All those who suffer chronic pain should have a voice--good start here! I have suffered since a near-death car accident in 1990. I've gone through dozens of doctors, and experienced every ridiculous diagnosis and treatment plan imaginable. I steadfastly refuse surgery, preferring to live on pain meds and other forms of therapy. My belief is that the odds of a "successful" surgery are less than 50/50, so why put myself through all that. I've met many people with "failed back syndrome" and know what can go wrong in the operating room.

Twice I have found a great doctor who will give me medications without judging, along with steroid injections. Now, both have moved to Florida and I have no one to turn to! The last doctor seen at a "pain clinic" interrogated me for 2 hours with questions about drug and alcohol abuse! I insisted, truthfully, that I don't drink and only take prescribed medications as needed. He refused to believe me. Obviously, I never went back.

Besides herniated disks in the lumbar spine, I recently herniated 3 in the thoracic spine. I have yet to find a doctor willing to treat that area, but I've convinced myself that steroid injections in that area will help. I don't even know how I managed to damage my spine in the center of my back, if indeed I did cause this somehow.

The pain is unbelievable, and at times unbearable. The cold weather seems to make it worse, and this winter the pain spreads to the front of my rib cage and I can barely breathe at times. I wonder if thoracic spine damage is that rare, and where to find a specialist (if anyone knows out there, please respond).

Thank you for starting this blog.