To ask What’s the worst pain you’ve ever been in and how you got through it. (Not childbirth)

[Bamechage]

I’ve turned to drink as the painkillers aren’t working but there must be something else I can do?

1. When I was 20, two impacted wisdom teeth that developed several abscesses at once. My cheeks puffed up like a hamster's and I was feral with the pain. My cunt of a boyfriend at the time said I was making it up for attention, and wouldn't pick up my antibiotics for me because it was "embarrassing" 🙄

1. A few years ago, when I slipped down the stairs and shattered my coccyx - I broke it in three places. Even the A&E staff visibly winced when I was X-rayed.

I still feel sick thinking about it, I was bedbound on my front for 5 months. The pain was off the charts, I was suicidal with it (no joke). It's healed up now, but I still get awful back pain, and I'll never be able to go horse riding again or do anything else that puts too much strain on it.

The pain from an abscess that developed in a laparoscopy port after surgery to remove an ovarian tumour and both my ovaries. They gave me paracetamol and morphine.

For the first few days in hospital the dressing changes when they cleaned it out and packed the wound. I really had to grit my teeth.

They did give me meds 1/2 hour before if I asked. I cannot take nsaids due to kidney function. This seemed to escape the nurses who kept telling me that nsaids and paracetamol were just as effective as morphine.

I really bothered me actually and made me feel like a drug-seeker when it was only for about a week and a half.

Gallbladder. Christ, I'd rather have a baby any day. I managed for a few days on painkillers and a constant hot water bottle, but I remember letting the cat out and sitting on the sofa, and suddenly got a stabbing pain so sharp it made me cry. I've broken or cracked my ribs numerous times and like to think I have a high pain threshold, but that was something else. Went to hospital and was on morphine which barely touched the pain

More recently and stupidly I made my dinner far far too spicy using an additive that can only be bought online. Oddly, it didn't taste that hot going down, but about 15 mins later I was writhing around, sweating profusely, curled up in the bathroom wondering if I would be sick, stomach lining absolutely on fire. Never had anything like it. Even a week later I feel constantly low level nauseous, especially after eating, and I haven't touched spicy food since. It was entirely self induced though so I don't expect, or get, any sympathy from anyone

As for your OP, I try and be a 'ride it out' kind of person, with whatever pain relief is to hand of course, but when you're in the thick of it and the worry that it'll get worse, it definitely isn't easy.

Impacted wisdom teeth.

Severe UTI. I was blue lighted to hospital screaming.

Kidney infection (another time).

Broken wrist.

Back to back childbirth with the midwife saying I wasn't in labour at all was the worst though.

Trigeminal neuralgia, I'll say no more.

Lumbar puncture with no anaesthetic, horrendous

Yep pyelonephritis for me.

And malaria headaches

Gallstones pain, up there with labour.
Neuropathic pain, like being slashed & having electric shocks at the same time.
Dental abcess, the only pain that has made me contemplate suicide.
Fibromyalgia, I wanted to punch the doctor who told me it was all in my head & I should get off my backside & go jogging. I had the last laugh when he had to grovel & apologise when he saw my Xrays & blood results.

I'd try marijuana too

Advanced appendicitis.

Morphine helped plus obviously having it removed.

What's causing your pain OP? Perhaps with a bit more information someone might be able to provide advice for your particular condition.

Horrific dental abscess that ended up infecting half my skull. Took codeine but it didn’t touch it. Went on for a week. In the end I got a needle and pushed it down into my gum as far as it would go. It worked and it drained it (I’ve never seen anything like it) and the relief was unbelievable. Hope you’re ok

Dislocated elbow.
I got high on gas and air while waiting for them to give me midazolam to put it back in.
I was at A&E with my friend’s husband because DH was looking after our baby, poor guy didn’t know what to do with me.

I don't know why I read these threads! I'm really scared of pain and I've never really experienced anything truly excruciating and certainly wouldn't like to! Chronic pain is frightening. PP poster mentioned cannabis, my best friend has hydrocephalus and has nerve damage from surgery and a shunt that overdrains so she gets a lot of agonising headaches. Really high concentrate cannabis oil is the only thing that helps her, although it does make her high as a kite which she doesn't particularly like but anything to stop the pain.

Burst eardrum that’s led to inner outer ear infections. Nothing is touching the pain. Deaf and on third lot of antibiotics. The only relief I have had since Monday is two lots of liquid morphine when I’ve gone to a and e so lying awake crying wondering whether it’s worth going back again to sit in a waiting room for four hours knowing that that might take the edge off. I don’t know what to do. I have 111 calling back back again and I think they will send me back to a and e but I’ve ever wed night and thirsdsy afternoon already

I had a shoulder thing a few years ago. Never really got to the bottom of what it was. It wasn't a frozen shoulder. The pain was nerve related - they think my muscles were contracted to the point that my clavicle was pressing down on my nerves.

It was the most painful thing I have ever had and lasted years. The most severe pain lasted about 3 weeks until my amazing GP put me on amitriptyline. I couldn't walk, move my arms, drive, sleep, anything. It was horrendous.

Other than that, trapping my thumb in a heavy wooden door. Made me actually sick with the pain.

@Bamechage I would go back tbh if you're in that much pain. Even though it took a long time to actually be seen when I had my gallbladder infection, I was triaged quickly and put on pain relief so I wasn't sitting for hours in total agony.

Pulled muscles in ribs resulting in not being able to take more than a half breath

Breaking my back.
I heard, and very much felt the crack.

Blood gasses aren't much fun either.

Cracked wisdom tooth with exposed nerve and abcess. I find dental pain the most unbearable for some reason.

@Guineapigbridge
I've never met anyone else who has had malaria.
I had it in Lombok, Indonesia in 2002, not the most fun.
I ended up in a Catholic hospital with nuns which was surreal, the treatment was great though.

Side effect of chemotherapy, felt like my whole body was being crushed in a vice. Only thing that stopped it was the oncologist deciding that as I was also developing peripheral neuropathy they needed to cut the treatment short. Truly horrendous pain

Psoriatic Arthritis pain, because it’s fucking relentless, even at night.

Morphine didn’t really help, just turned me into an addict and I had to be weaned off it.

So now I rely on Paracetamol. It’s shit.

@Sparklfairy slippery elm can really help heal your stomach lining after it's been damaged, which it sounds like yours might have?
So sorry for your pain, OP.
My worst was lower back pain and sciatica from herniated disc.
What helped was surgery, but of course there was a long wait of several months

Broken pelvis; thank god for morphine.

@Lovinghannah I'd never heard of slippery elm, thanks! I'll grab some from Holland and Barratt this morning!