From threads I've read on other forums, it seems that there's a high preponderance of people who suffer some sort of chronic pain. So, as a survey of this forum too, who here suffers from some sort of chronic pain (however caused)?

Myself? I suffer from quite severe (sometimes) back pain caused by a spinal fracture (no paralysis, thankfully) when I was younger. It's managed by tramadol (brand name Ultram, a prescription opioid similar to morphine) and gabapentin (brand name Neurontin, a drug used to ease pain caused by nerve damage). It's not too bad, as this combination of drugs does work well and I am pain-free on "good days." Perusals of other forums for people with back injuries seems to show this is a good combination to use, and my experience agrees.

So, who else here has a chronic pain issue? As I said before, I've found it to be surprisingly common on the Internet, although maybe it's because people with pain problems are more inclined to reply than those who are healthy.

Thanks in advance.

I have arthritus, osteo-porosis, and spontaneous haemmorhaging in muscles and joints.
I have found TENS machine very effective with most of the pain caused.

TENS machines are completely useless with me. My nervous system is simply too hay-wire to respond to something like TENS. My pain will only respond to heavy opioid usage.

I suffer from Cluster Headaches, and I have some problems with my C6-C7 disc and foraminal narrowing. The later was a big problem, but seems to be in a sort of remission of sorts - I've gained most of the strength back in my right arm and it doesn't hurt all the time.

The CH I'm stuck with the rest of my life. I have an oxygen machine at home that helps sometimes, and I have injections that I give myself when the oxygen doesn't arrest them.

I've also began a really good program that I'd recommend to any chronic pain sufferer. They basically teach you things like bio feedback and deep relaxation. I'm at the baby steps right now, but there are people who can undergo dental work and even surgery with no anesthetic. I don't know if I'll ever get that far, but the methods do help.

Pain free now days.

However, I had a back operation a number of years ago on a prolapsed disk (C5). Prior to that I was in extreme pain where nothing, not even opiates had any effect. They discovered during the operation I had multiple nerves, so twice the pain.

Everything is OK now but I have to be careful with my back and use a special (made to measure and very expensive) chair when I'm at the computer which is about 12/16 hours a day.

I feel your pain - literally. My injury is to my lower thoracic vertebrae (T10, T11, T12 - mostly T11 though), but my neuropathic pain spreads all the way up to my lower cervical vertebrae (to just above my shoulders). I can sympathise.

Tell me about it. I've been on IV drips of pethidine, hydromorphone, morphine and probably even a few more I can't remember. They're some real heavy-duty painkillers and I know the feeling of even those not being enough.

Even today, I still survive daily on large doses of tramadol. It will deal with my pain to where it's easily manageable (so much so that I only feel a tiny ache), and I'm tired of being previously off my head on things like Vicodin and OxyContin.

(By the by, some of that pain was likely neuropathic pain. Have you ever taken anything like gabapentin (Neurontin) or pregabalin (Lyrica) for it? They really do help as the pain originates in the nerves themselves, so opiates will not even touch it.)

I'm sorry to hear that, Rasczak. I've known a couple of people with cluster headaches before. Apparently, they're excruciatingly painful.

I'd be interested to hear more about that, Rasczak. Don't mind sharing, do you?

So far, I've been to the first series of classes/group sessions. They explain basically the physiology behind how the body/mind senses or feels pain. There's also a psychological aspect to it.

It's way too much to go into in a forum post, but I'll try to find out what books on the subject they recommend.

I'll try to hit on a few basics:

If you've ever been in pain, but noticed that while you were doing something it took your mind off it, then you have the basic concept down. I'm sure anyone who's been in a lot of pain is saying "there's no way I can take my mind off it."

#1 There's more to it than just taking your mind off it.

#2 There are people who can undergo things like having their teeth drilled without anesthesia - they're in the most advanced stages, where I'm in the most basic stages of learning about it.

In any case, one thing they teach, is that what you do with the pain can have a lot to do with how you cope with it. If you go around thinking "my life is miserable, there's no way I'll ever lead a normal life again" and other defeatest type thoughts, they'll basically come true.

Sounds like mumbo jumbo, but there's a lot to it. I'll see if I can dig anything else up.

I've read that women who've had them said they're comparable to the pain in child birth. Haven't had a baby, so I don't know. They do suck. Glad they only last about an hour at a time.

I learned a while back that if I convinced myself that I liked being cold, then the cold didn't bother me. I still felt cold, but not uncomfortable. Odd sensation. It sounds like it's along the same lines as what you're suggesting. I also suspect that some are naturally better than others at that---just like everything else. Very interesting.

Thanks, Eric. Your post made a lot of sense, and I'd be interested to read further into it.

I can't remember everything I was on at the time except that it got so bad I was losing sensation in my right leg so the operated pretty quickly at that stage.

One other thing: I was in a specialist neurology hospital a while back, and there was a guy in the bed next to me who suffered from terrible cluster headaches. He used to inject himself with morphine almost daily because they were so terrible.

He was started on a new drug (still not licensed for use in England, so he had to sign a disclaimer) called dihydroergotamine. (How I remembered that name I'll never know!) It's a pill that he has to take daily, and instead of treating the headaches when they showed up, it is actually meant to work in some way (I don't know how) to prevent them. He said it was brilliant, and that it had left him with far fewer cluster headaches, and when he did get them, they were far milder.

I don't know, but considering the report I got from the guy, it appears as though it's a good medication, so I thought you might want to look into it.

I've been in that situation myself. If you have something impinging on your spinal cord, they like to operate. The nerve damage that leaves, however, can lead to neuropathic pain - the nerves fire off pain signals irrationally because they're damaged. You need one of the drugs I mentioned to treat that, as traditional narcotic painkillers will not stop the nerves firing.

I wonder if that's the anti-seizure drug that a doctor tried on me? I tried it and had some really bad reactions so it doesn't look like I'll stick with it. Another one that is supposed to help prevent them or lessen their effect is verapamil, which is a blood pressure medication. I don't really think it works on me that well.

BTW, are you sure that guy had CH? I've read that morphine doesn't effect them. (Though it probably makes you not care about having them.) The only thing that stops them for me, for sure, is the imitrex injections.

Thanks for the advice. I appreciate it.

I've been lucky though as there doesn't seem to be much damage. Things could have been very different though as they didn't know about the multiple nerves and the surgeon told me when he lifted up the nerve to remove the cartilage etc from underneath it he nearly severed the second nerve not realising what it was.

There was no way to know which was the "true" nerve. So its possible I could have been paralysed down one side

Hey Dave

I was hoping that things were going better for you now.
Its a shame that TENS unit does not work for you, I find it useful.I get worried about the Tramadol I have to take. It just adds another problem.

One thing I have found good is the spa pool we recently installed. I does seem to help the pain levels. Maybe due to the relaxing properties.

All the best

I never tried a spa pool.

Although I found heat had very little affect. Ice packs worked to some extent.

The Wheelchair stiffens the body , the heat and motion of the spa act to execise the muscles. It relaxes them and increases blood flow. Its kinda like a cardio vascular work out for me.

I feel great after

Sounds good.

Although I was bed bound for about 5 months I never ended up in a wheelchair TG.

I dont intend staying in the chair forever. I work each day to get out of it.

Slowly but surely it is working.