Thursday, July 18, 2013

My Life (Stays A Little More Extreme Than Most Others)


So, after two weeks of laying on my back, I just returned from the doctor's: 

I have two bulging disks in my spine, one in my lower back and one in my neck. 

I'm in constant pain (left arm and leg) hardly getting any sleep, can't work, and can't afford the MRI, physical therapy, or anti-inflamitories being prescribed. And get this:

On top of all that, I've also had the hiccups for the last 12 hours. 

It's fucking murder.

And I have no idea what I'm supposed to do now,....
 

22 comments:

  1. And I have no idea what I'm supposed to do now,....

    Try Yoga or *gasp* Pilates!!!

    /runs and hides.

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  3. Hi, Crack. I can, unfortunately, totally relate to this. I have neck and lower back issues as well. I wouldn't wish it on my worst enemy. Hope you find some relief somehow. It's awful. I've been there on several occasions.

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  4. Having a few old fractures up and down my spine and extremities from a life actively led: rest it for as long as you can (it will always be screwed up to a greater or lesser degree -- here's hoping you're in the latter category once the inflammation goes down, but give it time to heal a little bit), and find a way to get as good a pain meds as you can (they're going to be your friends from here on out...plus a decent mattress). Oh, and acquaint yourself with daily physical pain plus a lessening in physical abilities -- at best it's a holding operation from here on out.
    Growing old sucks in a purely physical sense.

    PW

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  5. I'm heading into my 16th hour with the hiccups, racking my body, making the discs move - ouch!

    Thanks, everybody.

    This sucks,...

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  6. I feel bad for you, Crack.

    If you are having arm and leg pain and the doc thinks the symptoms are in fact arising from spine disc bulges, an MRI may not be needed, yet.

    A Medrol Dosepak (steroid taper) is often very helpful at reducing the swelling around the nerve.

    I assume they gave you a narcotic for pain.

    I agree with trying acupuncture. Despite your complaints about it, it has in fact had several studies demonstrating that it works, not according to bullshit energy fields, but because it hits arteriole-venule shunt nerve collections, and aborts the signal to the spinal cord. The "meridians" they speak of are just the standard neurologic dermatomes (i.e., the nerves arsing from the spinal cord).

    And I'll pray for you, too, even if you protest. Best.


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  7. Hiccups,
    from UpToDate
    "Physical maneuvers — Physical maneuvers include (table 2):


    ■Interrupt normal respiratory function (eg, breath holding, Valsalva maneuver)
    ■Stimulate nasopharynx or uvula (eg, sipping cold water, gargling with water, swallowing a teaspoon of dry sugar)
    ■Increase vagal stimulation (eg, pressing on the eyeballs)
    ■Counteract irritation of the diaphragm (eg, pulling knees to chest, leaning forward to compress the chest)

    The efficacy of these maneuvers has only been suggested by case reports and is not confirmed.

    Pharmacologic therapy — Drug therapy should be reserved for treatment of hiccups when physical maneuvers have failed. A variety of drug classes have been used for treatment (table 2).

    In the absence of data comparing drug treatments, we suggest using chlorpromazine as first-line drug therapy. Chlorpromazine has been one of the most commonly used drugs for hiccups, has good efficacy, and is generally well-tolerated at low doses.

    If hiccups subside following treatment, drug treatment can usually be stopped the day after cessation of hiccups. Most drug treatments can be used for seven to ten days. If hiccups persist, it is reasonable to consider another pharmacologic or nonpharmacologic treatment option.
    "

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  8. Hiccups alternative (singultus = hiccups):

    Using suboccipital release to control singultus: a unique, safe, and effective treatment

    http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0735675711000210

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  9. If you can't open that link:

    "The patient was reclined in a supine position while the treating physician sat directly behind his head. The physician placed her fingertips between the patient's occiput and C2, cradling and supporting the rest of his head with palms and thumbs. (Fig. 1) Increased muscular hypertonicity was noted on the right. Gentle pressure was placed superiorly and slight traction applied cephalad until the muscle tension relaxed. Within minutes, the patient's hiccups began to decrease in frequency until they finally ceased altogether. The suboccipital release was maintained for another few minutes. The patient was returned to a seated position."

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  10. So sorry to hear this, Crack. My advice may not even touch your pain, but one tab of Advil can be alternated with two tabs of Tylenol every three hours. Stay on schedule to keep the pain from returning. Up until about 4pm take a caffeine tab with the Tylenol doses (Walmart's no-doz generic is cheap).

    Also, check out if you should be using cold or warm compresses, or none.

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  11. I second Trooper York's recommendation: acupuncture. And, as he said, get a REAL practitioner. Mine, for my back and sciatic issues, is an older woman of Japanese ethnicity who has her doctor of Chinese medicine credential and is also a licensed massage therapist. Far more relief than anything western medicine has to offer for these issues.

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  12. Deb -- that's what I use!
    For the initial pain, it won't help much, but down the road, when you get the pain/inflammation down, then it does help to blunt it.

    Last time I got severely crunched they gave me demerol/phenergan and then tylenol/codeine -- plus I had to alternate hot/cold packs (I'd like to say I was a good girl, but yeah, I hit the hooch to keep from doubling over in agony once I was ambulatory and had to go back to work...but that's not a really good thing to do, so don't do it).

    PW

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  13. The good news is that after an amount of time it does mend, and the body does adjust and adapt to the new conditions of usage.

    PW

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  14. Geez, I wasn't expecting all this:

    I can't do acupuncture (you guys know that) because I can't believe, even a little bit. And trying to find a "good" one? I'll pass.

    Right now, I'm almost out of Lortab, but I've also got Naproxen, and Cyclobenzaprine (whatever those are). I'm also taking Aleve.

    The doctor gave me another prescription for a Medrol Dose Pak (?) this morning. I haven't filled it yet because I fear the wait (laying on a supermarket floor, even if you're not agonizing, is never fun.) I'll get there, though. Later.

    Right now, I'd do ANYTHING for some sleep. I nod off, but then something wakes me up (usually a pain in my arm) and then the hiccups start up again. Fucking brutal.

    Thanks for your concern, everybody. That, at least, feels good.

    I'll speak,...

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  15. Naproxen and aleve are the same thing, don't take too much...one every 8-12 hours. But KEEP ON SCHEDULE so the pain doesn't return as strongly. And re-read my entire, short post again, stubborn.

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  16. Know anyone with a high quality anti gravity chair you can test out? Takes pressure off your spine while you're in it. Better than a bed. I can't afford one but I wish I could.

    http://www.humantouch.com/perfect-chairs.html

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  17. Also, Vicodin contains tylenol, so don't take tylenol and vicodin...not good for liver.

    You feeling any better?

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  18. deborah,

    You feeling any better?

    One finger typing:

    I'm kinda adjusting to the back/neck thing by staying mostly in the fetal position.

    I can't get my doctor's prescription for an MRI until Monday.

    Because I've only been nodding off, rather than sleeping, I lost track of time last night and started projectile vomiting. That's when I knew I'd OD'd (not pretty and pretty painful in my condition).

    The hiccups haven't gone away, so my chest is sore now, and it stings when I swallow.

    Except when I could take control of it, my life's been that of a dog you find by the side of the road, so I'm not down or anything. Sometimes shit like this is just par for the course. What I hate is not working.

    Men endure.

    I will anyway.

    Thanks for asking.



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  19. "The hiccups have stopped."

    The homeopathic water I recommended worked.

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