I'm sure y'all know that my wrist is seriously messed up. I got a cortisone shot a week before Christmas and it worked (mostly - much less pain, less swelling) for about a week. Then the pain started coming back. By 2 to 2-1/2 weeks, the pain and full swelling was back full force. I am already on Celebrex, which is a Non-Steroidal Anti-Inflammatory (NSAID), and while it does help (proven when I ran out accidentally) it doesn't take the pain or swelling away. I'm at the point again now that when I take Advil (Tylenol and Aleve don't do anything for me), it really only works for about 15-30 minutes, and then I just have to wait until it's been 4 hours so I can take the next dose, while still staying under the recommended daily dose of 6 caplets per day.
I'm seeing my orthopedic surgeon on Friday, and honestly, I really hope she says that we'll go ahead with the ulnar osteotomy (ulnar shortening - taking 2-5 mm of bone out of my ulna to alleviate the pressure and impaction on the cartilage and ligaments).
You know it's bad when surgery sounds GOOD!
But until then, and/or until we get a definitive diagnosis and/or second opinion and/or the surgery scheduled, I really have to find a way to deal with this pain and still go on with life. I still have to work, which involves a lot of typing. And I still have to just go on doing the stuff I need to do - like driving, eating, doing kitty chores (scooping, feeding, fresh water), etc. I can't keep popping Advil like they're candy - I hate doing it now, and I worry about what it could be doing to my stomach. I know there are others out there with much worse pain than what I have, and it's difficult to quantify pain in any case - but let me put it this way: I went to the Avalanche vs Islanders game tonight with GREAT seats (14 rows from the ice!), a very competitive and great game, and since I couldn't take any more Advil until the start of the 2nd Period, and it didn't kick in until the intermission, I really didn't even enjoy myself until the 3rd Period and Overtime (when we won!). But that really made me realize that I need to find other ways to cope.
Does anyone have any tips on pain management with mind over matter or meditation? Anyone with chronic pain have any tips to help me deal with this? My doctors are very hesitant to prescribe anything more powerful than Celebrex (read: narcotics), and I don't blame them. So I'm pretty well stuck with the drugs I have.
I'm seeing my orthopedic surgeon on Friday, and honestly, I really hope she says that we'll go ahead with the ulnar osteotomy (ulnar shortening - taking 2-5 mm of bone out of my ulna to alleviate the pressure and impaction on the cartilage and ligaments).
Does anyone have any tips on pain management with mind over matter or meditation? Anyone with chronic pain have any tips to help me deal with this? My doctors are very hesitant to prescribe anything more powerful than Celebrex (read: narcotics), and I don't blame them. So I'm pretty well stuck with the drugs I have.