What would be the best course to take for my mum ?

Telemusik

My mum has had lower back pain for as long as I can remember but the older she gets the more permanent it is becoming.

If I'm remember correctly, she was first told it was Sciatica, then a slipped disc, and then Arthritis.
At some point during all of this she was refused surgery for the area, not sure of the reasoning and I believe when she has attended pain management in the past also been declined monthly injections.

Right now she takes Co-Codomal but these are not really allowing much relief or to the point she is looking for, she wants to be independent to clean house, make tea etc..

The other issue is the Co-Codomal, She is also paranoid Schizophrenic and on medication to treat this, what I've noticed though is the meds she is given for the PS are fine when she has good back days and not taking any Co-Codomal, however when she needs the Co-Codomal they seem to counter her PS meds ( memory issues, paranoid thoughts, personality changes, argumentative, contradictory etc..).

So really not sure which way to turn, as her pain is now daily and the meds are barely doing anything at this point but if she were to increase her dose then the PS symptoms increase along with terrible nightmares which also cross over to the day to day, what is real and what is not.

She has also in the last couple of years developed Drop foot and has had a colostomy bag for 15 years due to Crohn's disease so there is a lot going on here, my main goal is to deal with the pain without increasing her PS symptoms or ideally surgery if it were possible.

Thanks for any advice.

MaryL44

Hello  @Telemusik and welcome to the Community. We are a friendly and supportive group and I hope that will be your experience as well.

Our website is a mine of information so do look at it. You might be particularly interested in:

https://www.versusarthritis.org/about-arthritis/your-experiences/your-questions-answered/your-questions-on-drug-side-effects/

https://www.versusarthritis.org/news/2022/march/five-ways-to-help-manage-back-pain/

I haven't been able to find anything specific about your mother's particular issues but if you search with some different key words you will probably find some good information

Also, our community members will have vast experience so keep checking back here for their responses.

Please keep posting now you are here and let us know how you are getting on.

Best wishes

Mary (moderator)

sallygee

Hi Telemusik,

I would suggest that you ask her GP or consultant to arrange for a Multi Disiplinary Team (MTD) meeting. This would mean health proffessionals get together to discuss each element of your Mother's health, to ensure one area isn't adversley affecting another. They can have a look at her overall health.

I don't know how easy it is to set up, but I think it's pretty commonly done, especially when there is a mental health issue involved, as the drugs used to treat them are well known for their side effects.

Good luck!

Baloo

@Telemusik I agree with @sallygee that an overall look at health may help. The days where the one doctor person does all is not always the way to go. The office staff can triage a complex case and so can 111. Each time I do this I come out smiling.