Prescription Pain Killer Rant: Just had major abdominal surgery...

[Crunchy Frog]

123. My own fairly recent brush with current pain management "standards"

Small potatoes compared with what you and so many others are dealing with, but a big wake up call for me.

This happened last year, late on a Saturday night. I developed an agonizing pain in my abdomen, that had me moaning, crying and yelling, it was so bad. Turned out to be a kidney stone, though I didn't know it at the time.

In those days I was still under the misapprehension that you're supposed to go to the ER when you develop sudden, severe abdominal pain.

Long story short, I lay in the ER cubicle for 3 hours screaming in pain, and receiving no medical attention or pain relief. Just members of the staff popping in every so often to tell me to STFU, and one nice man who popped in to tell me that they were no longer responding to my call bell.

I got no attention until I finally managed to drag my mom in to advocate for me.

I didn't get my two 5mg hydrocodones until after the stone had shifted, and the immediate pain largely resolved.

The stone took 8 weeks to finally pass. The "doctor" at the ER prescribed high dose ibuprofen, and assured me that it would handle any further pain that I might have. The only thing it did was give me an alarming episode of GI bleeding.

I finally managed to extract a small pain med script from my regular doctor, but not before she threw a temper tantrum and accused me of being a drug seeker.

Ever since that incident, I've become very interested in, and horrified by the things that are happening in this country with regard to pain management.

I'm absolutely terrified by the prospect of needing surgery, or getting seriously injured in this current climate.

Meanwhile, I've gone "off grid" to make arrangements to manage my own acute pain should it become necessary.

I apologize for the novel, and feel terrible for all the people on here who are suffering more pain than I can even imagine. I wish plenty of karma to those who callously and insensitively force so many others to suffer.

I once again hope that you heal rapidly, and that the surgery resolves your pain issues.