AIBU? Have totally lost faith in my GP

[MissKittyBeaudelais]

Bad back 18 months. Had two lots of physio and given exercises. Had scan. No abnormality seen. Have severe neck problems but MRI showed cervical spine degeneration.

My symptoms are worsening. I can be walking around and then suddenly, there’s what I can only describe as excruciating pinch pain in my back at L4/5 and S1. And then...I cannot move. I have to shuffle and kind of drag my left leg in a pin-step motion. I can’t carry on like this. Today, I was in the hall with the cooker alarm going off and the dog going mad barking at it (And me) and there’s me...standing as still as I can, afraid to move. Eventually I shuffled in.

What on earth can I do? I’ve been back to my GP who has said that whilst she’s not suggesting I’m imagining the pain, it could be that I’m over sensitive to pain stimuli that I’ve “learned” over the years. But it feels mechanical. It feels like my nerve is being squashed and ground into my vertebrae.

Would a chiropractor or osteopath help?

Does my GP think I’m just a hypochondriac? AIBU to think that she’s just stopped listening to me and thinks I’m a crackpot?

Surprised by anti-chiropractic sentiment.

I’m wary of practitioners where the ‘diagnoses’ are always the same. ALL babies that see them for screaming/unsettled behaviour/whatever all have ‘alignment’ issues from the birth.

@ChazsBrilliantAttitude...yes, hypermobile. Always have been. I feel the pain the massive twinge which stops me in my tracks and I have to move very gingerly, is right IN my lumbar spine. Whether it’s coming from somewhere else, I’ve no idea and it seems, no way of finding out.

Thanks @Straycatblue. I don’t do Facebook but will have a look at some support groups.

I had similar and in the end I paid for a mri at spire and finally got steroids then rhizolysis a year later. Gps are crap.

I think you need a second opinion. In my case hypermobile pelvic joints cause me problems.

Back conditions are not fixed, I can go months without a problem then twist awkwardly and be in trouble. If your disc is bulging it might have started to press on something differently.

Partner is a physio, she looked over this post and said disc degeneration is a normal part of ageing and is found on most MRI scans of people with no pain, so that’s probably a red herring. The bladder issues are concerning and need to be looked at as may be cauda equina. However, it sounds like your GP is following the correct channels and you do have mechanical back pain and possibly fibromyalgia. Avoid chiropractors, it’s pseudoscience and will not cure your pain, just provide temporary relief.

I loathe most GPs and the medical profession. If you are a woman, you don’t matter and are “hysterical” or “over anxious”. It pisses me off.

I don’t mind chiropractors but prefer osteopaths. I would try one and ask for exercises/stretches to prevent it coming back.

I gave up with the GP in October when she claimed I had knocked my back when I had no reason for why I could barely move.

My friend put me in touch with a great osteopath who has worked wonders and found the problem and is rectifying it for me. Am now on a maintenance programme which I'm happy to do and she helps loads.

@Groovee... what has been the financial outlay, if you don’t mind my asking?

I'm paying £60 for an hour. She comes to the house too. First 3 appointments were weekly then fortnightly and now roughly 4/5 weeks.

My friend told me it was far too expensive until we worked out she pays £40 for 30 minutes and has to travel.

@Groovee ... thanks. Quite expensive then.