different types of muscle relaxers. The pain eventually went away for a couple of years and then it came back. Even then, at age 19, the doctor could not tell me what was wrong and just gave me more medications. I then got fed up and went to see a spine specialist. He sent me for an MRI and found out that I had a herniated disk. I finally received the treatment that I deserved. I was sent to PT and given better medications. The pain went away. It recently came back after twisting wrong, but he is doing something about it. When I was young the doctors did not believe that I could have anything seriously wrong. If they did send me for the MRI when I was 16, maybe I would not still have a lot of problems.

Yes, Joe, unfortunately age is taken into consideration by some doctors. They have the mindset that if they give a younger person pain meds, he will turn into a raving street junkie. It is totally unfair and probably unfounded as well, but yours is not the first post I have read about a young person being pooh-poohed and sent on their way. Even when the necessary tests are done, and the problem is exposed, the doctors still hesitate to treat as aggressively as they would an older person.
It's grossly unfair, but true.

Carol

Well, it's a bittersweet feeling that i'm not alone in this, however I don't like hearing that people have gone through the same problems I have because they are a nightmare. One time I got into a fight with a N.S. over the phone because a pharmacist at Walgreens called the office because he thought I was doctor shopping. This was right after my fusion surgery. My N.S. had gone out of town for the week so his partner took over and the pharmacist said I was shopping because I had gotten pain medication from a different doctor. I got the prescription from the E.R. because I developed a leak in my spine and spinal fluid started to leak into my back and caused a huge hump to form and I was in incredible pain. I told the pharmacist this but he was a ***** anyway and did not believe me. The doctor called me and told me that I was a drug abuser and that he cancelled the prescription of Hydrocodone 10. Even if I was only a few weeks postop, he did not care. He cussed and yelled at me and I told him that he was full of it and that I did not appreciate him accusing me of being a drug abuser. What's really funny is that the next week I saw my N.S. and I ended having another surgery to fix my problem. So I really hope it made him look like an idiot. By the way, the pharmicist at Walgreens is always scrutinizing my prescriptions and is always giving me a h ard time about them. I only use that walgreens because it's 24 hours. I have switched to another pharmacy so I don't have to deal with his crap. I am seriously considering filing a complaint against him, but he's the pharmacy manager, so I doubt he will get into any trouble even if I did file a complaint.
OH well, there's nothhing I can do now....

Joe

I'm going through that right now. I screwed up L5-S1 right after I turned 16 while tumbling at a cheer practice and It's been messed up ever since. I just turned 18 in May and the problem has been going on for over a year, and I've tried everything in the book but surgery. Chiropractors, 3 months of physical therapy, steroid packs, numerous pain-killers, and 2 seperate epidurals, and NOTHING. I just want to get better and get back to my regular life, and if it takes surgery to do that, then I guess I'd be willing. My mom thinks I'm being a 'drama queen' and exaggerating, but she's never had this problem, so she'll never understand what the pain spells are like and how they limit your range of motion and ease of doing simple, daily tasks. My current ortho said that I'd be a candidate for a fusion at L5-S1, but that I should hold off due to my age. It's beyond frustrating and all I want is to be back to normal. :(

Reading these posts makes me feel VERY lucky that we have the doctors that we do. That is incredible to be blown off like several of you describe.

I wonder if the reason we have been treated so well is that we have used exclusively sports med docs and pt. What I am thinking is that since they routinely treat young people, they do take them seriously. If anything, our docs know that my daughter understates her pain and respond accordingly.

Not always possible, but I'd encourage any of you that are not being treated with respect to keep looking for a doctor that you can trust.

Reading these posts makes me feel VERY lucky that we have the doctors that we do. That is incredible to be blown off like several of you describe.

I wonder if the reason we have been treated so well is that we have used exclusively sports med docs and pt. What I am thinking is that since they routinely treat young people, they do take them seriously. If anything, our docs know that my daughter understates her pain and respond accordingly.

Not always possible, but I'd encourage any of you that are not being treated with respect to keep looking for a doctor that you can trust.

Your daughter is lucky. The guy I'm seeing is an orthopedic surgeon who "specializes in sports related injuries". I don't know if he's afraid of a malpractice suit or what, but it just ticks me off. :\ 2 more years of the back plain plus the sciatica down my left leg is going to be soooo enjoyable. :rolleyes:

Joe,
You can call the corporate head-quarters for Walgreens, and report that pharmacy..I also had problems with Walgreens, not exactly your problem, but like you I have changed..When I first herniated my disc, the doctor only gave me muscle relaxers..I was in so much pain I couldn't even sleep, or hardly walk, and my back was shaped like a big S, geesh that should have been a huge clue that I had more than a strain. :eek: ..And she didn't order an MRI until I asked for one, and quess what I had a herniated disc....To me she was cruel, and I wonder if she would have like to be treated in that manner..I bet not..Finally I was referred to a NS and he did prescribe some much needed pain medication..I am sorry they treated you in that manner, just because of your age..I believe that is age discrimination..Best Wishes..StarAngel :angel:

Hi Joe,
I have experienced the exact same thing you are describing. Severe back pain hit me out of nowhere when I was 18...that was 2 years ago. I saw surgeons, rheumatologists, pain management, chiropractors...you name it. Over the last 2 years I have been diagnosed with compression fractures, DDD, arthritis, herniated discs, Scheurmanns disease and more. But when I was going through this process, rarely was there a doctor that really took me and my pain seriously. They treated me like crap. I heard over and over and over again that "you are too young for this." For 2 years I was miserable and severely depressed because no one helped me manage the pain...all they would prescribe was tylenol #3 and darvocet and like you said, I went through hell just to get refills. Now my pain is under better control but they still act like I am a drug addict. It's horrible that they treat us this way, but all I can say
is don't take any of that from them. There are people out there that will help, you just may have to search long and hard. Also what I was doing was going by myself to see specialists, and I noticed an OBVIOUS difference when I took an older adult friend with me to appointments. So hopefully that will help someone....good luck with everything you are dealing with!
Jen