Pain Relief

I am trying an "Alpha Stim" CES unit for pain. It creates a wave form between the electrodes on your ears. You can adjust the strength and wave form.
When my doctor suggested it I thought "Hooey" and "Pigswallup". I don't like gadgets, there are so many on the market. I did the research - there are a lot of studies, the American Military uses it for PTSD patients.
First time I was amazed. My bad side felt "heavy" while my OK side felt nothing, then for 3 days I did not wake up with my normal headache - nice.
I used it once a week in her office for 3 months. Morning headaches ceased for a few days after each session, on a bad pain day, it could lower the pain for up to 4 hours.
I purchased one for home use. I use it every couple days on the lowest setting on the basic wave form. If I increase it too much I feel like I am on a bad sea voyage on morphine.
I put in a claim to Sunlife and they paid 80% of the cost up to $800.
It is not a magic fix-all but for me:
It eliminates morning headaches
It lowers some aspects of pain for a time.
This is heaven.

Note: It does not stop pain all together i.e. if I am at an 8 it may lower it to a 6. Also it does not work on all types of pain.

{ So now I go drug free, live with as much pain as I can tolerate, and medicate only when I absolutely need a break from the pain. It isn't much of a life, but neither is walking around like a zombie.}

Rex,

those words are truly written in a way that shows the ability of how one can truly take control of themselves.
With most medications comes side effects that can really be harmful, and although may help in the specific
condition that it has been prescribed for, can really take it's toll on other parts of the body.
Don't get me wrong, some have no choice but to take their prescribed medication,
however as Rex has pointed out, he knows full well that taken some pain, and only taken the medication for a break from the pain,
will lesson greatly the side effects that comes with taken such medications.

So I commend him for taken control of his own situation with respect to the amount of medication he choose to take.

Now I will say a few words that may seem controversial to some, but this is only my point of view,
and my intention here is to only try to help others.
The first thing that I would state is that doctors are not god, they have a job to do, and most do it well,
however, they follow guidelines that allows them to prescribe medication for whatever condition you are diagnose for,
that is all well and done, but the important thing to remember here is that you as the patient have the final say as to take
this prescribed medication or not.
Now as I stated above some conditions will leave you no choice but to take whatever is prescribed to you.
This is what I practice when being prescribed any new medication,
unless it's a life or death situation, nothing is going into my system until, I have done my own research
on it, if I am not comfortable with taken it, I will make it my mission to try and find another drug with less side effects,
and ask my doctor for that prescription.
Remember, take control of your own body, it's your body, and nobody knows it best but you.

Now here is one that I know will be controversial, again it's just my view, no more to it than that.
The controversial word is "NATURAL"
The only problem with going natural for some conditions, not all, is that it requires a great deal of research,
and it is really a hit and miss type of situation, meaning that you may have to try different types of natural
products before finding one that helps.
The internet offers a wealth of information on various products, some good, and some not so good,
again this requires a great deal of research, however if you are concerned like I am about what a certain
medication is doing to your body, with respect to serious side effects, or side effects that may only appear down the road,
you will have no problem taken the time to research it.
Again this is only my point of view, I understand that it may sound like I am saying  go all natural,
no, it just maybe something to look into.

Not sure about that salad dressing Sapper Zodiac... perhaps with a topping of thorazine. But having been a guinea pig and a pin cushion for a few decades it may not work for me.
What does work?  Each and everyone of us may know for themselves most of the time but it can be a slippery slope for pain relief.
To each their own... responsibly. Be it marijuana or scotch. But MOREOVER with a sharp doctor that has foresight and isn't stupid or green..
I wonder how many folks on csat (vets) have severe pain from service and have a good doctor to guide them if one at all?

What about sharing good doctors that have openings, their experience and if they are keen to vets? Given ones locale. Just need a phonebook and a phone.
My doctor is not taking new patients, but nothings stopping me from shopping around for the hellery of it.
But I'm in an urban area. Thinking of those of you who are not... Shyte... just a rambling thought....trying to help. pinger.

I also had the Rhizotomy treatments, topped with cortisone, to no avail. I heard the prescription marihuana in oil form is good for making oil/vinegar salad dressing too. Trying to get my nerve up to discuss with my GP. I am still from the era where "pot is bad".
Sap

Rex have you explored the use of marijuana as a pain relief? There seems to be different applications now pill, vaporizer, spray.

I hear you birdgunner. I've had lidacaine injections and they didn't do a lick of good. I even had spinal surgery, in an attempt to alleviate pressure on the nerve, which helped some of the secondary symptoms like numbness in my leg, but didn't affect the pain level whatsoever. Now even the numbness is starting to return. I'm supposed to be taking daily meds, increasing in strength and dosage through the years, trying Arthrotec, Naproxen, Dilaudid and Nucynta, but I find that they either don't work, or leave me too dazed to function. So now I go drug free, live with as much pain as I can tolerate, and medicate only when I absolutely need a break from the pain. It isn't much of a life, but neither is walking around like a zombie.

I have had the Naropin injections also....7 visits with 10-15 injections per visit...didn't work.

Pain Clinic also tried a procedure called Rhizotomy...doctors freeze the back and spine area then go in and zap the nerve endings..had multiple visits with no success.

Which was frustrating as it was the last form of treatment offered by the Pain Clinic. Back to prescriptions...for now.

I take tramacet for chronic pain 37.5/325 two pills four times a day, topped off with Mirtazapine (anti depressant with pain control properties)at bed. My doctor got me off the celebrex and the amytriptyline, as that was a dirty drug with many side effects. Throw in the hot tub and some nicaraguan rum and its all good! The tramacet is a synthetic narcotic that is non addictive and cut with acetominophen, yet I had to get special approval from VAC for it, as they would rather me take the oxy or other bad things. Others have said Wine works...but when I started whining my wife cut me off!! Chin up lads.
Sap

Oops, 5 months ago not 65, ha ha. Sorry about that.

I was on all kinds of pain meds for my back, oxy, T3s, 292s, even had the back injections and nothing seemed to work. My Dr prescribed TRIDURAL 100mg about 65 months ago, had to send off letter why she felt I should have them and good ole VAC approved, I take 3 every night, they are a 24 hr slow release drug and I can honestly say that within a few weeks the pain was under control and today after about 3 months I am not pain free but wow what a difference. I am glad I made the switch no more oxy or any of the other pain meds just the TRIDURAL.

Pinger you should look into an infra-red sauna. It's a penetrating dry heat up to 140 F for an hour.

You can buy one get a prescription from your family physician stating "Requires infra-red heat treatments"

So when you file your taxes for the year you can add the sauna to your medical deductions.

Remember plain old common sense folks. Run suggestions by your GP to avoid any snake oil or... much worse.

Navrat, really wish I could have but I was 11 out of 10, take me to the back of the barn and shoot me type migraine.

Hey Teen, I'm like you, neck to lumbar.
Cymbalta didn't work for me.
Gabopentin didn't either but VAC approval was a hiccup on that one.
So many flavours and variations... I can't remember them all.

My pain clinic will try another spinal cortisone shot (gotta love that pain!) to no avail.
They told me about some R.F.treatment that ain't laser therapy but freezes nerves.Never heard of Naropin. Will ask about it.
Naproxen are smarties to me but like hi dose plain tylenol, they will rot your guts.
Oxy's? Tried them years ago, and then flushed them all down the toilet.
Cost/Benefit analysis has proved to me a 40 lb'r of scotch a day don't work either.

But then... there's another real pain out there, the touchy feely one...Shyte.
Fair winds to you. pinger.

I have herniated discs from the lumbar up to the neck. I go to a Pain Clinic every 3 weeks for injections of Naropin (a freezing drug similar to the dentist) into the muscles around the discs.
This helps keep my muscles relaxed so they do not tense up when I move wrong.

Daily for the same back problems I take 900 mg of Gabopentin (nerve relaxant) 3 times a day
Cymbalta 60 mg once a day
7.5 mg of a anti-inflammatory twice a day
50 mg of Amitripyline once a day
2000 iu's of vitamin D to keep the bones strong (everyone should take this)

And of course for the bad days I have percocet, valiuum, and immovane (sleeping pill)

I'm not completely mobile but if I did not do this I would definitely be immobile!

I just found out I have really bad ortheo arthritis in my left knee. Almost to the point where it could be replaced. So I am going to have Synvisc-one injection (a jell like lubricant) into the knee and a custom brace to separate the almost touching upper lower bones. And of course muscle strengthening exercise's.

Pinger like Digger said damn good idea for a topic!

What happened to the old ways, I mean when you had a migraine you'd just gather the gang together , drink a couple bottles of Crown , and presto , no more migraine ! Just a Hang over, lol

pinger that is a good idea.