Ailments, Aches & Pains. (Let's hear them here)

[LizzieM 9,507]

1 hour ago, IAN FINN said:

Hope all goes well Lizzie.

Thankyou Ian.  I know how debilitating Sciatica is, I had it several years ago following major Bowel surgery. I went privately to see  Mike Grevitt, a very well respected UK Back Surgeon who, within seconds, told me I had a ‘slipped disc’ but he said that he didn’t want to perform surgery intervention until it was much worse!  It eventually got better with physio.  

[trogg 2,016]

9 hours ago, LizzieM said:

he didn’t want to perform surgery intervention until it was much worse

Years ago my consultant told me there was an operation to cut the nerve which would stop the pain in my lower back and leg , but there was a possibility that it could damage other nerves in that area which there could be the possibility of me ending in a wheelchair. I decided not to have it and carried on using my walking stick and pain killers, I have over the years cut down on the tablets ,it restricts what I can do but so does age. Waking up in the morning is the most important thing .

[loppylugs 8,429]

Sounds like you made the right choice, Trogg.

I guess once we get much beyond middle age we've got to expect some issues.  Seems like for things like Sciatica there is no one size fits all solution.

[MargieH 7,600]

I’ve had back problems on and off since I was about 18 - I was nursing and there were  no hoists to help with lifting heavy patients in those days… the general back pain developed into ‘sciatica’ on my left side in my fifties but this was intermittent.  It isn’t a true sciatica as the nerve which gets squashed isn’t the sciatic nerve.  The pain goes down the front and side of my leg, not the back.  It has moved to the right side now instead of the left but some times of the day are worse than others.  It’s worse after I’ve been sitting down for a while and becomes easier when I’ve been out for a walk.

I don’t consider it to be my main health problem but it would be nice if it went away permanently!

[loppylugs 8,429]

I'm with you on that Margie.  My symptoms are definitely worse if I sit too long.  Sometimes I wonder if the hernia surgery I had on my right side could be a factor too.  I don't think my doctor knows.

[MargieH 7,600]

Loppy, I can’t see how the hernia repair op could directly affect your sciatic pain, but who knows (apart from your Creator  )

[loppylugs 8,429]

I'm grasping at straws at this point.

[nonnaB 4,895]

When I had my back operation a few years ago I felt on top of the world and a couple of inches taller. I had 5 slipped discs but the surgeon said he could only correct the 3 lower ones. AlI was fine until covid made me sit more and I seemed to be back to square one. I started exercises and yoga . It got better but started hurting me again when I either overworked or bent over too long making beds or washing floors. We have all tiles. After a visit back to Dr he gave me some Lyrica which I take only at night but can take it again in the morning if necessary. Up to now after 3 weeks I don’t have any pain or stiffness and it’s a different world for me now. I have a strong aversion to Drs but I’m glad I went.

[MRS B 517]

I too have had back problems since my early 20’ s after pushing a broken down car. Went to see Mr. John Webb privately on Regent Street Nottm after a mis diagnosis from Derby. He arranged an MRI on the NHS at Queens which revealed that L2,3 and 4 in my lower spine were degenerated as a result and as it affected 3 discs was not good for operating. Have had countless appointments since with osteopaths (Babington Sykes at Wilford), physios and pain management clinics, both privately and on the NHS. 
Have now got to the point at 68 years old and before where I can manage it. The most important thing that the pain management clinic taught me was that if my back was “moaning” move into another position or activity and don’t work through the pain.

Exactly what my Pilates teacher now tells me. I have been very lucky to have found a seated/standing class. 

[DJ360 6,728]

It's been an interesting 24 hours. There's a long 'back story' to this, going  back  to last years 'post op' meds which included

 Morphine and loads of Codeine, most of which is still in the cupboard. Last year I thought I'd found that codeine messes with my heart's pace and rhythm, which led to some scary symptoms.

Yesterday, I used a tiny amount of codeine and again got alarming symptoms. A lot of googling revealed that 3 of my 4 heart meds can have an 'additive' effect on the effects of codeine and vice versa. No wonder I felt so rough..

And yet nobody bothered to tell me this when they were handing me opiates like smarties....

I will be having words...

As it is.. it seems I treat my ticker or my pain.. but not both.

 

[Brew 5,413]

My guess would be keep the ticker ticking  Col.  

 

On the topic of health I'm now supposed to take a BP reading twice a day. Never had to do it before so no idea what to expect. I'm seeing some alarming results from the new Salter  machine, including the conviction it's trying to kill me. The pressure it exerts is huge, enough to cause real pain and turn the veins in the back of my hand into a fair imitation of a map for the underground. Once a day will have to do I'm afraid...

[MargieH 7,600]

Brew, I get a bad burning painin my upper arm when I take my. BP at home.  I had to take my BP twice a day for a week a few months ago.  The average was 143/88 and apparently that wasn’t bad enough to prescribe any meds.

[Brew 5,413]

2 hours ago, MargieH said:

I get a bad burning painin my upper arm when I take my. BP

It's ridiculous Margie, it never hurts like this at the surgery. The doc will have to do with once a day and guess at the days I forget.. Average so far - 163:98 which judging by the little scale on the machine is not great. Ah well we shall see what he's got to say in November...

[MargieH 7,600]

I agree that it doesn’t hurt when it’s done at the surgery.  I think the home machine maybe inflates the cuff more than it needs to, just to make quite sure it stops the arterial flow.
As your BP is high, the cuff will have to inflate above that figure …….

Are you on meds for  BP already?

[Cliff Ton 10,464]

I've been on tablets for high BP for around 15 years. They seem to work well and keep me down to a sensible figure.

 

I've never had any problems or side effects from taking BP - either by myself or by anyone else.

[DJ360 6,728]

My machine is a Braun Exact-Fit 5 which was about 70 quid off Amazon. It doesn't hurt. 

[MRS B 517]

I’ve been on meds for BP for a number of years. I can remember many moons ago having to wear a monitor overnight which kept inflating although it was supposed to be set to be lower at night. In the end at around 3am I took it off and threw it on the work surface downstairs in a rage. Guess that didn’t do my BP any good but made me feel better. My annual checks have been normal for a good few years now though.

[Brew 5,413]

1 hour ago, MargieH said:

Are you on meds for  BP already?

No, i had no idea I had a problem, but lately I've been having a dull ache, not a pain, in my chest. My dad died from an aneurism so called 111 for advice who said the docs have a free  check, book an appointment. OK, five weeks later, no check but sent for x-ray and bloods plus monitor BP. Something amiss with the blood test so need to do it again. 

 

Came away with a prescription for a tranche of drugs and growing sense of doom, it's quite knocked me duck off....

 

[DJ360 6,728]

@mrsbThey had me on one of those things in hospital after a heart attack in 1996. Next morning my arm felt like it had been through a food mixer.

They had me on one of those, plus a drip and a nasal oxygen feed last Monday and none really bothered me.

[Brew 5,413]

The whole thing is playing havoc with my sense of immortality I can tell you, I may need to adjust the plan.

[LizzieM 9,507]

My GP down in Hertfordshire suddenly decided to put me on BP pills and statins about 25 years ago.  At the time I told a friend who was a GP and she said she wouldn’t have prescribed those meds with the readings I’d got.  Never mind, I was getting no ill effects so continued taking the pills.  Then 5 or 6 years ago I was in QMC twice, for a week at a time. During those stays the staff took my blood pressure every few hours, every day.  The readings were perfect and I wasn’t taking meds because I’d not taken them in hospital with me.   I haven’t taken the BP meds ever since and the readings at my health check ups are fine. 

[DJ360 6,728]

5 minutes ago, Brew said:

Came away with a prescription for a tranche of drugs and growing sense of doom, it's quite knocked me duck off....

 

 

But Jim, much as you have my sympathy, your usual rational stance would be to take the pills and research any condition the Doc is pointing to.. Pragmatism is your friend here..

[DJ360 6,728]

7 minutes ago, Brew said:

The whole thing is playing havoc with my sense of immortality I can tell you, I may need to adjust the plan.

 

No!!

Adjust the context!

None of us is more than halfway to infinity...if that!

[Brew 5,413]

I hear what you're saying Col, it's just me being a bit of a mardy arse. There are those here with far greater problems

[philmayfield 6,123]

My my blood pressure tester, an Omron, is identical to the one my surgery uses and I’ve had no problems with it. I’ve been on pills for 20 years and my BP is fine.