Pointless going to GP for a referral for back pain?

[ShitStrategy]

I've had sacroiliac pain for donkeys years - I jarred my pelvis in a riding accident in my 20s, nothing serious, but I've had spells of my lower left back being quite painful for a long time (10 years plus). I've never bothered with the GP for non-descript back pain but I've seen osteopaths, chiropractors and physios over the years. It's always identified as sacroiliitis and comes and goes.

Last year the pain flared very very badly, so much so that I struggled with driving and walking for a while, and it was 10 weeks before it started to ease even with active physio sessions.

In the last week the pain has returned, but it feels different - it's not just when the sacroiliac joint is flexed or stretched, but it's burning and throbbing all the time, and yesterday I felt quite nauseated with it. In the night even taking a deep breath made it throb so I was waking every hour. Its been like this for about a week.

DH thinks I should go to GP and ask for a scan - I have insurance so I can go private, but part of me thinks what's the point? Won't they simply see wear and tear on a hypermobile joint and tell me to take paracetamol/ibuprofen? What else is there to do really?

Of course you should go to the GP. They need to investigate and give you a proper diagnosis. With the greatest respect self diagnosis is a risky business.

Oh I totally agree Serin, self-diagnosis is foolhardy when one is not medically trained

I suppose I don't want to waste anyone's time...I know of 2 people with chronic back pain who pushed and pushed for scans, and once they finally got them the first was told rather irritably that they could find nothing wrong with her, and the second was told it was just wear and tear due to age. First person very overweight, second person slim.

Both individuals are somewhat obsessed with their health and I don't want to be one of THOSE patients. I am also overweight, so might get written off until I've shed a stone or three.

At least I wouldn't be using NHS resources though...

I know someone who is having a cortisone injection in her hip joint under GA - does anyone know if they do that for the sacroiliac joint?

It did wonders for my plantar fasciitis (even though it hurt like a bastard).

I'm in my 40s have managed a bulging disc since early 20s possibly caused by sports incident. GP not much good for chronic pain and I dont go for the usual. But a voltatol prescriptions to get inflammation down while I work on stretching and stability I do at times when things are deteriorating. Also physio referral to try to tackle causal issues. Not an immediate solution but as ive got older I've found I need to do different things.
Also sounds like something has changed. I'd go. I dobt know why you are so reticent to use the health service. If theres not much to be done they won't waste time doing it. NHS often won't do scans for back issues anyway as theres no solution bar managing it.

I don't know why you're asking non-medical strangers on the internet whether you can have a steroid injection, instead of naming an appointment with the higly trained expert who can answer all this for you.

Chiropractors and osteopaths are all vastly inferior to seeing a proper orthopaedic consultant. Which a GP can refer you to...

I’ve had Steroid injections in my lower back. For me they worked for a couple of months, but I’m still on painkillers.

Hope you feel better soon.

GP. I had sciatica for years and was always told oh it's piriformis or hip flexors or...
I woke up in pain one day and it felt different.

Physio sent me for MRI and I had spinal surgery a few months later as I developed cauda equina with a badly herniated disc
ANY saddle numbness, incontinence, or difficulty going to the toilet then straight to a&e

I wrote a long post and lost it so sorry this might be shorter.
I had cortisone injection in my sacroiliac 10 weeks ago. It has been the best thing I ever did.
The pain had severely impacted on my everyday life. I couldn’t progress with physio as everything I tried inflamed it. I won’t lie the injection was very painful even with local anaesthetic but I think that it may also have partly been as my muscles etc were so tight and tense.
I’ve had a lot of physical therapy since as there was also a lot of damage to my hamstrings, glutes etc as I had literally seized up. I can now see light at the end of the tunnel, I have much more freedom of movement, dramatically less pain and although I haven’t gone back to sport yet I hope to in a few months time.
I had 9 months or so of physio, anti inflammatories, took time off work to rest but nothing worked. The injection has been the only thing that has worked for me.

I ask to get opinions and maybe others experiences before I go through the motions of booking a GP appointment, that's all - DH is nagging me to go and I keep arguing that's there is little point as the treatment options are limited.

But such injections so seem to be a possibility, so with insurance I'm more likely to be able to get a referral to an expert, a diagnosis and a treatment outcome.

Thanks for all the comments.

Sorry Mais, cross posted...sorry to hear you've had a rough time (sounds the same as mine, everything hurts!), but glad you've had some relief!

Thanks, you've convinced me that it's worth going.

It is definitely worth going! I was really starting to lose hope - but the important change after was going to a physical therapist rather than physio. He has really worked the tightness and damage out of every single part of my legs, no exercises no dry needling (been there done that) just old fashioned hands on manipulation.

Meant to say good luck and let me know how you get on.

In my experience they do nothing ... I've had chronic pain for 30 years after a riding accident and not stopping riding .. I've self funded any treatment , at our local hospital they do self referral for physio so if I were you I would go there if such a thing exists near you .

I felt the same about a pain in my foot. I was "too busy" to go to the doctor and didn't want to waste time etc. It took me a few months before eventually seeing the specialist. Now it's so painful I can't walk on it and I might need surgery. If I'd gone sooner there might have been more they could have done for me. Cautionary tale

I got am MRI through my GP for knee problems and once they agreed it came through it came through v quickly. I was surprised as thought I'd have to wait ages for it.

Any sudden exacerbation of pain like that should be investigated really.

I had back pain for 20+ years. I pushed and pushed for a referral - nothing. "Lose some weight and it'll be fine"

I was in a position to go private... scans and tests later - I have arthritis in my spine and fibromyalgia. I still have the pain but I also now have better coping mechanisms and an actual answer as to why I'm in pain

I would certainly like to know "why", even if it is arthritis or something that can only be managed over time...when the pain is so bad that breathing hurts I sometimes get a bit scared and wonder what's happening in there. But as always, it fades away again after a time.

Just sitting still is throbbing. I can't go until Tuesday but I'll check with my insurers that I'm covered (I'm sure I am). I've self referred for the last two rounds of physio but haven't had a referral to an orthopaedic specialist so far. Well, not for the sacroiliitis anyway (I have for plantar fasciitis).

If you are in the UK just use the NHS. Get a diagnosis then consider your treatment options.