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Need Help With Chronic Service Connected Pain Issues.

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The point I am making is that I shouldn't have to hire people to clean my house and do my yard work... I am capable, I just need a reliable means of reducing the pain once I do said work... It's also kind of a pride thing, I have always been one to want my dwelling and belongings to be neat, the Marine Corps further ingrained that in my head. Not to mention, but with the being unemployable, and then not being able to do the upkeep on my property, its like, what CAN I do, I get frustrated and feel useless. It's unacceptable to just 'avoid doing things that aggrevate the problem' because that is almost everything besides laying on my couch. It's not like I am complaining because I can't go out and BMX bike, or mountain climb, or play football without being in misery, it's just basic things that I want to do without fearing the pain, things like my household chores, or a walk with my girlfriend and the puppy, or spending a day at the zoo with family or something. I'm not asking for a lot. I'm not asking for an instant cure, or magic pill that will eliminate my symptoms, that's unrealistic, I just want what I know works.

Most members here feel the same - but after decades of pain, learn to accept

that this is just another reason the compensation is provided.

To pay for regular things that we can no longer - do ourselves.

JMHO

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  • HadIt.com Elder

These young Doctors usually interns that come and go every six months are not much help at all and usually not at all willing to listen to their patients. Getting mad and quitting is not good for you. Best to learn a few lessons from Hadit and you don't have to take No from VA you can start using their own bureaucracy to get what you want. After all as a patient you are part of anything that is done to you.

If the Doc is young trust me she works for someone at VA and you should ask if you can speak to her boss. Just that often times gives them a reason to reconsider your request. You also have available Patient Advocates sometimes they can help and many have their own Doc who works for them to help patients. You can also appeal your Doc's decision and request a hearing.

Like earlier said many here have had to deal with these issues many times.

Good Luck

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  • HadIt.com Elder

I got my pain meds about a week late this month. The VA does not even print the dates on my scripts any more because they don't want to leave proof of their failure. I deal with this chronic problem in the only way I can. If some store told me I would have to pick up my own television I would find another store. I know what happens when I over do it. I don't do yardwork. I don't paint. I don't get on my hands and knees and scrub the tiles. I hire someone. I use the scooter with the basket when I go to the store because of my feet. People look at me. I look at them. I carry my cane and my wife helps me. If someone asks me why I am in a scooter I would love to tell tell them in detail.

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Yeah, I do get your point that it is part of the disability rating for some, but for me it isn't, my back is listed at either 0 or 10% I do not recall, and it was because there is no diagnosis so for whatever reason the Comp and Pen Dr. listed it as minor scoliosis... which it isn't. It might be factored in for my Individual Unemployability however. My main complaint is that in my case, I know that certain medications would help in so far as giving me a better quality of life and would help me get stuff done, so it's like I'm being purposefully held down. Again, not asking or desiring to be completely pain free forever, I know that won't happen, just something to cut the 8 or 9s down to 4s or 5s on the bad days. My main ratings are for other issues.

I believe the Dr that I first spoke to was an intern or whatever, and I believe she said off handedly that the 'main doctor' in that office, the other one that spoke with me, was leaving soon, and then I would have a more permanent provider in that clinic. But overall this department/clinic was almost useless. A nurse there was even offering her comentary on how lousy the care can be, and how unfair it is that people have to wait so long for appointments, and that it's BULL shit that this is the only pain clinic around for the VA so some other unfortunate souls have to drive there from MAINE... WOW.

Now apparently they are going to be mailing me the Gabapentin stuff. I am interested to see how this works, but from what I have read online it kind of seems to be a 'cure all' that Doctors are now over-prescribing because it has low incidence of negative side-effects, but questionable amounts of positive effects. I am hesitant about taking a medicine every day, I just don't like the idea of it. Again, I'd prefer something that we already know works, and just take them sparingly versus having to take pills every single day that may either not work, or could still cause negative side effects.

Does anybody have any personal accounts of how Gabapentin (Neurontin) works?

I have decided against the shady online pharmacy for now because of the shadiness... It'd be miraculous if I could just get something online that would help me, but it's also just too weird sounding, and I don't want it to be a legal gray area, nor do I want to get tainted meds.

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  • HadIt.com Elder

Neurontin will probably knock you on your ass for a few days, but I am told you will get used to it rapidly. It is for nerve pain and it does some people a world of good. Some people don't get any benefit, my psychologist for instance. He has DDD and it did not help him. I run new drugs by him since I have been seeing him for about 40 years and he knows a lot. We are growing old together and he used to have a group with lots of Vietnam vets. There are other drugs in the same family: Lyrica, topomax and even clonazepam. They are anti-seizure meds but side effect is relief from nerve pain for some.

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John999 thanks for the intel.

I was kind of sketched out when I found out that it is an anticonvulsant... but like you said, I guess it works on nerve pain or neuropathy... I just did some more reading about it and I read that it has something like a 30% success rate for people that do have nerve pain.

My concern though, is that there is NO diagnosis on my back pain... It seems odd to me to prescribe various medicines that do not strictly have a general analgesic quality. I'm just throwing more potentially harmful substances in my body with every treatment they decide to try out... They tried me on Nortriptylin as well, to no avail, not sure what species of medicine that one is.

Same reason I got frustrated when they wanted to do the trigger point injections, that we don't know what is causing the problem, so randomly injecting something into my back seems like a last resort, same with PT, especially because I have tried that while I was still active duty, again to no avail. I personally don't think PT will ever help, based solely on the duration this problem has lasted without getting better.

I guess it's just a matter of ruling stuff out huh? Try all kinds of meds, see what doesn't work and it can rule out some conditions maybe??

It's frustrating still though, being no closer to answers than when I started this process, still reading way too much stuff online trying to figure it out myself since I feel like the Doctors kind of don't have much of a priority to get me fixed.

If anyone wants to play along detective with me, heres the basic info again, ideas are great, if nothing else just to toss ideas around...

How and when pain started:

First noticed it in bootcamp, no idea what really lead to it coming around, I cannot remember. That was in 2004. Got thru Bootcamp after a few sick calls, and no treatments. Problem persisted when I got in the fleet, still continued forward with motrin and such and didn't want to seem like a xxxxx so I just dealt with it to the best of my ability. Went to BAS and Naval Hospital a few more times, nothing really done at all, tried PT like I said and it didn't help. Deployed and got blown up by an IED, but no noticable physical damage to me. Got back stateside after the deployment. Went to a civvie Hospital while on Christmas Leave one year because it got very bad, they gave me some form of Vicodin, I don't recall what. Back to Lejeune and a few more random Naval Hospital visits, still nothing. I've had various imaging tests done, nothing found. Problem has persisted since when it originally started with pretty much no break in the pain, some days its very bad, some days it's not. Infantry life was brutal dealing with this pain, which kind of lead to me wanting to get out, humps were ridiculously painful and so was most morning PT, but I still was in good shape and had a 1st class PFT. So I was in good shape, and could do the training and PT and stuff, but the pain was excruciating, it's not like I was a weakling that couldn't hack it. I never fell out of PT or Humps or anything. So here I am now, a civvie, not doing a whole lot of anything for fear of the pain. My physical activity level has went down tremendously since the Corps, and it still hurts when I do try to do stuff. So I went from very active, very fit, strong guy in lots of pain, to a not physically demanding lifestyle, less standing around, less work, lots more rest, still in lots of pain.

Area Involved:

Upper back, right quadrant, seems to kind of move around the area, or maybe it radiates differently based on something I do. I remember it used to be predominately directly to the right side of the spine vertebrae, but now it seems to be about halfway between the spine and my side, so I guess shoulder blade area. It is I guess a burning sensation when it gets bad, and is very painful. I get the feeling that I need to stretch the area out, but it doesn't help. The pain feels 'deep' not superficial. I'd say it gets to an 8 or 9 at its worst, and most definitely is debilitating.

Latest Update:

Awaiting results of an abdominal ultrasound that was done at my request. I DO have heartburn and acid reflux but nothing is officially diagnosed, however I was put on Omeprazole for it. The ultrasound was done I guess to look around for Ulcers, or gall stones, or to see if anything in there was inflamed. Have an esophagus and stomach biopsy and scope scheduled to look for scarring and acid damage, or ulcers. Gabapentin prescribed and awaiting delivery.

Meds they've prescribed me and results:

Nortriptylin- Prescribed by civvie neurologist, told to try it for 2 weeks and see if I noticed any positive effects... I did not, discontinued.

Cyclobenzaprine- Prescribed by VA, as it is a muscle relaxer one would think that if the pain is being caused by spasms, that this should have helped... it did not, and made me feel tired and 'out of it'

Lidocaine 5% patches- Prescribed by VA pain clinic after first visit. Doesn't reduce pain and in fact it seems to make me more aware of the pain somehow.

Naproxen- Prescribed when I tore my knee ligaments, didn't help with back pain however, also have tried the OTC version since then, with no results.

Oxycodone- Prescribed by civvie neurologist after the Nortriptylin, Was a lowish dosage, with the acetaminophen mixed in. Only pain relief that has helped, didn't get it to a 1 or 0, but maybe a 3 or 4.

Gabapentin- Prescribed by VA pain clinic after second visit. Waiting for it to arrive.

PT- Done at Naval Hospital Camp Lejeune for about 6-8 weeks. No help whatsoever. Also instructed stretches to do at home, again, didn't notice any help.

Bengay- Prescribed by VA Primary Care, told to 'get somebody to massage it into your back' which I did, but it didn't help at all, felt good while the massage was ongoing, but not afterwards.

Capsasin Cream- Suggested by my old VA PCP, bought some cheap one from Big Lots, and it didn't help either.

So based on those results, what could it be in your opinion (anybody who is reading) I'd say nerves ARE involved because of the strange sensations associated with the actual pain (being the electric shock sensation in my neck, and a numbness around my back pain) but I'm not sure it's an entirely nerve problem... Again, nothing really helps with the pain when it gets bad, usually it flares up when I do physical activity, or am standing/walking for a length of time. Sometimes it gets semi painful just from sitting for a while, not quite as bad as when I am doing work, but worse than the base line.

I want to get a copy of my military med records so I can see exactly how many times throughout my short career that I sought medical help for this problem, and compile my VA records and see how many times I've been there, so I can legitimately lose my mind at how much I am trying to get help and not getting any.

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