Searching for remedies

DarkSigns

Hello Everyone,

First post, so I’m sorry if I mess up!

I’m searching for possible solutions to a pain problem I have.

I don’t know what could be relevant, so sorry if I procrastinate.

I have a chronic back pain problem that is really getting me down and preventing me from doing anything other than laying down without pain starting to encroach.

Back in Dec 2023, I “tapered” off an SSRI called Mirtazapine. I’d been on a 45mg dose for about 16 years. My GP dropped me from that dose to zero in about six weeks.

I got insomnia immediately. Zero to four hours sleep a night.

Six months in, early June 24, I suffered a bad fall. I was watching TV and it got dark outside, I got up to turn the living room light on and blacked out. I’d been doing this off and on due to lack of sleep, but it had just been as I was seated.

Unfortunately, I collapsed onto the pointy end of a steam iron I’d neglected to put away.

I knocked myself out and when I came to, I was face down in a puddle of blood 🤮

I eventually got myself sorted and over to A&E, aside from a bit of a scar, I had a couple of days off work with a concussion. I was X-Rayed and CT scanned.During this, I had a steadily growing pain in my upper back, it can start nearly anywhere, traps, bottom rib cage, shoulders. Most commonly, it starts at the bottom edge of my shoulder blades. To begin with this started with a tingling sensation too, but now it just seems to start with pain that just grows.

In the last four months or so, I’ve been prescribed 500mg Naproxen 2x a day and Codeine. Recently, I had an MRI and nothing bad was found.

In this time, I’ve also been through just about every insomnia drug out there. In the last two weeks, I’ve had to go back on 15mg dose of the cursed Mirtazapine. It’s helping me sleep at last, but I dislike that I need to go back on a drug I wanted to be rid of.

Anyway, that’s not the point, the point is this pain I can’t be rid of. I’m sick of it, I can’t do anything for long. Sitting at a desk, standing at a desk, walking more than half a K. A big hobby of mine is wildlife photography. I am frustrated that I can’t take my camera out without being doubled up in pain after half an hour.

Please, anyone got any ideas? Please?

Sorry for the long post, thanks for taking the time to read. And double thanks if you post.

😊

SarahT41

I would say a positive is you're on a much lower dose than you were before, and it is helping you sleep. Perhaps if you came off it more gradually with proper supervision from your doctor, it would not cause such bad insomnia.

I would push for some physio, or go privately if it needs to happen to properly assess this new problem. It's good an MRI was clear but thats still not an answer on what's going on. Also in an MRI you're in one position, so it will only capture that one position. As we twist and move things change, so could be a compressed nerve for example only when you're upright, that isn't affected lying down.

In terms of chronic back pain, I use the following home remedies in rotation, none of them are a fix but make things a little more bearable. I would run them past a medical professional for your particular case.

Heat packs/ ice packs - I alternate and have one that I can strap to myself. Also disposable ones that stick to your clothes and stay hot for 12 hours are good.

TENS machine - if its muscular

Acupressure mat (like a bed of nails, but it's a little roll up mat. Intense and I'm sure not for everyone but I find the release from this like nothing else. Not exactly one for on the go)

Sports Massage (obviously do your research and go to someone reputable you trust)

DarkSigns

Thank you very much for the quick response SarahT41.

I'll see if I can get a TENS machine ASAP. I didn't know such a thing existed.
The acupressure mat sounds interesting too. To be honest, I'm up for trying just about anything.

Thanks again,

Patrick