I hate hearing that.If that had been my family, I would have done the SAME thing. No one should have to be in that pain. Studies have shown that addiction does not occur if taken for TRUE pain that warrants something stronger than acetaminophen. I mean, come on, headache pills for that?? I completely relate. I finally broke down and paid the$350 for a pain pump after the 4th surgery bc I couldn’t take any more of the pain. But it was only for 3 days.
Getting off opiates was awful after tearing my knee in the US. But i still take some minor ones here and there. For most people, they can probably do without. But I coach sports, train people, fight and play and train for a lot of sports. And i’m a taller and heavier guy, my knees and ankle take a lot of the force just from working. Don’t have a traditional sit at a desk job, so i can’t work if my knees and ankles just can’t take it.
Thanks. And not judging at all. I have to take a sleep pill from time to time myself.
Sounds tough Andrew. I can only say I wish you’d had me there at that hospital with your mother. I’d have had her wheeled out with boxes of opiate grade painkillers. I know how to talk to doctors here.
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I understand. Standing 8 hours a day after my injuries to teach takes its toll on me too, but somehow I’ve just learned to cope. I know if I were in the states, I’d prob be hooked on strong opiates long before now. But I made it, and I’m finally in place where it’s tolerable, although sometimes I could use something stronger. But for the most part, I don’t have to take anything for pain.
That actually does work. My mother being Chinese, and my father being fluent in it, made SUCH scenes at times that there were a few times my pain was actually handled correctly. But then they’d let it get out of control again. And if you’ve even been in medicine, once pain is out of control, it’s very hard to get back under control.
They wouldn’t even give me ibuprofen. I had friends and family smuggling me advil and ibuprofen.
The problem is chronic pain, although some pain levels might be low. But when you feel it for days and every step you take you feel the discomfort of it. It just sucks the soul out of you slowly. I’m a guy that is fine with getting punched and kicked for sport regularly. But being a taller, heavier guy, the knees and ankles take a lot of force when my job requires me to move around athletically all day.
It’s so frustrating when I get doctors here that dismiss my pain because i’m young and in good shape. I have a high pain threshold I would say. But that chronic pain…it just really gets you after weeks and months of no relief. I had to really learn to cope still mentally, it really makes me depressed and just puts me in a bad place mentally.
I truly TRULY feel your pain. I’ll be dealing with chronic pain the rest of my life, myself. I’m FULL of metal, and my knee and femur and foot never healed correctly. And it probably get’s worse for you when the weather is bad?
yup, cold weather and pressure changes, I feel it in the bones and joints i injured and also didn’t heal right.
Yes, and pain is dismissed. The doctors explained it to me like this, “Pain is Good. And Westerners feel pain more than asians.” I swear to you, MANY said that. When I questioned and told them to give me a hammer and put their hand out, they said, “well that’s what our textbooks and teachers told us.”
Their other excuse for not healing right and ossification was because I was western and healed too fast and ossiciation is a western disease.
It’s a strange country when it comes to pain treatment I don’t know why they’re so hung up on it. Maybe the stats of quarter million deaths from opiate/heroin overdoses in the States over last ten years has something to do with it…but still, no reason why people need to be in pain.
Doctors are such tight asses on this, and you have to really put your foot down hard and when they say no, you say yes and back and forth. I’ve found some clever tricks to get my way, find what works at what hospital. Superb acting skills!
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But seriously, I am walking, you can barely see a limp, when I shouldn’t even be here. So I really have nothing to complain about but a little pain that I’ve learned to live with. Some days will be worse than others, but it could (should) have been a LOT worse.
You are exactly right, and I do believe they look at the US and are TERRIFIED of the pain pill epidemic (which the US is a bit too free about prescribing–but that’s supposedly changing). But extreme pain HINDERS healing and NO ONE should be in that kind of pain. You are also right, show your ass enough, get the head doctors involved, and eventually you WILL be out of pain…for the day at least. Until you have to do it again the next day.
I actually refused the pain pills last time (aspirin–I have ENOUGH) and the doctor’s mouth dropped. He was truly in disbelief that I turned down ASPIRIN.
But no, I’m not looking for pain pills actually. Although they would be nice to have on hand if ever needed around here!
Honestly, I stopped going to the doctors. I did a lot of research into how to help myself in doing certain exercises, stretches, foam roller. I work with a co-worker whos an amazing physcio therapist that helped me with a lot of my mobility, muscle imbalance and weakness, flexibility issues.
When I tore my knee, it broke me. I couldn’t do anything beside walking for a while. I was scared to run or do any exercise. Stopped playing sports. I got so skinny and weak.
And when I finally tried to get back to being healthy, i overcompensated by just packing on muscle. But it made it worst as I developed bad imbalances and tightness with loss of mobility and flexibility. And plus i got heavier. I’ll never be the same athlete as before, I know that. I’ll never dunk a basketball again probably. Never run as fast and explode off my legs like before. I guess that’s life. But still, i’m ok with that. Just that chronic pain that turns into mental pain…
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You and I have SUCH similar stories. I used to be SOOOO active, and my knee /hips will no longer let me. I’ve had to learn how to stretch and do exercises that my body can handle. I’m still working on gaining weight, which has been a major issue. and for the pain, I’ve done acupunture and Reiki, which both help. Occasionally Kratom from Indonesia, which TRULY helps.
Yes, the mental pain is pain nonetheless. Unfortunately, people don’t see it that way.