To be annoyed doctors won't prescribe anything for fibromyalgia and arthritic pains?

[KingKhazi]

I have fibromyalgia and "mild" arthritis in both hips. I'm 36. I recently went to the doctors for some sort of painkillers as OTC stuff isn't helping any more.
I was told they won't prescribe anything stronger for my arthritis as its only going to get worse and they don't think I need anything stronger yet.
Also won't for fibro as its not real pain. It's my nerve endings being hyperactive. I do understand fibro and know its my brain telling me its painful when it isn't.

I was prescribed yoga and meditation . Yes I'm sure they would help but not when I'm in so much pain I'm crawling up the stairs and struggling to drive. It's my hips more than the fibro that I want pain relief for.

Interestingly , if a dog gets osteoarthritis they get pain relief and it means they're more mobile.

I understand, my GP first of all refused to see me when I tried to see about my hip pain, or rather the receptionist refused to let me see anyone. Then I did an econsult and she refused to prescribe anything or so an X-ray until I’d done physio for 12 weeks. The physio didn’t know what the problem was when I saw him, and he gave me exercises which although I did do them, hurt like crazy and made it worse. Finally I saw the GP, she organised X-rays at last and it was severe, bone on bone arthritis- but she was still awkward about prescribing. I can’t take NSAIDs and the pain I was in was absolutely indescribable. Eventually I saw a different GP who said of course I needed painkillers as I couldn’t live a life of pain and that it was important to keep mobile while waiting for the hip replacements that I needed so he prescribed tramadol to begin with but then eventually it got so bad he put me onto morphine and codeine. I’ve had both replaced now and I’m back off all medication so not everyone ends up addicted if it’s used properly - I know it’s a concern for them but it shouldn’t stop them prescribing when people really need it. I hope you get sorted out with something.

As soon as I was diagnosed, my consultant prescribed Gabapentin & dihydracodeine for the pain, Mirtazapine to help me with my depression & sleep & something for my restless legs. That was 19 years ago & I've been on them ever since. He trusts me as he knows I only take what I need to.

Is the answer to just hand out painkillers endlessly for pain?

I have Fibromyalgia, ME/CFS & osteoarthritis, mine was diagnosed by a rheumatologist. I first started after a traumatic birth with ds.

Fucking hell!

All those people who don’t understand why so many GPS are leaving the profession and you can’t get an appointment - now do you get it?? Would you want to deal with shit like this all day, every day??

Without the Gabapentin & dihydracodeine, I don't know how I would manage, my pain is 5/10 most days with painkillers, sometimes something as stupid as someone brushing past me will cause me to want to scream with pain. Even my skin hurts, my scalp feels like my hair is in the tightest ponytail you can manage, my restless legs cause me to twitch & kick in my sleep, I know when it is starting because I get a horrible feeling starting at the back of my neck which goes down one side of my body, then I can't keep my leg still. Without painkillers, I would be bedbound.

‘Addiction’ is not the only long term effect of strong analgesia. The impact on renal and hepatic function and the carcinogenic links are all well documented.

Ask for a referral to your local hospitals pain management team. They prescribed me gabapentin , tramadol and oramorph ( only taking the latter for severe breakthrough pain ) it has helped me tremendously. I too have fibro and arthritis from years of caring for my daughter . I generally use the oramorph when the carers don't turn up and I still have to get her showered and dressed ( she's 20 ) and it's literally
Saved me . Good luck op .

I was prescribed painkillers, when I wasn’t asking for them, and was seeking more practical assistance with helping myself such as Occupational Therapy and Physiotherapy.

I very quickly realised that if I stayed on the painkillers I’d become a depressed, inactive, sedated slug with nothing in my life. A part of me believes that sometimes these sedative prescriptions are given to women in the belief that women’s pain is all in the mind.
10 years later, with daily yoga practice (can be 10 minutes on a very tired day), I can still run and walk. Most people with my kind of MS aren’t able to walk unaided after 10 years. I’ve achieved this mostly independently of medical help (until I eventually found an OT who believed someone as fit as me had real symptoms!)

Although the pain has a physical cause, your mental approach can make a world of difference to managing it and taking control of your life. I mean this with sympathy for where you’re at, because I’ve been there. I think your GP is doing right by you in encouraging self management before prescribing painkillers.

I mean, would you refuse a suicidal person anti-depressants? How about statins for high blood pressure? Insulin for a diabetic?

@LaLoba I have to agree. I just have moderate pain due to osteoarthritis, keeps me awake a couple of nights a month and is a niggle someday, nothing like the pain some people on here have described. I haven't yet found a painkiller to actually reach that deep down toothache pain. But a 3 mile walk either distracts or eases. I stand a lot at work and do stretches when I have time which eases off the ache.
While it works I'll take that over drugs that don't.

It’s not comparable. The perception of pain is multi factoral. Just as high blood pressure, diabetes and depression can be addressed with non pharmacological measures such as diet, exercise etc. None of these conditions are solely treated with medication.

That's crap OP

I was diagnosed with arthritis at 26 and have used pain killers and anti-inflammatories ever since.

I also get occasional steroid injections.

Agree with getting a rhumatology referral.

Not solely no, but it’s an important part of managing the conditions and maintaining quality of life. It’s the same for many many people who live with chronic pain- yoga may well help in the long run, but if you can’t move because of the agony you are in you need something to bridge the gap.

I actually think it’s quite a gendered thing- I’ve never known a man with a broken leg or a bad back refused medication for the pain… women are far more likely to have fibromyalgia and there is still a strong ‘it’s all in your head/everyone gets aches and pains/it’s just your hormones’ narrative.

We have a NHS health and well being coach locally who helps patients with chronic pain through lifestyle, exercise and dietary change. A Gp can make a referral. Also there is the exercise referral scheme for one to one sessions with a personal trainer for chronic pain. Social prescribers also helpful.

waiting lists for these sorts of interventions are likely to be much shorter than waiting for rheumatologist appointments.

opiod based analgesia such as codeine is not the best option for fibromyalgia for reasons highlighted by many posters. A low dose amitriptyline or duloxetine would be better.

I have fibro/JHS/arthritis/chronic migraine etc etc and am under pain clinic.

I was on high strength opiods for years but then went on a pain management program which explained how long term use of painkillers for chronic pain can actually 'create' pain and thta you need to retrain your nervous system to reduce it's reactivity. We started with v v gentle exercises daily aInd worked up.

I was able to come off all my meds and really did feel better (did it v gradually) - I ended up taking codeine again for something else and I'm right back to square one again so am starting to reduce off it again - but have noticed I was moving a lot less too. I think the more you move the more your brain learns it's not to be faired and the less pain you have.

Thr Curable app is based on the same techniques and worth a go of the free trial.

A dog can’t talk to a physio and understand the adjustments he needs to make to manage sources of pain such as compensation and favouring the damaged joint, or comprehend the need to do daily physio exercises to strengthen the supporting muscles. Really not comparable.