Pain management, in home help....

timer lady

Queen of Hearts
yada, yada, yada.

I saw my GP the other day; my eye specialist yesterday.

I am feeling better from day to day; I can feel my strength building so that I want to do it all again. You know, the cleaning of the house, the 4 loads of laundry in one day, baking up a month's worth of cookies for lunches for kt & husband, piano lessons, golf, & a semi remodel of the extra room upstairs - throw in the upstairs bathroom for good measure.

And then I realize I'm sitting here at 3 friggin o'clock in the morning, hurting beyond reason & feeling crushed by the small advances in my health & the reality of the long recovery ahead.

I've been referred to a pain management clinic - appointment mid month in September. GP doctor did a referral for in home care; especially help with setting up medications (getting somewhat confused with the number of medications I'm currently taking - it is down to 12 from 16 when I left the hospital). Mostly the RN would be helping with the pain management until I get into the pain management program.

It once again hit me how very lucky I am to be here talking with you - I forget many times how ill I was & how scared my family was for my life. I kept telling people Mom wasn't letting any more family in heaven right now.

And you all know me, I want it done now. I need to be able to plan a few things & know others.

GP doctor told me once again "you're going to accept help; you're going to chill & let your body heal" You are not going to question pain management orders - you're just going to get on top of the pain so you can function. Okay!

So I've been told. I will listen. I feel so very helpless. I have a lot more functionality than most. I can do this.

Thanks for the ear.

Thanks for listening.
 
K

Kjs

Guest
Of Course you can do this. Dr. is right. let your body heal. I hope the Pain management clinic works for you. I go to a pain management clinic for my headaches. They have several options to help with pain.

In the meantime, relax. Be patient.
 

Wiped Out

Well-Known Member
Staff member
Linda,
I know how frustrating this has to be. I know you want to do it all now. I'm glad you are going to listen-you do need to take the time to heal. I'm glad your mom wasn't letting any more family into heaven right now. Many gentle hugs.
 

Marguerite

Active Member
A good pain specialist is worth his weight in gold. Mind you, I always said TENS would work so much better if the electrodes came in a body suit formation!

With good pain management, comes better management of your daily activity, and much better quality of life. As you recover, you will also need someone to recognise that you are ready to begin stepping down the pain medications, so you're not unnecessarily overloading your system. You may find yourself doing this automatically - great, if it works that way.

With pain under control you will be tempted to overdo things - use this time to develop the necessary fine feel for what your body can do. It IS getting better. You ARE getting stronger. If you gently build your body up you will ensure your progress is more generally upward, instead of up, down, up, down.

Walking is really good to build yourself up gently and to also measure your progress. Pick a distance you can do easily on most days and count how many times you walk it. And when you consistently walk it enough times, then pick a more distant goal. And so on.

My goal is to walk a certain number of houses away from ours. If I get tired, I sit down in the gutter. Or in summer, when swimming - I can't do laps because it's really tricky to do laps at the beach when I can barely do a few metres. So I swim breaststroke and count strokes. When I get tired I stop and rest. When I get a little energy back, I swim a few more. I do find that when I get back to it I've never fully recharged, I can only add a few more to my quota. But even a few is good. Plus I always program in rest breaks into my day. These are an important part of the schedule, as important as the exercise. Never feel guilty about the rest breaks. However, you will get more skilled at using every opportunity more effectively.

You're maybe at the most frustrating stage - life is opening up again, you want to dive in, but you're simply not ready. yet. But you'll get there.

Marg
 
F

flutterbee

Guest
It's incredibly frustrating and disheartening not being able to plan and not knowing from one day to the next how you're going to be feeling.

You can do this, but I understand how helpless it makes you feel.


(((hugs)))
 
Linda,

Your GP doctor is very wise!!! You need to stay on top of the pain. Although I can't even begin to imagine what you are going through, on a much smaller level, I know how horrible it feels to not be in control... My heart goes out to you...

However, this is one time when you just need to try and rest and let others help you. You are a very strong and wise person with a great outlook on life. You will get through this!!!

Thinking of you and sending lots of hugs and a cyber shoulder to lean on...WFEN
 
Top