Status Update June 27, 2014

Well...the shots didn't work, again. At least this time I wasn't in agonizing pain on one side of my body (which my pain specialist couldn't explain) afterwards, just a little bit of pain at the injection sites and my regular rib pain. I think I'm done trying shots now.

Last week I went to fill my prescription for Cymbalta but was denied. This had happened a couple weeks ago when I first tried to fill it because my insurance wouldn't cover the full dosage my pain specialist prescribed. The pharmacy gave me half the dosage for the time being to take at full dosage, and told me to tell my doctor to call the insurance to get approval on the full dose, which I did when I got the shots. She told me she sorted it out then, but apparently she didn't. Anyway, I couldn't fill my prescription, and I'd run out of Cymbalta, so I had to go from taking 120mg/day - a high dose - to none (you're supposed to taper down the dosage as you stop taking it). My doctor was going to give me some samples while I waited to get approval for the full dosage, but I got a call from my insurance on Friday that her request for the full dosage was denied. This happens to me a lot because since there's no known treatment for costochondritis, it's never on the insurance company's list of approved conditions.

I had my follow up with my pain specialist on Saturday, and told her about the shots not working and the insurance denying her request. I also told her that I want to stop taking Cymbalta. I've been taking it for over a month and it's done nothing for my pain and has just made me extremely nauseous and tired all the time. It's also expensive. So she said alright, and suggested trying Lyrica next, a medication for fibromyalgia.

I'm not going to try Lyrica yet though, and told her I want to take a break from trying anything new for awhile, at least for the summer. I've had this condition for over a year now, and have tried dozens of different types of treatments, and nothing has worked at all. Most of the more invasive/physical treatments have just increased my pain, and the medicines don't work and give me miserable side effects. The only med that has ever had any effect in minimizing my pain is Tylenol with codeine, and that put me in the emergency room a few weeks ago.

So I'm going to spend the summer not trying anything new. I'm going to get back into the routine that taking Cymbalta wacked me out of, of doing postural restoration physical therapy exercises and going on walks every day. I'll still be taking Tylenol with codeine, and will hopefully figure out a replacement for that somewhere down the line, just not right now. I've been off Cymbalta for a week now and already feel a lot better, nausea and energy-wise. I might try to see a new physical therapist but right now I'm so sick of going to appointments that I'm not in any rush.

Shots!

Today's theme song:

I'm getting shots of steroids at noon today in my spine in the places where there was facet arthrosis. I'll go under anesthesia for it.  If they work, I'll start feeling it in a few days once the steroids kick in. Based on previous shots, I expect to be in a lot of pain starting from about an hour after getting the shots until I wake up tomorrow morning. Luckily, I only got through 3 episodes of Orange is the New Black yesterday so I'm not sad about having to lay on the couch all day :)

I'll post again after my next follow up with my pain specialist, which will probably be in a week or two. Thanks to Alice for being my chaperone/caretaker today.