I feel like I'm dying. This pain is agony.

[southerngirlwriter]

My back is killing me. Muscle spasms -- the kind that feel like electric shock. This is a torture I can barely endure.

The only reason I'm on the boards right now is that sitting in a chair hurts *slightly* less than lying in bed.

So, I called my doctor. His wife, who runs the office, said that they won't call in what I need (Skelaxin, a basic muscle relaxer) to the pharmacy unless I come see them and let them do X-rays. I said, "(Name), why do you need x-rays?"

"To see what's wrong with your back."

Me: "My mother, father, all four grandparents, and sister have bad backs. I have a bad back. That's what's wrong with my back. It's gone out like this a couple of times a year since I was 12." (Note: She knows this, because I have been treated by her husband since I was 7 years old.)

Her: "Well, we just won't call them in unless we can see you."

Me: "I have no insurance, and no money. Will you let me pay for the x-rays at $5 a month indefinitely?"

Her: "No way. Payment up front."

Me: "Well, I don't have a couple hundreds bucks. I have eight. I have eight dollars."

Her: "We can't help you." *click*

I called the company that makes Skelaxin. They said they have an indigent patients program, and I qualify, income-wise -- I just have to go see my doctor and have him fax them a letter. Um, hello? How does someone with an almost-zero income and no insurance go to the doctor? If they can afford that, they're sort of, um, NOT INDIGENT, by definition.

The job prospects are non-existent. I have sent out at least one resume a day for four months. I've gotten ten interviews. Five of them got the "You're overqualified; you wouldn't be challenged here" routine. The other five were various other stupid reasons.

The only other thing I know to do is go to the emergency room, spend four to eight hours having them run 10-billion unnecessary tests, just to get a prescription for a $30 bottle of Skelaxin. Then, the hospital and their fucking bill collectors will hound me until I die, because I don't have the $2K-3K that would cost.

I want to die. I am in so much pain that I want to literally curl up and die.

If anyone has a suggestion, I'm all ears.

[brainshrub]

1. God I hate the American healthcare system even more than I hate Bush.

What kind of country do we live in where a suffering human being can't get the help she needs. This is a travisty.

[UrbScotty]

10. Well, the healthcare system didn't bomb another country based on a lie.

Nor did it steal an election.

You gotta give it that.

[silverlib]

11. But the biggest backer's of the insurance and healthcare organizations did

n/t

[Padraig18]

2. Go to your local emergency room.

They have to help you---it's the law.

[liberalhistorian]

13. Yes, but like she said,

the hospital and its goddamn bloodsucking, low-life, pond scum, bottom-feeding, inhuman, inhumane, ice-for-blood debt collectrolls will definitely be on her ass hounding her ceaselessly for whatever the costs of that visit were, they will even garnish wages, attach liens, ruin credit, whatever it takes them to squeeze any amount of money out of her. I know from personal experience and from that of others I know.

This is the current state of health care, folks, if it can even be called that. I remember when I had no job, no money, and no insurance, the doctor's office to which I'd gone for the past TEN FUCKING YEARS refused to see me for a throat infection, severe enough to cause bleeding and other problems, until I paid my previous balance and half the current visit's cost upfront. Now that I have insurance, I'm watching others in that office get turned away because they don't have the goddamn cash upfront for the goddamned greedy, mercedes-driving, mansion-living, country-club-membered doctor, some of them families with really sick kids, who are told to go to the emergency room, and then see the first paragraph above as to what will happen next. You just can't fucking win with this goddamn, profit over people, greedy, selfish so-called "health care" system.

My uncle has terminal cancer and my aunt is getting harassed and hounded by those goddamned inhuman collectrolls for the amounts insurance won't pay, which is a helluva lot. She screams at and hangs the phone up on them almost every fucking day.

I have a bad back, myself, so I'm well aware of the kind of pain you're talking about, and I really wish I could help you more, but without x-rays and heavy-duty painkillers, I don't know. Try some of the over-the-counter anti-inflammatories and/or muscle relaxants, put a heating pad or hot water bottle right on your back, take a really hot bath and soak in it, and I'll try to think of other things as well. And switch doctors if you can, if he's treated you since you were a child and this is how he treats you, he can't even help you at all without any goddamn green stuff, that shows just how much he really cares about you or any other patient.

God, I'm so sick of this bullshit "health care" system in this country!

[izzie]

3. With backs no. Go to bed and do not move.

n/t

[seventhson]

4. Go to the doctor and beg

his wife is being an unncessary bitch for hire and HE is your doctor.

GO to his office and be a bad patient until he gives you samples and.or a prescription.

[Nikia]

5. Buy some aleve and take max dose or more

When I was having back problems the doctor perscribed the perscription form of it which was a higher dosage. I forget what the dosage that you need to take is, but at a higher dose than recommended it is a good pain reliever and anti inflammatory. My doctor said the severity of the pain does not necessarily equal the severity of the injury. A minor injury can produce as much pain as your body can physically feel.

[Capn Sunshine]

18. yeah, I was going to recommend Motrin

same reason.

BTW chiropractors can work wonders with that type of problem....

[NoMoreRedInk]

6. Try an online doctor. If you already know what's wrong, and

you know what will cure your ailment, you shouldn't hesitate to do it. I wouldn't suggest this if you didn't know what was wrong with you, but your case doesn't sound like that.

Good luck.

http://www.e-rx.net/pricelist.php?cat=Skelaxin

[Racenut20]

7. Get the medical treatment, then file bankrupsy

[silverlib]

8. Order without a prescription

I wish I had the link handy, but about six months ago we were in the same shape and I ordered my daughter some medication online without a prescription. It was scary, but it worked and the medication was much cheaper than in America or Canada. It actually came from Thailand. It took two weeks. Also, Aleve is the strongest NSAID on the market and might could help tide you over until you can get something else.

It stinks that we, as Americans, can't take care of our own. If I had some Skelaxin, I'd be happy to send you some. My husband has left over Lodine from his back problems. It caused GI upset and he couldn't take it.

[specimenfred1984]

9. Happened to Me in July - Valium & Hydrocodone & XRays!

You need Xrays to make sure it's not a disk problem. The drugs will knock you out for a day or 2, a blessing when in severe pain.

And, back spasms are severe pain, at least a 7 out of 10. Plus, stay hydrated.

Heating pad may help too. Go to a chiropractor when you're not spasming and you've been cleared of any disk problems. The chiropractor will cut a full week off of your recovery time.

[geniph]

12. That really, really sucks

No citizen of a supposedly-civilized nation should suffer in pain because they can't afford common medications. That's just wrong. Bastards.

An emergency room will treat you, but they'll bill you for all eternity. If you can make payments, you can at least get treated without getting your wages garnished. It's about the most expensive route, but you may have no choice, unless you can convince a friend with insurance to let you borrow their card and go to a doctor other than your usual one. (A horrible expedient, but I've known it to work for some people.)

There are a few things you can do that might help some: hot baths, heating pads, especially a massaging heating pad, gentle stretches, a gentle walk if you're able to, over-the-counter naproxen (Aleve) at maximum OTC dose, and the herb Valerian (has some antispasmodic properties). Valerian will make you sleepy, which is good; deep sleep is the only time your body regenerates torn tissues.

You might try going to an emergency room and telling them the Skelaxin company's story, and asking if they'd consider letting you have a prescription with a minimal exam from a PA or CRNP (less expensive than an MD, usually).

What about county public health, or other low-income clinics, in your area?

[grasswire]

14. ibuprofen?

Does that work? I once had a torn rotator cuff and the pain was excruciating. The doc prescribed 800 mg ibuprofen tabs and it worked immediately. So I know you can take OTC ibuprofen in doses that big.

[Blue-Jay]

15. My doc wrote a script for Skelaxin last month

when my neck muscles were spasming. It did absolutely NOTHING for me. If I wouldn't get arrested, I'd send you half a bottle of the crap.

My suggestion: Vicodin and hard liquor, or as I like to call it the Rockstar Cocktail. It was the only way I could sleep at night.

disclaimer: I'm not a doctor, so ignore my advice.

[KC]

16. How

about going to your county hospital? Unless that has changed too, you used to be able to be seen and treated there with no insurance, etc

[liberalhistorian]

17. Again, read my post and others about

how hospitals and their ceaselessly hounding, harassing, bottom-feeding, low-life, pond scum debt collectrolls will still get at her!

[southerngirlwriter]

19. We don't have a county hospital system here.

I called my sister (who is still on my parents' insurance, having not yet turned 25). She agreed to go to the doctor and pretend that HER back hurts, get a prescription for Skelaxin (the whole family has bad backs, this is nothing new), get it filled, and give it to me.

It will cost her the $20 co-pay and $20 for the script. I have agreed to feed her cats when she visits her friends over Christmas in lieu of paying her back the $40, since only God knows when I'll have $40. :-(

However, at least I'll get the medication I need. Luckily, since I only take it when I desperately need it, a 30-day supply usually lasts me about 3 times that long. Maybe by March, I'll have a job and insurance again. (Hey, there's hope, right? I could dumb down my resume and pretend I'm an idiot, since I've been turned down for five jobs for being "so smart and talented that you're really just overqualified".)

For the love of God, though, isn't this ridiculous? This is the richest country on this planet, by a long shot, and this is what you have to go through to get medical treatment to relieve intense suffering.

Disgusting.

[liberalhistorian]

23. What kind of job are you looking for?

What are you qualified for? I do resumes and career portfolios on the side for people, so if you need some free help, I'd be glad to help out!

[ikojo]

27. Across the country hospitals that serve the poor and

uninsured are being closed. There was one in St Louis, called Regional Hospital but it was finally closed around 1998. Supposedly the for profit hospitals (and ALL hospitals are for profit whether they say so or not) are to treat all patients regardless of financial status but for the most part the uninsured are merely bandadged and sent along their way.

There are programs to help people pay their hospital bills. I forget what they are called but it has something to do with whether they received any type of government funding to help build the hospital. I recall talking with this lady who had mouth cancer in the early 90s. She had no insurance and was being treated at one of the local medical schools.

Of course given the dismantling of the "safety net" under Clinton and now under Bush and the pugs the program the woman with mouth cancer used may no longer exist.

[Shakespeare]

20. depending on the drug's schedule, the doc can't prescribe over the phone

I believe that drug is one that can't be prescribed without an office visit--that's not your doctor's fault, unfortunately.

You have my complete sympathy, by the way--I get a major back spasm every few years, and they're debilitating and beyond painful.

I'll give you the same advice my doctor gave me--take ibuprofin every four hours NO MATTER WHAT, even if you feel you're improving. It's an anti-inflammatory, and taking it on a schedule like that will help you heal faster. It always seems to help when I do that.

I really hope you feel better soon--I know what you're going through, and I know how painful it is. :-(

[WWW]

21. Don't get me started on how much health care sucks in this country

All I can tell you is that I care about you and how shitty the health care system is treating you! What can we do right now to help you?, money? phone calls? let us know!!

[southerngirlwriter]

22. Thank you; you're very kind.

I need something to take my mind off the pain. Is Al Franken or some other liberal comedian online anywhere that I can listen for free? That would be lovely.

[silverlib]

24. I second that...

there are some subdued messages here you may want to pm, plus letting everyone know what we can do to help.

[ikojo]

29. southerngirlwriter...go to npr.org and then to

here.... http://www.npr.org/rundowns/rundown.php?prgDate=09-Sep-2003&prgId=5

Al Franken was on Talk of the Nation on September 9.

Democracy Now is always a good listen. Michael Moore did a complete hour in October or November.

Mike Malloy's show is broadcast live on the Internet every night beginning at 9PM eastern time on ieamericaradio.com. Just follow the links.

[WWW]

31. www.dumbvideos.com

That is the best I can do. And just to let you know how pissed I am at health care in this country. My 80-year-old mother, who is living with us, is moaning in her room right now from knee and back pain. She was supposed to go to the doctor today, she went a month ago, where nothing was prescribed for her pain. The doctor said she needed a mammogram. Today she had another doctor's appointment. But we couldn't get her into the car because her back gave out. She called the doctor to cancel the appointment and the receptionist said someone could probably home visit here on Dec. 22. This was after my mother went by ambulance a month and a half ago to the local hospital to get treated and they told her that there was nothing that they could do...she needed to find a local doctor. When she asked if she could take the ambulance back to my house (15 miles away) they said no, she could either call a taxi or walk. Ha, ha, real jokers in the ER. And yes we were able to get her to the local physician a month ago, who gave her a full physical. SO SHOULDN'T HE BE ABLE TO PRESCRIBE SOMETHING OVER THE PHONE FOR HER?
Meanwhile, I am trying to raise two teenagers, run a global home business with my husband and deal with five cats and a deaf, blind elderly black lab. And, oh my god, has anyone seen the hamster lately?

[rasputin1952]

25. Go to local ER!!!!!

Thisa is how this done:

1. They CANNOT turn you away.

2. Every hospital has a Social Worker/healcare advocate. He/she will help you with the paperwork to get it paid by the state or the Feds!

Do this! NO ONE should live in pain.

3. GET RID OF YOUR DOCTOR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

3a: Any MD that would not see you while you were in extreme pain needs to be driven to gates of hell on a gas soaked pole!!!!!

4. After you get rid of this SOB...Tell him why! I worked in a hospital that had 423 MD's affiliated with it 3 of them were really scumbags! Ironically 2 died of Liver cancer (they were young), and one slipped in the parking garage and fell four stories, (he was in the ER, then ICU, but died a painful death after being stuck there for 3 weeks. This is a ll true BTW. Your MD stinks if he'd allow you to suffer like that, and does not deserve your respect or business!

O8)

addendum: GO TO ER!!!!! my thoughts and prayers are with you!

[kanrok]

26. Any pain, numbness or tingling down one leg or the other?

If not, it's probably not a herniated disc, which is good news. Try Ibuprofen. Taking 800 mg. is the same as the prescription dosage. NSAIDS like this are wonderful for pain, but they are not made to be taken for a long time. They can cause liver damage, and stomach ulcers. As for the spasms, once you get better, try daily stretching. Add some stomach excercises and do them religiously and you'll be surprised how your back will respond. Check to see if your hamstrings are tight. That is a pretty good indicator that your low back problems can be alleviated by proper stretching and strengthening of the mid-section.

[onebigbadwulf]

28. Pass a kidney stone?

Your back pain will disappear!

[corarose]

30. GET YOUR BUTT TO THE PUBLIC AID OFFICE

I had to go there and I use to have a home, business and money.

Swallow your pride and go and get a Medicaid card it will pay for you to go to the Doctor and for your medicine.

I am poor right now and after you get that card you will be glad that you went.

Also, you can go to the Hospital because they can't refuse you medical care.

I have had a bad back since I was 18 years old and the longer you let it go the worse it's going to get. Your coxix(?) bone could be broken and you need attention immediately.

I am on disability for RSD you don't want to be like me when you turn 40.

[corarose]

32. You can get pain killers over the INTERNET

I feel so bad for you because I had back surgery and I couldn't walk for two months after I had the surgery.

Back pain is the worse pain that anyone can ever have. You can't cough, sneeze, sit down on the toilet or move and you are in agony.

You can buy pain killers over the INTERNET.

[Interrobang]

33. My suggestions...

If this post is a little incoherent, forgive me. These sorts of stories always wind up with me mouth-breathing and trembling in my extremities due to sheer anger. I'm Canadian, therefore mostly covered. Prescriptions aren't covered under OHIP, but if I were to go to the Emerg and get drugs there, everything would be paid for -- plus, if doctors know you're indigent, they'll bend over backwards to try to help you get the drugs you need for free. (I've gotten more "sample packages" that way...)

Also, I have cerebral palsy with spastic quadriplegia, so I know about muscle spasms. My advice to you is, if you can't get your scrip drugs, try Robaxicet or Robaxisal, which is OTC and contains muscle relaxant and aspirin/acetaminophen, or Alieve, which is again OTC (if I were you, I'd take about double the dose recommended on the bottle, and wouldn't worry about it -- I used to be on 800 mg naproxen sodium, so usually I take 2 or 3 of those 220s at a time). If you were in Canada, I'd say get yourself some Extra-Strength Tylenol w/codeine (OTC).

If none of that is possible, I recommend (in order of greatest efficacy) marijuana, antihistamines or decongestants of the type that make you drowsiest and most relaxed, or alcohol; a hot bath, a heating pad, a cat/dog, comfy pillows, and a good book.

Take care!

[geniph]

35. I don't think the Robax... class of drugs are OTC here

I wish they were, but I know Robaxin, at least, is still a scheduled drug here. There's quite a few drugs that are OTC in Canada that are almost unobtainable here.

[hlthe2b]

40. Robaxin is OTC in Canada... a very good muscle relaxant

But it is prescription only in US (not scheduled).

'Have a friend in Canada that can air ship you some?

While your pain may be way beyond what IS available otc here in the US, be sure to try the aspirin product that contains magnesium sulfate (doan's I think it is). Mag Sulfate is a natural muscle relaxant that has been used in IV drips for women in labor for decades. It DOES help.

[OneBlueSky]

34. as someone who was permanently disabled by a back problem . . .

please find a way to get an MRI done on your back . . . X-rays do not show soft tissue, and you need to see if you have one or more herniated discs that are impinging on nerves . . . if something is compressing nerves, and no corrective action is taken, you could end up in a situation similar to my own, which ain't pretty . . . so go to an ER, find some public assistance, do whatever you have to to get an MRI done and find out what the problem is . . . if there are indeed nerves being compressed, the alternative can be absolutely devastating . . . I speak from experience . . . feel free to message me if you'd like the details . . . good luck . . .

[WWW]

36. Hey, just checking in to see how you are doing today. n/t

[southerngirlwriter]

37. Better, thanks...

My sister went to the doctor and said her back was hurting. Got a script for what I need. Gave it to me. Said the doctor quizzed her because Skelaxin is now considered "potentially abusable."

HUH???? What the hell? I've taken the stuff periodically for back pain for years -- never did a damn thing but make my back quit hurting. Never even OCCURED to me to take it unless I was in dire pain. Certainly never made me high.

Is everything potentially abusable now? I recently bought Wite-Out and got CARDED!!!! YOU HAVE TO SHOW ID TO BUY WITE-OUT NOW!!!!

What the bloody hell is this world coming to, eh?

[WWW]

41. Maybe we should all find out who

Rush Limbaugh goes to see for his medical problems. Funny how Rush never did a rant on how bad the health care system is in this country. Anyway, I really thought about you today and your health issues. I had to get on the phone and yell at my mother's doctor to get some attention today. Her doctor did send someone out, only to later call that she couldn't find us. Come to find out the receptionist gave her the wrong address...
As an aside, my husband severed an artery in his skull a couple of years ago and was bleeding profusely thru the nose. This was three months after our house burned down and we lost all of our possessions and two months after his mother died of ALS. The hospital would not admit him. I started crying and stamping my feet in the ER and still the doctor would not waver. He refused to admit my husband, stating that a nose tampon would stem the bleeding. Well, it didn't and later that week my husband was admitted and had to have surgery. Waiting around the office after the surgery, I happened to pick up my husband's report filed by the doctor. It said, "Wife tends to overreact if things don't go her way." I am paraphrasing, but we had premium health insurance. WTF

[Snow]

38. Try ice -

back in the day when my back used to lock up on me, a good ice massage was one surefire way to get it numbe enough that it would loosen up again....
http://www.spine-health.com/topics/conserv/ice/ice01.html

doesn't bother me anymore as long as I'm regularly weight-lifting.

[sleipnir]

39. Try weed...

Smoke a bowl and I guarantee you'll feel better. But you did say you were broke...humm...sorry, this probably isn't a good suggestion then.