SURE, YOUR SPINAL NERVE PAIN CAN AND DOES SHIFT AROUND A BIT, SO WHY DO PAIN PROVIDERS DISBELIEVE YOU?

One would think that those health care professionals whose task it is to diagnose and mitigate pain conditions, to order tests and scans would include a list of physicians, physician's assistants specializing in pain management, and the interventional physician who performed the hoped-for pain-relieving epidural injections of various types, and the top dog: the pain surgeon. To me it seems common sense to be aware that subtle movements in a patient's vertebral discs, thus causing vertebrae to move forward and backward. Where would this movement occur? The neck, primarily, as it is a complex plexus of rotation, circular twisting, looking up and down, and the discs in play would be expected to interact with cervical nerves that would lead to PAIN.

The low back rotates and moves front and back and interplays with discs and nerves. So, physicians, I urge you to give time to your pain patient in the exam room. It is most likely that he has jumped through several insurance hoops only to see you--the specialist. Assume he tells the truth. Assume he is NOT a person faking a serious pain condition to obtain pain meds that he will sell on the street. 

Make a plan to ameliorate the pain of the patient. Also, since financial assistance may be available for the patient, fill out his insurance/disability form he requests of you.  

I CANNOT TAKE IT ANY MORE!

 When does it hit me the most? What time of the day? The early afternoon hours, 1-2 p.m., the hours when I have been behaving with my medicine, usually reading in the recliner chair. I'm on schedule but I've been switching ice packs around on my neck and mostly right lumbar back. They stop diverting my attention from the pain and I pull out the TENS unit electrodes. I stick 2 pads on 3 different areas where this grating, gnawing, often sharp ice-pick pain and get as much mileage from them as I can. 

Don't ask me anything during these hours; I am curt, angry, and at times teary because it won't stop. 

MY NERVE PAIN TODAY...IT IS DRIVING ME CRAZY

 Throughout the day and night, I rotate the various treatment modalities that I have available to me in a thankless search for diminishment of pain. Pain is evil and insidious. It prevails. I postpone the medicine in the morning as long as I can. That is actually an error of judgement because it is best to stay ahead of pain. Catching up and needing 2 pills to dull pain is not ideal but the doctor and government pharmacy policies make it such that I must count hours and tablets and make the supply last 24 hours. I get no  slack from pharmacy at VA.

Even though the doctor may transmit an order to fill and ship to me a few days ahead of time, the pharmacy Nazis will not respect and fill the doctor's order. As a pharmacist, does that rub me raw? Oh, yes.

Pinched nerves...so darn common in the back and neck...can we just try to take the pressure off the squished nerve in hope of relief?

Ice packs, TENS unit sticky patches to up to 3 areas at a time for me, 1/2 a tablet, lumbar hard supports, cervical soft or hard supports to push my fat head up to try to relieve pressure on my cervical discs and nerves, another tablet, then lie down on the Tweeter device for 10 minutes for pressure relief.

Then, repeat the whole  circuit. I call it my day in retirement....

Enough.

THE TOOLS WE USE TO ENDURE NERVE PAIN: TENS UNITS

             While we wait patiently over long months for scans and surgeries, I use the TENS units that the VA issues to us if the doctor orders it. 

After years of using the VA-issued TENS units, I can honestly say that TENS therapy is garbage. At best I get my mind taken off the pain temporarily, replaced by the shocky feeling at the sites of the stick-on pads.

The pads burn and irritate the skin...it itches like the scabies. One then needs to ask for a medium to high potency steroid cream from the doctor to rub into the spots to heal the skin and eliminate the itch.

November 12, 2025

I do not have this blog listed as 'findable' in a Google search, but this post got 92 views, compared to zero to 3 for my typical post. So, I need to update my opinion on TENS units.

I do use my TENS unit 4 sticky electrode pads every day. So, they are doing something positive for me.

DISTRACTION from the nerve pain is the best thing that they do!

In my average day, pills, ice pads, soft braces, hard braces, and putting devices on & removing them, I switch what goes on top of what; I replace the ice packs with fresh ones every hour or two; and I eventually arrive at my box of TENS unit supplies from the VA. 

The power output is minimal. I recharge batteries every night. The adhesive pads do not last many uses. The pads slip from their positions and the wire-pin-connections always become separated. I am not allotted enough pads so I use half-assed, not-very-sticky pads daily. 

BUT, when the brand new pads get stuck on my lumbar spots, and batteries are fresh, and the electrical wires from the device controller to the pad-pin connection is intact, the stinging mild shock of the pads does help me to distract my brain a little for an hour or so. This update is intended to tell patients to 'give them a try.'