Hello to everyone,
I am writing on behalf of my mom, who is 73 years old. She has chronic pain in her arms, hips, legs, knees and feet. She does not tolerate oral medications very well at all.
My mom has tried physical therapy and chiropractic therapy, neither of which has provided her with any relief. She once had a chiropractor in Arkansas, who was able to help her quite a bit, but she can't find anyone in Montana who uses the same techniques.
I have suggested that my mom try acupuncture, since I got an entire year's worth of relief from migraines, many years ago, by getting acupuncture. My mom is hesitant to even check into acupuncture, because she is not sure if her insurance will pay for it, nor does she know if she needs a referral from her PCP to see an acunpuncturist. To be honest, I really feel like my mom is giving up hope of ever getting any relief from the constant pain she feels every day.
The doctor did tell my mom she should lose some weight, but she has a hard time doing exercises, due to the pain she is in. She is not THAT overweight, and she barely eats much, even the ways things are right now.
I have read people's posts about pain management clinics and pain pumps. How would my mom go about checking into these options? Based on what I have written, do you think these are possible options for my mom? Are there other options she might be able to try?
I appreciate any feedback and suggestions you might have for me (and my mom). I want so very much for her to get relief from constant pain, and I am at my wit's end on what to do for her.
May you have many pain-free days,
Kay
Hi Kay,
I am sorry to hear of your Mom's chronic pain. There are definitely options she can look into regarding pain relief. Some of the most common are:
Medications: there are MANY medications used to help with pain. From muscle relaxants, anti-depressants (used in lower doses to treat pain), anti-inflammatories, nerve pain medications (commonly medications that are also used for seizures and/or migraine), anti-anxiety medications, and of course, opiates.
Do you know what types of medications she is on now? Also, do you know what types of medications she has tried?
There are two types of opiate medications for pain. One is a short acting medication, and these are the most well known. Medications like Vicodin, Percocet and Tylenol with Codeine fall into this category. Often, these medications are used for pain that is expected to be short term in nature such as post-surgical pain or a broken bone, etc. The other category is long acting opiates. These medications are slowly released into the system over a period of hours or days. They are prescribed for patients who have had pain for a longer period of time and the pain is not expected to get better in the very near future. The advantages to long acting opiates are:
1. They last longer so the patient has less up and down of the pain and is less likely to need to 'catch up' to the pain.
2. Less pills to take (and there are also medications that are not pills at all, such as transdermal patches, lollipops, and of course injections).
A lot of the time chronic pain patients take both a long acting medication and a short acting medication for when the long acting med doesn't cover the severe 'flare-ups' of pain that happen throughout the day. This regimen is very effective and many patients are able to function well despite their pain.
Other types of treatments that are available are things like therapy, biofeedback, physical therapy, injections (trigger point injections or spinal/cervical/joint injections), accupuncture like you mentioned, massage, nutrition counseling, vitamins, relaxation therapy/meditation/yoga/guided imagery, etc.
I encourage you to find a pain management specialist in your area. If her regular doctor or other specialists can not refer you, it is usually pretty easy to find a couple online. Some resources to find them are:
http://www.pain.com - scroll down and to the right you will find their pain clinic locator
http://www.aapainmanage.org/search/MemberSearch.php - American Academy of Pain Management's Member Locator
Universities - Many universities have great pain management clinics/docs
Referrals from Friends/Other Patients - Where do you live? There might be someone here who lives in the same area.
In any case, I hope this helps you. Many patients find that the most helpful approach is a multidisciplinary one, in which they use many different treatment modalities to lessen the pain. The idea is that the pain will probably not go away, but it will lessen to the point that functioning on a day-to-day basis is not as difficult.
Please let me know if you have any other questions, and feel free to contact me if you need to chat!
Sincerely,
Stacy
Chronic Pain Connection Expert