Re: No one deserves to spend the best years of their lives in pain, as a result of adhesions!!!
From: Christine M. Smith (smithy@maine.rr.com)
Sat Jun 12 20:37:21 1999
At Sat, 12 Jun 1999, Helen wrote:
>
>In response to Denise Olson's request that we share what we are doing to
>cope - in spite of chronic pain - I decided to share the following
>information with all of you. It is not my intention to ask for sympathy
>for my many years of living with chronic pain. Rather, it is my
>intention to encourage adhesion-sufferers to learn, as much as they are
>capable of, about adhesions. I knew absolutely nothing about adhesions
>until I had my diagnostic surgery in August 1997!!!
>
>Since January 1997 I have been getting professional help via a modified
>pain clinic set-up. I have been under the care of a psychiatrist, who
>specializes in pain management; and a psychologist who helps me talk
>about my feelings and any problems which I may have. I really feel that
>these two professional women have helped to lower the level of pain
>which I experience.
>
>In 1975 my osteopathic doctor started me on the drug, amitriptyline. In
>1975 the mind-body connection had been proven. My doctor was well-read
>on this subject. He spent a lot of time trying to help me understand
>the mind-body connection. This was especially difficult for me to
>comprehend because, as a result of living in so much pain, I was having
>an extremely difficult time trying to concentrate on anything.
>
>He told me about the various chemicals which the brain contains and gave
>special attention to the following terms: serotonin, neurotransmitters,
>endorphins, and some others. Endorphins are the body's natural
>morphine! Stress depletes this natural morphine. Thus a person
>experiences unrelenting pain. Amitriptyline helps to restore the body's
>natural morphine.
>
>Amitriptyline has really made a difference in my life! After several
>weeks of gradually increasing the milligrams of amitriptyline, I was
>finally getting a therapeutic level.! This drug has helped me not only
>be able to get restful sleep at night, but it has also helped to lessen
>(not eliminate) the extremely severe chronic pain I had been living with
>for 5 years following my 1970 laparotomy.
>
>I continue to be involved in community life, I teach piano lessons to
>students from age 8 to 85 - who not only learn how to play the piano -
>but - they in turn have helped me more than they probably realize. They
>have helped to give meaning and companionship to my life as well as I do
>not feel so isolated anymore, which is a common problem for people who
>have disabilities. Chronic pain is a disability too! I continue to be
>involved in my church and have been attending Weigh Down Workshop
>sessions - to help me lose weight.
>
>So there is my modified pain clinic set up: physician, psychiatrist,
>psychologist, plus nutrition and weight control. Additionally there is
>the support that I get as a member of the Weigh Down Workshop program as
>well as the support I have received from the many adhesion-sufferers who
>have written to me wanting information about adhesions along with the
>support of all of you at this forum.
>
>June 1998 at one of the forums, I decided to write about how chronic
>pain had impacted my life. I typed steadily for about 4 hours (having
>not typed in 50 years). I found it to be extremely painful to even try
>to remember what had happened all those years! As a result, I only
>touched on some of the experiences I had had with the medical
>profession. Plus - I included information I had learned about
>adhesions, etc. since my 1997 diagnostic surgery, when my diagnosis
>was: *massive adhesions attaching the omentum to my abdominal wall.*
>
>It was never my intention to ever place my story on the Internet! I
>assumed that when I typed my story at the Healthseek forum that my story
>would stay there. But it didn't!!! Someone, unknown to me, decided to
>put my story on the various search engines. When I first saw it on the
>Internet, I was stunned! I also felt violated - because the information
>in my story was so personal to me. BUT------- I remembered the phrase:
>"If you can't beat them, then join them." So from that point on I have
>posted many messages at various forums with the intention of calling
>attention to my difficulty in getting the right diagnosis for the
>chronic pain I had lived with for 27 years in 1997 - 29 years in 1999.
>
>My intention of posting messages of my own has been and now is to help
>others find information about adhesions - especially those who have had
>multiple surgeries to try to get rid of adhesions - but instead are
>still are having problems with chronic pain and adhesions, in spite of
>their efforts to have them surgically lysed.
>
>NO ONE DESERVES TO SPEND THE BEST YEARS OF THEIR LIVES SUFFERING FROM
>THE CHRONIC PAIN OF ADHESIONS!!!!!!!!!!!
Hi Helen:
This is good-thank you for sharing it with us. It sounds as if you are
coping well.
The thought of going on amitryptilene gives me the creeps. I once tried
imipramine for the leg pain I had (still not 100% sure what caused it)
It was better but I don't want that either. My main problem now is not
the low level chronic pain I've had for 2 years (except for brief
respites after laps) but the "attacks" that started coincidentally when
I started an aerobics program this past March. (they are not new
however, I recognize them from before I had the laps but they were very
infrequent) What I really need is a diagnosis! Except for a period of 1
1/2 years (1995-1997)after I was treated with Lupron I have been
battling undiagnosable problems since 1985 in one form or another. I
think this is as tiring as the chronic pain is.
Do you know of any chronic pain forums?
Chris S.