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Old 01-09-2015, 09:00 PM
 
4 posts, read 3,954 times
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Six lumbar vertebra in such bad shape due to an accident that the doctors are stumped with how to repair them. I am in severe pain and refused pain medication by my physician, yet, offered a Maine Medical marijuana card. Oh, I get it!... 85% of Maine's physicians voted against Maine's Medical marijuana law, yet, it's the first treatment they offer, so that they do not have to take the chance of their patients becoming addicted, maybe even dying from a drug overdose. Not so much worried about our wellbeing as much as they are worried about their career. My physicians' remark? Physicians in Maine do not treat chronic pain, nor anyother pain with prescription pain relievers, because they do not work.

Many pain patients and even some doctors are wary of opioids (also known as narcotics) because they have the potential to be addictive. Except for patients with a history of addictive behavior, pain experts say the potential benefit of narcotic therapy for chronic pain often outweighs the risk.

It is unfair to me and those like me whom have never had an addiction. Who do not drink, smoke, nor are affiliated with any illegal drugs or institutions‘, yet, are punished with the refusal of prescribed pain medication because of those individuals with frivolous and fictitious ailments taking advantage of the system and some unfortunately dying due to an overdose. Although, I have been diagnosed with severe chronic pain for multiple years, the medical community refuses to prescribe medication to me that quite possibly could bring me a few moments of comfort a day. A moment in which I could do something other than dwell on the hell I live with. It is a shame, that if I chose to… I could easily acquire a medical marijuana card to smoke a substance that is illegal in 65% of the world, yet, I cannot acquire a prescription to a “Legal“ pharmaceutical pain reliever that quite possibly could save what little life I have…

I have nothing against someone using marijuana for medical use, but, I should have my choice and not be pushed towards a treatment that I am against.


Web-MD....... [SIZE=4][/SIZE]
The magnitude of the burden from low back pain has grown worse in recent years. In 1990, a study ranking the most burdensome conditions in the U.S. in terms of mortality or poor health as a result of disease put low back pain in sixth place; in 2010, low back pain jumped to third place, with only ischemic heart disease and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease ranking higher.




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Old 01-11-2015, 06:16 PM
 
Location: On a Slow-Sinking Granite Rock Up North
3,638 posts, read 6,133,985 times
Reputation: 2677
Quote:
Originally Posted by sorthern View Post
Six lumbar vertebra in such bad shape due to an accident that the doctors are stumped with how to repair them. I am in severe pain and refused pain medication by my physician, yet, offered a Maine Medical marijuana card. Oh, I get it!... 85% of Maine's physicians voted against Maine's Medical marijuana law, yet, it's the first treatment they offer, so that they do not have to take the chance of their patients becoming addicted, maybe even dying from a drug overdose. Not so much worried about our well being as much as they are worried about their career. My physicians' remark? Physicians in Maine do not treat chronic pain, nor any other pain with prescription pain relievers, because they do not work.

Many pain patients and even some doctors are wary of opioids (also known as narcotics) because they have the potential to be addictive. Except for patients with a history of addictive behavior, pain experts say the potential benefit of narcotic therapy for chronic pain often outweighs the risk.

It is unfair to me and those like me whom have never had an addiction. Who do not drink, smoke, nor are affiliated with any illegal drugs or institutions‘, yet, are punished with the refusal of prescribed pain medication because of those individuals with frivolous and fictitious ailments taking advantage of the system and some unfortunately dying due to an overdose. Although, I have been diagnosed with severe chronic pain for multiple years, the medical community refuses to prescribe medication to me that quite possibly could bring me a few moments of comfort a day. A moment in which I could do something other than dwell on the hell I live with. [color=black]It is a shame, that if I chose to… I could easily acquire a medical marijuana card to smoke a substance that is illegal in 65% of the world, yet, I cannot acquire a prescription to a “Legal“ pharmaceutical pain reliever that quite possibly could save what little life I have…]

"Pain experts." Let's think about those words for a moment. Who funds most "Pain Experts?"

Prescription narcotics were originally intended for short term use for pain relief following surgery, an injury, or in the case of terminal illnesses to reduce the pain of death. They were never intended to be taken on a long-term basis because people taking them are so likely to become addicted with an ever-increasing need for higher dosages due to the fact that they become resistant to them, and they then require increasing dosages to maintain pain relief.


Prescription drug abuse is not always simply people who are presenting with "frivolous and fictitious ailments." Many of them were fine before they were prescribed prescription narcotics for pain relief. Once hooked to the miserable buggers? Not so fine. There are a considerable number of people who were once just like you - never addicted to a single thing - who would now sell their soul to the devil for prescription drugs. Some of them have moved to street drugs now that the prescriptions are being cracked down upon. More and more evidence comes out every day that the surge in prescription drug prescriptions for long term use has been detrimental to those they were supposed to help. Physicians are also coming to realize this and putting their collective feet down against the biggest legal drug pushers around - Big Pharma.

Contrary to popular belief, physicians (at the behest of administrators who look at the bottom line and sign their paychecks) are also having to deal with an ever-increasing number of people who demand that they be treated with the latest and greatest medications that they are brainwashed into believing are "good" for them, and they can stay on for long term. Just pay attention to the TV ads we are bombarded with every night during the nightly news, and by websites such as "Web MD" which can tell you that your red spot is either a pimple that'll go away on its own or a malignant melanoma, and you'll be dead in 2 weeks. "Got malignant melanoma? See your doctor to see if ___________ is right for you."

The buzz words of the day are "Patient satisfaction scores." Oh you betcha - they're important if providers want to get paid. So, people go to their doctors, ask them for narcotic pain relievers (and many physicians do still prescribe narcotics for management of short-term ailments, but now-a-days, they've come to realize just how poisonous long-term use of narcotics are, and that in the long run, they are not worth it). Patients get upset to hear that they can't have narcotics when they should be glad that their doctor is not willing to make them into permanent zombies to relieve their pain.


There is validity in medical marijuana. It's a great pain reliever for many people. It can help AIDS patients maintain appetite, people with MS can often feel less pain and stiffness, and cancer patients can get relief from bone pain without nausea. It's one more tool in the box. It's not for everyone, but many do use it to relieve pain.

I don't know where the 85% of physicians voted against it came from, but the many I know certainly do encourage their suffering patients to find growers on the QT because the know it works but don't want to deal with the politics of it. There is such a stigma to marijuana that people don't see it's actually a lot less toxic than what Big Pharma pumps out.

There is a reason that the Bangor area alone has not one, not two, but three methadone clinics. Prescription drug abuse is a major problem that people don't like to believe is one. Not only are they addictive, they are a lucrative money-maker, and as such, we have them imported to this state from other states on a regular basis. There's a lot of cash to be made off Oxycontin. A lot. Physicians have been smacked down for prescribing them for long term pain relief because in the long run, they usually cause more grief than they're worth in more ways than one. Not so long ago, a Florida firefighter/clandestine drug runner was murdered by a drug addict who owed him money. I could sit here and tick off a number of cases where people were maimed or murdered over drugs in the last 5 years, but I find it too depressing, so I'll stop at Jerry Perdomo.

Also, physicians like to keep their licenses and don't relish the thought of getting sued.

As an aside: I work where I see first-hand the misery of drug addiction. I've seen abscessed veins that look like Swiss cheese from shooting up prescription drugs (among other street drugs). I've seen families destroyed because of prescription drug addiction. I've watched the decline of people who at first came to my area for help, but within a year have withered away to next-to-nothing, so I guess I feel that I can play "devil's advocate" for physicians who are trying to get a grip on this epidemic of drug addiction, and yes, it's an epidemic. I'm not being an alarmist. I've had a ringside seat in this circus for quite some time now.

And, I know back pain. I've known it intimately since 1995. I had surgery for bad disks and they continue to crumble every waking minute of my days. I have a very core set of lifestyle changes I've had to maintain to keep as comfortable as I can. There are now many therapies, surgical procedures non-narcotic pain medications as well as just plain old fashioned physical activity that is available to people who suffer with chronic back pain. I use simple over-the-counter pain relievers at prescriptions strengths when I need them (like when a storm front is coming in - my spine can often predict the weather better than a Doppler Radar ). I have a regime of physical activity that I can't stop for one day without my spine starting in. Don't sell yourself short - keep searching until you find a good physician willing to give you ALL of your options - not just narcotics. I wish you good luck and better health.

Last edited by cebdark; 01-11-2015 at 06:27 PM..
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Old 01-11-2015, 08:40 PM
 
Location: On a Slow-Sinking Granite Rock Up North
3,638 posts, read 6,133,985 times
Reputation: 2677
And yes, even Yoga can help. This man's workout was custom made.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qX9FSZJu448
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Old 01-12-2015, 03:04 AM
 
Location: Northern Maine
10,428 posts, read 18,550,074 times
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I know of two patients ho have TENS devices that are very effective at reducing back pain. That said, pain is useful information. It tells you something is wrong.
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Old 01-12-2015, 04:58 AM
 
Location: On a Slow-Sinking Granite Rock Up North
3,638 posts, read 6,133,985 times
Reputation: 2677
Quote:
Originally Posted by Northern Maine Land Man View Post
I know of two patients ho have TENS devices that are very effective at reducing back pain. That said, pain is useful information. It tells you something is wrong.
Exactly. Although no one should ever have to suffer debilitating pain with it, there are more recent effective pain management therapies than just drugs that often do little more than to hook us and keep us in a semi-comatose state most of the time.

It's hard to live a good life if you're asleep from narcs because you have to keep upping the dosage to maintain relief.

Also, there are many methods of using marijuana that reduce or eliminate the "high" while keeping the pain-relieving chemicals intact, so it's not necessary to be "stoned" to feel relief.

http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/80.../#.VLOpOSvF-So

It's also effective for some seizures.

http://www.upworthy.com/think-mariju...th-you-on-that
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Old 01-21-2015, 05:42 AM
 
Location: On a Slow-Sinking Granite Rock Up North
3,638 posts, read 6,133,985 times
Reputation: 2677
Default For Anyone Needing Help With Back Pain Issues

If there's one thing we're very fortunate to have for such a rural state, it's the number and caliber of medical services we have available. There are a few reasons for that. A major one is that we have a lot of retirees and people who have injured themselves doing hard (and sometimes risky) work.

Comprehensive spine care is the backbone of what we do. • Maine Medical Partners Neurosurgery and Spine Care
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Old 01-21-2015, 01:38 PM
 
93 posts, read 177,206 times
Reputation: 160
I have a med marijuana card for chronic pain after a herniated disc operation. The pain is like having an ice pick driven into the middle of the neck. After years of being told just tough it out, I tried the herbal route. Now that I have my card and my herb, the pain fades to nothing.

I was given all manners of pain meds from opioids to aspirin. The opioids def tried to turn me towards addiction. Hydrocodone would work, but it was too easy to "need it" all the time...felt like being enveloped in a soft pillow. A feeling like that is hard to turn from.

The mj isn't like that, I don't crave it. But it works better than the hydrocodone. For me.
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Old 01-22-2015, 01:14 PM
 
Location: Vancouver, WA
473 posts, read 2,745,021 times
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I'm here researching for a move from OR, but rest assured, it's not just Maine. Oregon has a big problem with prescribing pain meds to chronic pain sufferers as well.

My wife has one of the worst cases of fibromyalgia that her doctors have seen. She is in constant pain. Even when she's not in a flare up, her pain is at 6 out of 10 and when she's flaring it's 9 or 10/10...but nope no pain meds. Nothing works.

She has a medical marijuana card, and I found us a grower, so we get free marijuana every month, and it does help her. It takes the edge off her pain. It doesnt take it away, but makes it more manageable. She suffers from migraines, neuropathy and also has an advanced case of COPD. Theyve sent her to pain clinics, and they themselves said they cant help her.

So what she's forced to do is when she has medical or dental procedures done where they prescribe her pain pills for after, she saves those pain pills for the worst days, and can make a 30 day RX last months. Not ideal, but we do what we have to do.

But I just wanted to chime in, you may want to look for more neutral info on medical MJ, not the tobacco, and government sponsored studies, as they have their own interests in mind. It really does help many people, and used to be a part of society like any other product in older cultures. You don't have to smoke it. You can vaporize it (saves you inhaling the burning material), eat it via edibles, or even straight to your system using tinctures, and pills.

When you have a problem, and no one gives you a solution, all you have is whatever you can do to get by.
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Old 01-23-2015, 12:06 PM
 
Location: Maine
7,727 posts, read 12,322,453 times
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I have M.S. Cannabis is known to help with the muscle spasms and tremors associated with the disease. Most prescription pain medications I've tried have made my stomach upset and done little to nothing for me except, to make me feel disconnected and tired. I'm tired enough already! lol
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