Re: please help!

From: jetstamp (jetstamp@yahoo.com)
Mon Mar 9 20:50:31 2009


At Mon, 9 Mar 2009, vicki wrote: >
>Thanks Joan for the information. I am glad I found this website, I
>thought i was going crazy..as it sounds alot of other people are in the
>same boat. I truly thank you for responding to my cries for help! I am
>having a hard time sitting here due to pain, is there something I can
>ask my Dr. for to help with that?
>

Vicki,

Asking for pain medication unfortunately is, for the most part, futile when it comes to an 'invisible', undiagnosed condition like adhesions. I sometimes think doctors delight in the fact that a patient can't 'prove' their pain and therefore the doctor feels no obligation to address the issue of pain management.

Years ago, I was offered Bentyl for abdominal pain but it made my then-severe diarrhea worse because it relaxed my GI tract too much. Otherwise I was on anti-depressants for a year or two but hated the side effects- including additional fatigue, 'additional' weight gain- surprisingly even with my near-starvation sometimes due to the GI symptoms, I had already blown up like a balloon- I attribute it to whole-body edema which I also can't prove when doctors tell me to lose weight. Anyway, I did not need any more weight gain! My previously flat abdomen has looked pregnant ever since this started 25 years ago! While I realize anti-depressants may help some people, I personally didn't think the side effects were worth it and I also think that doctors give them to you to get you off of their backs!

I have been spending a lot of money in the last year or so on supplements which 'claim' to help dissolve adhesions and reduce inflammation. One is called Neprinol, which supposedly has a similar effect to steroids without the downside- the main ingredients are Serrapeptase, which is supposed to dissolve fibrin- the substance adhesions are made of, and Nattokinase, which cleans the dissolved fibrin out of the blood. I am also taking Lycopene which I read 'might' be helpful for adhesions but is still in the experimental stage, and just recently started taking a supplement called Endovan which is aimed at treating endometriosis. Also Pine Bark Extract (also known as pycnogenol).

I do not know whether or not I have endometriosis, but given my history I certainly think it is a 'possibility' or at least a contributing factor. I have had my uterus out but from what I've read, endo can still be missed in many women or inadequately treated. Or, some gynos treat the pelvic part of endo but ignore the intestinal part. From what I've read on endo, it should be a specialized area- just like adhesions! After reading another poster's story, it is very possible that what I thought was an on-the-job injury that was never diagnosed might actually have been a ruptured ovarian cyst which started my adhesion problems but after 25 years still cannot obtain a diagnosis.

Anyway, I do think that 'possibly' these supplements have helped some with pain. I do get flare-ups though. Fortunately I have a few Vicodin left from a surgery a couple of years ago. I have used them very sparingly when I have a flare-up at work- it is a comfort knowing I have them if I need them. However, when they are gone, I'll have to do without as no doctor I have ever been to would prescribe them because too many people abuse them and as a result the rest of us aren't allowed to benefit from painkillers like this.

If you do happen to have a doctor who will believe you, maybe they would refer you to a pain clinic if there is one conveniently located?

Welcome to the site- we need all the people we can get but sorry we all have to suffer such low quality of life for no real good reason!

Joan


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