Chronic pain

For discussion of Chronic Diseases such as Obesity, Cancer, Heart Disease, Diabetes, etc.
rose_thorn98
Posts: 173
Joined: Thu Nov 09, 2006 6:26 pm

Post by rose_thorn98 » Sun Oct 17, 2010 6:34 pm

Does anyone here suffer from anxiety due to chronic pain? I have recently been having severe chronic pain for the last 2 months and it is making my anxiety come back after 3 years of doing great. Just wondering how you all cope with the pain and not get anxious about it.
~The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy.
Martin Luther King, Jr~

Baylee
Posts: 1
Joined: Fri Oct 22, 2010 3:28 pm

Post by Baylee » Fri Oct 22, 2010 8:43 am

Hi, I just was looking though the chat rooms and got excited to see someone else has anxiety due to chronic pain. I can't help you but hope to get better with you. I just started the program and put in CD #2 which told about this site. My pain is in my lower back and left hip & leg. Going on 5 years,8 surgeries, many injections. I just want my old life back and need some help. Sorry for your pain.

dazyrose
Posts: 4
Joined: Sun Oct 17, 2010 11:55 am

Post by dazyrose » Tue Nov 02, 2010 12:13 am

rose_thorn98

I have for the last twenty to twenty five years or so, have suffered from chronic headaches,body aches.Most recent,chronic lower back from 3 bulging disks and now joints and muscle aches and pain.It is painful to get out of bed.Feet,knees, elbows,hands,fingers and wrists are very stiff.My back feels swollen on the right side.My pt,Ron,said my joints are weak from the back.I don't quite understand how since this has been prior to the back issue.At times I am so fatigued and achey I have to push myself to do what I need to do to rest. Other times I can't seem to do anything but rest.I drink lots of water,watch and eat very little sugar which,only make this worse.I was wondering if there are others with all of this physical pain? I know it is due from stress and then the physical causes stress.I exercise regualarly and am an active person.I have however, have had to start pacing myself due to my back because of the pain but, don't want to become sedentary.I am hoping with this program, things will get better.

LyndaLu
Posts: 794
Joined: Sun Oct 03, 2010 4:43 pm

Post by LyndaLu » Tue Nov 02, 2010 8:55 pm

Dear Rose:

I suffer from chronic pain also and I am only 50 years old. My mother walks faster than I do !

I have arthritis in both of my hips, worse in the right than the left. This past year I have had four steriod injections in the right hip. The injections DO work, but steriods are dangerous. I have gained 20 pounds this year, and I don't want to blame the steriods, but steriods DO cause weight gain and I have not had a problem with weight gain the last several years, actually I had the opposite problem a few years ago related to clinical depression.
I also have degenerative ac joint disease in my left shoulder and have had two steriod shots in the past year in that shoulder. And, I have
osteoarthritis in my lumbar spine.

I have been sleeping in a recliner for four years because of the arthritis in my hips and I cannot lay in a bed due to pain. I cannot travel because I cannot lay in a bed. It has totally changed my life. It is embarrassing to tell people that I have been sleeping in a chair for four years. Also, I walk slowly and get around slowly, so it is hard to keep up with someone else when they are walking. Those people I am walking with don't understand that I cannot walk as fast as they can. I don't socialize as much as I should because of my physical limitations and that depresses me because I want to do things and go places and I have a hard time doing that. I have to have people reach things for me up high or on the ground and lifting and carrying is out of the question.

The big problem is that physical illness causes depression and depression can also cause us to be physically unfit. My sister has RA and has pain and the best thing for her is to move her body around as much as possible, even if she is hurting ! I am such a whiner about my limitations and she goes to work each day and just keeps on going somehow.

I have days that are better than others, but I am always so tired.

Just wanted you to know that I understand what
you are going through and I am hoping for the best for the both of us.

Lynda

flowerempowered
Posts: 3
Joined: Fri Oct 29, 2010 8:12 pm

Post by flowerempowered » Thu Nov 04, 2010 1:16 pm

Hi, I am not glad that there are so many of us out there in pain, but I am sure we can all agree that pain makes us feel sometimes isolated, and apart from "everybody else". I have cerebral palsey and lumbar stenosis and arthritis. I limp, loose my shoes, can't walk on ice or step down without holding on. When I get up from sitting I am hunched over. I tried steroid shots and pain pills and they didn't work. I use a cane to get up if I am kneeling in the garden. To top it off this month I'm recuperating from total hysterectomy. At last can talk to you folks who are going through this too. If everyone else around me is ablebodied, I feel like the complainer, and if I can't vent, my feelings get validated. Sometimes I want to say ouch.I am learning to work with my anxious episodes. I am trying to surround myself with newly found friends now. I have my entire life of 49 years isolated myself so much due to feeling inadequate. That is changing now. It is changing day by day thought by thought. Thanks for being here folks. I want to encourage you too

dazyrose
Posts: 4
Joined: Sun Oct 17, 2010 11:55 am

Post by dazyrose » Sat Nov 20, 2010 3:06 pm

To all of you who have responded to my previous issues of chronic ailments, thank you.Since I last wrote, I have finished pt and now do exercises at home--for the rest of my life,no complaints.I too have lumbar stnosis.In fact,I believe the next step to this back pain is a pain block where the nerve is injected with what steriods--again?The very thought of a needle going into my nerve in my back is not very pleasant.In fact, I find it rather scarey!! What if they miss the spot?In any case, the appt. is on the 30th and I'll get more info. then.Nothing has happened yet. However,the pain meds are loosing their purpose and not taking the pain away. What does one do for the rest of their life if this does not work? I still walk about 4 times a wk. and am thankful I can do that.I work 3 hrs. a day at a school and am on my feet for most of the time.My body aches are still with me everyday and the joints are still in pain.Will any of this go away or get better? I know the cold weather is of no help.I don't get anxious, I have the 'shoulds' that I should be feeling better.If anything,I get depressed and tired of the pain.It wears one down as those of you who suffer chronic pain are aware of.However,I'm done complaing,there are many who have more serious issues than I. I will continue to stay as active as I can be thankful to be able to do so.Thanks for listening.

Michelle77
Posts: 1
Joined: Fri Nov 26, 2010 11:32 pm

Post by Michelle77 » Fri Nov 26, 2010 4:41 pm

OK - I'm new at this. Not really sure what I'm doing...Hello everyone, I have been reading all of your stories and want to say that I'm sorry you are having to deal with chronic pain. Has anyone had or know of someone who has had TMJ Disorder? I have had it for almost a year now and it has driven me to the point of insanity. I have tried lots of things and have not found a lot of releif. Looking for someone else with this problem, so I can feel like I'm not alone in the world. Thanks.

Snootyboots
Posts: 7
Joined: Fri Feb 25, 2011 7:03 pm

Re: Chronic pain

Post by Snootyboots » Sat Feb 26, 2011 10:38 am

2-26-11

Hi, all...I am finding that my chronic neck and shoulder pain are linked to my level of anxiety. Before I started the course (I am on Lesson One and listen to the Relaxation CD and "Feeling Better Fast" CD practically everyday), my level of pain in my neck/shoulders was a 8-9 on a scale of 1-10. Now it is down to 1-3 usually. I will be praying for all of you...please pray for me. Here's to a pain-free life! Cheryl

LyndaLu
Posts: 794
Joined: Sun Oct 03, 2010 4:43 pm

Re: Chronic pain

Post by LyndaLu » Mon Jun 25, 2012 9:02 pm

Hello All:

The last time I wrote here was in November 2010 and my condition has not improved.
My left shoulder has hurt SO BAD the past four days that I cannot stand it. I cannot lift up
my arm and I am very distressed about it. I cannot find a position to put my arm in so I
can feel comfortable. Sleep is impossible.

The other day I was sitting in a chair at my moms dining room table. She and I were
talking. A little while later I tried to stand up. My whole left leg was numb all the
way down to my toes. I could not walk on my leg ! I could not even feel that my leg
was going numb. This upset me. I have Spina Bifida Occulta and I was born with it.
It is a birth defect. I feel that this is what caused the numbness.

I still have the arthritis / bursitis in both of my hips ( worse on the right hip ).
I have been given medication for it and injections and pain patches and physical
therapy. I still cannot sleep in a bed because my hips hurt when I lay on them.
I am TRYING to get some sleep. I am sleeping in a recliner chair. I have been
sleeping in a chair since 2007. If I am ever in an airport, I have to request
a wheelchair because I cannot walk through the entire airport, it is too far for
me to walk.

My ulcerative colitis is a daily issue. Ulcerative colitis causes a person to have
diarrhea all of the time, I take some medication for this condition, but it is not a cure.
I always have to be sure that I have access to a restroom wherever I go.

I am so sick of being sick. I have a whole bunch of mental health issues too.
What else can go wrong with me. I am overwhelmed with my conditions and
diseases. I am 52 years old and unemployed and I am ill. My Social Security
Disability hearing is in September 2012. If I don't win my case I don't know
what I will do. I will be homeless.

Is anyone else out there suffering from chronic pain ? No one has written
on this subject here for a long time.

I am at the end of my rope and crying almost every day. I have to hope there
is enough evidence to win my Social Security Disability case. Please pray for me.

Lynda

jannymac
Posts: 8
Joined: Tue Mar 05, 2013 1:10 pm

Re: Chronic pain

Post by jannymac » Mon Mar 11, 2013 1:45 pm

Hi, LyndaLu, and all here - I'm new to the forum, and while I doubt that my condition is nearly as severe as any you have mentioned, (plantar fasciitis, sinus tarsi, arthritis, and posterior tibial tendon dysfunction - all in the same spot on the same foot) I can sympathize with what you are experiencing. I can't dance, can't do yoga, two of my major stress and pain relief strategies - but I know that doing whatever you CAN do to alleviate the pain gives you a sense of control; doing it religiously often provides more results than you would believe possible. Here's to hot baths, whirlpools, massage (and massage cushions) yoga, mediatation capsaicin, menthol rubs, salicylate rubs, and probably a few I haven't thought of here! Bless you all in your search for comfort. I will keep checking in to see how everyone is doing - and probably to vent a little, too.

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