osteoarthritis

ginat1973
ginat1973 Member Posts: 7
edited 16. Apr 2009, 08:34 in Living with Arthritis archive
Hi all i am 35yrs old and i was diagnosed a year and a half ago with osteoarthritis of the cervical spine i am on alot of medication which does not seem to help and it also feels like i have been dumped as the pain clinic can no longer do anything for me and my dr can only just swap some of my medication every two weeks as my body is use to the medication i am on as i have been on the same ones for a year and a half and i also find i cannot do alot of things by myself anymore i find day to day things are hard to do now and the stairs are hard work i can no longer work anymore and i have tried for dla as reccommended by my dr but i have been turned down twice and now i have got to go to tribunal it is so frustrating when it feels as if nobody believes you i would not be taking all that medication for nothing i would rather be healthy as i am married and got two children this is my first time on anything like this so i just wanted to know if anyone is in the same situation as me and if they can offer me any advice as none of my family or my husbands family seem to understand what i am going through it seems as if they do not believe me hope some one can help thankyou Gina x

Comments

  • lindah
    lindah Member Posts: 445
    edited 30. Nov -1, 00:00
    Hello and welcome to the site.
    I am 57 with osteo too in my hips, knees, feet ,hands and shoulders,some days all of these act up other days just maybe fingers and toes.
    I think if you read back through some of the posts on here and the living with arthritis one you'll find lots of us afraid of being thought frauds as sometimes we don't look as ill as we feel.Lots of us are dependent on our families and as you say sometimes even they can't fully understand.
    If you need help,advice or just to moan then come on here cos we
    all do it. There are lots of helpful friendly people and I bless my hubby for signing me up as I wouldn't have used the site otherwise.
    8) Linda H 8)
  • skezier
    skezier Member Posts: 11,333
    edited 30. Nov -1, 00:00
    Hi Gina,
    Welcome to the site. I am kinda simular in the nobody believes me thing..... I also have useless doctors.... I do how ever have a brilliant Rumo. Like Linda says there are a lot of people who think they may be viewed as a fraud but they are not and nor are you.

    What medication are you taking if you don't mind me asking. I have oa in my neck and lower back as well as my feet, knees and shoulder.

    I also wonder if it would be better to copy your message and put it over on the living with forum, you may find more people see it over there.

    Have you had tests and a MRI and have you been referred to a consultant? If not maybe you could ask you doctor to arrange it.

    It can be hard for people to understand, it can take time fore them to do so but they normally come round. Take care, Cris
  • vonski
    vonski Member Posts: 1,292
    edited 30. Nov -1, 00:00
    Hi Gina

    Welcome to the site, you will get lots of good advice and even have a laugh. Might be hard to believe right now but I'm sure you will :)

    What meds are you taking right now, there are quite a few around. Some work on some people but not on others so it's trial and error. If your body is getting used to them so quickly I take it they are codeine or opium based.

    The DLA is a real nightmare and there have been quite a lot of threads running about this. Have you spoken to DIAL or CAB, they offer very good advice.

    Love
    Vonski x
  • ginat1973
    ginat1973 Member Posts: 7
    edited 30. Nov -1, 00:00
    Hi vonski thankyou very much for your message and advice its nice to hear from you the medication i am on are tramadol, diclofenac, gabapentin and amitriptyline but every two weeks my dr changes it to co-codamol or bu-trans patches which are similar to morphine thankyou once again love from Gina.
  • vonski
    vonski Member Posts: 1,292
    edited 15. Apr 2009, 12:10
    Hi Gina

    How about the pain clinic? They can do allsorts and give injections too. Might be worth mentioing to Dr.

    Sorry Gina, missed the bit about the pain clinic :oops:

    Love
    Vonski x
  • joanlawson
    joanlawson Member Posts: 8,681
    edited 30. Nov -1, 00:00
    Hello Gina
    Welcome to the site. I think you will find it very helpful, especially as you say you feel that people don't understand how you feel. Everyone on here understands,so you can be sure of our support.

    I sympathise with you enormously. It must be very difficult for you coping with arthritis when you have children to care for, and you are young to have such pain to deal with.

    Does your doctor know how you feel about being dumped? Surely there is more that they can do for you? Recently, I felt that I really needed to talk about my options regarding surgery and/or medication.I have OA in my knees and ankle. I booked a double appointment with my doctor, and wrote down all the questions I wanted to ask. I found it much better because he had more time to discuss things properly. I had seen one consultant, but wasn't too impressed, so the doctor referred me for a second opinion. The second one was much better, and now I have a much clearer picture of the way forward.

    I hope you can get more help. Don't give up, and don't allow them to dump you. Ask for a second opinion.

    All the best
    Joan
    c1b3ebebbad638aa28ad5ab6d40cfe9c.gif
  • frogslegs
    frogslegs Member Posts: 26
    edited 30. Nov -1, 00:00
    vonski wrote:
    Hi Gina

    How about the pain clinic? They can do allsorts and give injections too. Might be worth mentioing to Dr.

    Love
    Vonski x


    What is a pain clinic :? and what do they do :?:
  • elnafinn
    elnafinn Member Posts: 7,412
    edited 30. Nov -1, 00:00
    Dear Gina

    I feel you need to do some serious talking with your gp regarding the DLA and how you are really feeling at the moment. He should be helping you more than it appears he is. He recommended you go for DLA and so you should in your circumstances. He knows that it has failed twice and you are now asked to go to tribunal. I hope he is backing you up with this. CAB can be useful people to turn to as well and give help with the form filling.

    Please do not underestimate yourself. You are unwell, and you must let your gp know exactly how it is and on these forms and at the tribunal you only write/talk about your worst scenarios, not the better days when you can perhaps do a little. Always talk about the things you cannot do. That is what I read, time and time again, on here from the very useful information that is given out to others, with similar probs in getting help. Those that make the decisions do not make it easy for anyone. They hope you will slink away. Do not do that. You are entitled to some help.

    I wish you well,

    Best wishes,
    Elna
    The happiest people don't have the best of everything. They just make the best of everything.

    If you can lay down at night knowing in your heart that you made someone's day just a little bit better, you know you had a good day.
  • elnafinn
    elnafinn Member Posts: 7,412
    edited 30. Nov -1, 00:00
    Hi Gina

    You say you feel you have been dumped by the pain clinic. What did they actually try to do for you?

    Elna
    The happiest people don't have the best of everything. They just make the best of everything.

    If you can lay down at night knowing in your heart that you made someone's day just a little bit better, you know you had a good day.
  • vonski
    vonski Member Posts: 1,292
    edited 30. Nov -1, 00:00
    frogslegs wrote:
    vonski wrote:
    Hi Gina

    How about the pain clinic? They can do allsorts and give injections too. Might be worth mentioing to Dr.

    Love
    Vonski x


    What is a pain clinic :? and what do they do :?:

    Hi Frogslegs

    Pain clinic assess your pain and advice on which drugs may work best for you. They can ask GP for referrals and give injections. Mine is run by an aneathetsis? but he is very good.

    Love
    Vonski x
  • ginat1973
    ginat1973 Member Posts: 7
    edited 30. Nov -1, 00:00
    Hi Elna it felt as if the pain clinic has dumped me as i was seeing them every 6months then when i went back in march she said she cannot do anymore for me as i am up to the limit on all my medication she also said they cannot operate or the injections as its not repairable so i only have my gp left but he is not much use the only person who seems to help is my psychologist. It was nice to hear from you have you got the same arthritis as me? take care Gina

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