back pain hell

LegacyUser

bI am not looking for medical advice ok

Serious back pain and havevbeenon codeine for years. now i knew it was addictive but lately doc has mentioned that and i do not want to be on it. in fact i never did and never abused it buy there is a physical addiction happens. so i am now dow to two a day and i cannot sleep cos my muscle jerks and tingle when i relax and this wakes me up again. plus i have some diarrhoea. this is normal and will pass but it is wearing out. i also still have theb pain

paracetamol will not touch it/nurofen and all NSAIDS give me severe stomach pain/ nefopam makes me weird drowsey. took the codeine as was best of a bad lot. last night iwas putting on heat cream and cold cream walking around house all night. drank a pint and whiskey at 3am desperate to sleep

i also have pains in my legs and fatigue and may be fibro but doc says that is not a helpful diagnosis. if i got a referral to a pain specialist and he says it is fibro isthere anything not addictive to stop the pain?

all of that sleeplessness/muscle twitch and all the hassle is caused by one thing the pain.

I want some way to relieve the back pain that is not a drug. anyone used tens machines. nuromusculuar massage helped me but it is too expensive to continually go

nothinghere is a request for medical advice, just a request for experiences with pain painkillers esp codeine and relief from the pain[/b
Thanks for reading

BPM]

up for anything

Is it mechanical, inflamatory or disease related back pain? That would have a bearing on what type of pain relief you should be taking. I am surprised that your doctor has run out of options for you.

aidonitron

Hi,
I have been suffering from a dysfunctional bowel AND BACK AND LEG PAIN for the past three or so years. no medical person could link these two conditions. I didn't either until I did some routing around the Internet and saw this was common. I had diahrea and without realising had constipation at the same time. I'm told by doctor that diahrea can cause a reaction deeper in the bowel that blocks up the other end. For me this made sense as I definately knew I had both constipation and the runs. Weird. The constipation fills up the bowel and this was putting pressure on the sciatic nerve with was causing a lot of pain down the leg and I also had bad lower back pain. I saw a spine specialist several times. He didn't link the pain to bowel problems even though I suggested it to him. He prescribed guess what - codeine. Guess what codeine causes in a lot of people - constipation. And what was constipation causing me- back pain hell. I saw another surgeon who was ready to cut me open and fuse my lower discs. I was days away from the surgery when my pain got so bad I couldn't move from my bed. I desperately did some googling and that's when I discovered the link. If you google back pain and bowel problems you will see they go hand in hand. If you google codeine and constipation you will also see strong evidence to see that codeine is no good.
I immediately stopped taking codeine and I immediately took laxatives and guess what - next day no leg or back pain. I haven't touched codeine since nor have I had any serious back pain or sciatica. I do still suffer from bowel problems ( I have colitis ) and sometimes I feel a bit of light back pain when constipated.
I found this link which was the link between constipation and back pain and saved me from surgery and changed my life. I hope this helps you. Please let me know....
http://www.healthboards.com/boards/archive/index.php/t-66986.html

Dizzyblonde

OP my husband became dependent on codeine years ago after a whiplash injury. When he stopped taking it he had restlessness and twitches in his legs for some time, but it went away eventually - it was caused by withdrawal from the codeine.

Mountainsandh

OP, if you find a cheap tens machine go for it. Actually I'm wondering why I haven't bought it myself, I've seen some in Boots, I guess I thought they were cheap useless ones and I want the right good one (as you would).
Was in hospital one time and had bad back pain, was given the tens to keep for a day or two, and I remember the relief, and how I just didn't want to leave it off, although after a while it does get annoying, but the relief is such you want it off and you want it on at the same time.
I still suffer from the back and as I said, wondering how I haven't got one yet. Really have to upgrade my health to an "OK to spend for it" status.

Sophie_

Has your GP explored any reason for your back pain, had he referred you to a specialist for an MRI scan to see why you have the pain. I've been suffering from chronic back pain for years - since I was in my teens, I'm now in my mid 30's with degenerative disc disease, some serious nerve damage. I have a spinal/neuro stimulator and I cut my drugs (codeine) in half with plans to come off all the drugs thanks to the stimulator. So yes there are alternatives to the meds but you need to explore what's causing the pain first.

rescue16

Go to a rumotoligist if thats how you spell it :rolleyes: i was in a car crash last year and had whiplash to neck and back now since once them symtons went i have been told i have fibro and on amytripelene spelling again lol but it works go and find out if you have it and this will sort it out.

sam34

modnote: thanks to those who have posted sharing their experiences, but please don't recommend prescription medication to another poster as you are not qualified to do so.

busyliving

I had serious back pains before, in fact I had mild discomfort and lead to complete and utter pain so much so I couldn't sleep and this all developed over 4 years.

Once it got to the stage that I was useless and couldn't sleep or sit down for 5 minutes I booked a session with a deep tissue massage, after 10 sessions and some work I did at home like stretches I did at home my pain was as good as gone, and about month after my last session the pain was gone.

I know my issue isn't the same as yours, but I know a few people with more serious back problems than mine found the same therapy helpful for pain relief and in a few cases meant they could use led powerful pain killers

Hope this helps

Bidd

I agree with Sophie. You need to get a diagnosis for what is causing your pain-referral to a Pain Consultant who can do the neccessary tests to determine the cause and you can then discuss your options re medications, treatment etc.

I have Chronic Pain for the last 13 years. A quick diagnosis can result in a better outcome.