Re: NEW HERE AND FEELING ALONE WITH CHRONIC PAIN

In Reply to: Re: NEW HERE AND FEELING ALONE WITH CHRONIC PAIN posted by a friend on January 18, 2000 at 21:17:32:

: Hi Christine.
I am 50 years old and have had chronic pain for the last 31 years due to a damaged nerve(s) at the L4/L5/S1 level. For the most part, I have not relied on any drugs for pain management--the side effects were too severe for me to handle and I am of the "stiff upper lip and grin and bear it generation". However, age and a car accident have changed that to a degree. I now take celebrex, leritine and cyclobenzarine on a daily basis. I honestly don't know if these drugs actually help or simply distract me with the side effects. I am from northern Canada and your talk of "pain management" doctors was very interesting--never heard of such a thing. I have found over the years that the hardest thing about having chronic pain is that you can never get away from it and no-one but you knows its there. It is very draining--it takes a lot of energy just to keep focused on what's going on around you. Friends and loved ones sympathize but keep expecting that you will get better. Strangers are hopeless--you look normal so people expect you to be that way. This forces you to have to constantly admit to having a disability and that, for me, has been the biggest hurdle that I have to overcome on an ongoing basis. Your idea of writing a letter to your doctor is excellent. Most of them are visual learners not auditory ones. Don't give up. I"ll keep you in my thoughts. Val