I truly hope that everything works out. That you get the healing that you need. The care that will change the outcome. I honestly think that your father is absolutely right about the mri and tests.

Hoping you get better real soon.

I guess I am suggesting that you at least SEE a lawyer about this knowing the outcome of ,well,all the cases I know of.

To get a consult doesn't cost anything,doesn't make you a bad person to ask them for advice,doesn't commit you to taking their advice, it just opens doors to possibilities which you don't have open yet.

You might be just fine with how things are progressing, then again... (no I'm not paranoid,, are you?? :p)

I have two more physical therapy appointments next week, I just got back from her. She says it was a smart move on my part to get referred to a specialist. WOW, why can't people just say, "hey go to a specialist"?? Anyway, she is going to do the ultrasound "pain management" next week and thinks we should hold off on any other stuff till I see the Doctor. She did say though that if I felt I could do any of the "easier" exercises, that wouldn't hurt either. She worries about the pain and burning down my thigh more than anything else. I agree, I am worried too! K, till next time.

Physical therapist did some ultra sound and used the TENS unit on me. I am sitting here waiting to see if it helped. Anyone else ever used one of those things? Did it help? Was it easily covered with insurance? Hmmmm...

Yes.

Oh yeah,I have had them on my shoulder,knee,lower arm, with they would have used them on my temples sometimes too:p

Insurance should NOT be a concern for you,this is all comp paying this, if you think otherwise,call the comp people, they will state this also.. once you are under their care,you are strictly under their care,unless you take matters into your own hands and seek a different treatment,all the treatments you get right now HAVE to be covered by comp.(IMHO, that is the way it is here in Illinois, I had to add this disclaimer so someone doesn't reddie me for some silliness or another)

Workers comp, any doctor ordered medical item or treatment will be covered, if not that is where an attorney comes in.

Also depending on where you live, you are either free to go see any doctor you want, or they will provide a list, if you want a second opinion, they have to provide it ( or should) again, if they are afraid to, then the lawyer again.

When I saw the first doctor, I had a second opinion done the next day and we did it with a clinic I would agree with, they had several, I picked the one I wanted.

Daily use of the TENS. It didn't work for me. :(

You have to turn them ON alty:D

LMAO! I know that silly! :p

It was covered at my appointment of course. I was hoping to bring the "portable" size home if it worked good...

The only thing so far that was prescribed, was the massage therapy. At first,Ohhh how I wished it would be covered. But now I feel as if someone wanted to touch my back, I may have to slap em'!
Alty, I think you got to plug it in before you turn it on!

I'm sticking my tongue out at you! ;)

It did soothe some of the pain in between visits, but it wasn't a long term fix for me.

Ice really worked well, but it wasn't fun.

I ice, but I do not like it too much! I think the TENS helped, we will try it again this morning!
I feel like it has been a year, but it has only been 2 months.
I am really ready to get my butt in gear, but my body says... NO!

It will get better Starty. Stick with the therapy, do what the doctor tells you, don't rush things, let your body heal. That's an order young lady. ;)

I hated the ice too. He'd put the ice pack on the bed and ask me to lay down on it. Forcing myself to lay down was really hard knowing that I would be laying on a ice pack for 1/2 hour. Sadly the heating pad didn't work, but it sure felt better. I often fell asleep at physio when I was using the heat. That's when I discovered that I sometimes snore. In fact, my snoring woke me up!

I can never show my face there again. ;)

I have been discharged from physical therapy. Today was my last appointment because of my sporadic changes in my getting better and getting worse. SO, she says she will put the order through to get the TENS unit for my personal use at home. She also said after my appointment with the spine specialist, she may see me more after that, it just depends on what is determined. It sure can be frustrating when you really just want to clean your house and go to work, but if you do, you may not be able to move! I will be patient... I will I will I will! Thanks Alty! XXOO

Got the TENS unit. Not sure it helps much. Got a higher dose for pain pills. Hopefully they will help with getting more sleep. I have a good hour or so, but then I start to feel crappy again!
I went and saw the specialist, he thinks I may have fractured the sacroiliac joint, he got more x-rays, he couldn't see one. I have a bulged disc (L5)... I don't understand it all, but he says he would like to do an injection at the lumbar joint connecting to the sacroiliac. Sound right? I hope so, that means I know a little about what is going on. LOL! I am scared to death of the injection, but he thinks it will lower my pain and if it doesn't he wants to do another at the L5. We did not get any further than that. After that appointment, I went to see my attending physician, he thinks I should keep going to physical therapy. He said I don't need a prescription for me to keep going, even though I know I do. I may just be talking to myself here, but a little "letting out" helps, so just bear with me, please. :) I am starting to wonder if going back to work is going to be something I can stand. As it stands right now, if I went to work, I know I would be leaving early... probably an hour after I get there, if I can last that long. Not going to work is taking a whole other toll of it's own on me and the house, way less money, so we are really tight now. We are able to keep up, but that is it. I want my life back the way it was before! I am bored and frustrated. I want to lift my kids up and wrestle with them like I always did. They come up to hug me, I have to say whoa, slow down, be soft. I am no good at relaxing. I wish there were something I could do to speed up the whole process. Anyway, I liked the specialist, just scared of what they are going to do to me. Thanks guys!

HI Starty!

Wow this brought me back to my injuries.

The boredom,the feeling that I could be more productive,, if just...

The lack of substantial income(as our comp paid 2/3's the wages)For this reason alone I needed to contact the lawyers.Your income shouldn't be in such disarray because you were injured at work.(IMHO)

The tens units seem to help some and do nothing for others, I loved it when they used them on my shoulder...

My brother just got through the disc problems on his back, he did ONLY physical therapy, and pills for the heightened pain.It took a little while, with tension therapy(kind of putting you on a rack and stretching your spine till the disc would re-align naturally)I think he is very happy he didn't get injections.

I've heard too many horror stories about injections to offer any comfort about them, I even rejected certain work on my back because of the fear of lifetime pains(meningitis and they wanted to spinal tap for testing,, huh uh.. :mad:)

The pain pills I was taking(although you know I am a total emotional mess on a normal basis anyway... :D), messed my sleep up a lot, it is a side effect of taking pills, some people just don't sleep well on pain pills.Others can sleep like the dead.

I am one of the first category... are you? Is this what's happening? Or is it the total pain that keeps you from serious sleep?

Hope you are doing well otherwise(like you can be,right? )and VENT AWAY,, what is this place here for anyway?

I find myself taking the pain pills to make me sleepy enough to fall asleep. I can't seem to get tired, but when I take the pain pill, it makes me drowsy to fall asleep. AND it helps with calming down the pain. There has not been one day that has passed that I have been pain free. I can't seem to get comfy. He upped the pain pills to Oxycotton. Just that word scares the crap out of me. But I will try it, he thinks I may be able to sleep better, and longer. I am picking them up today. I also take soma for muscle relaxation, it doesn't affect me unless I take the pain pill with it. I quit drinking wine, for the most part. One day on the weekend I will have a glass or two, if I feel I can make it through with ibuprofen and not a prescription pain pill.
I am scared to death with the injections, I want it fixed, I don't want to cover it up, you know? People around me are saying they have had it done before and it helps. The specialist told me the worries and said nothing through his years has happened yet at the place I am going to. My brother thinks I need to get disc surgery. Everyone else thinks I should stay away from surgery altogether. I am super confused and scared. I may call the specialist and ask him about other options... thank you Ken, as always you are helpful and comforting!

Your very welcome:)

A suggestion, don't let that pain get ahead of you, taking those pills for the pain is what they're for.. I once let it get beyond me in New Orleans and it took like a whole day to get things back to tolerable... and down there I was prescribed a very old medication, Darvon Compound, I haven't seen it since then..

Take your time making the decisions about the treatments, don't let the pain cloud your decision.. making a rash decision just to attempt to 'speed things up'.. you know, caution.

I realize the patience issue,I had very little when I was in pain every day, much less the moodiness I had(you find out who your true friends are when you are crabby for 6 months:( )

Good advice Ken, I think I just worry that I will start liking the pills. So I take them only at night around supper time and on.
As I sit or stand it hurts and so I am always tensing up my muscles to keep my body in a comfy position.
I am thinking hard on how to go about getting some lawyer or someone to advocate for me. I got the wrong TENS unit, it only has four postitioned spots to use, so I think I need the one that I can place right where the pain is. I just made a call to leave a voice mail to get the right one! As of right now, I feel another opinion is probably necessary. So, I will work on that Monday! I am just missing out on doing things and living the way I was used to living. I can take it, I just don't see why I should have to, considering if that stupid sink was set up safely, this would have never happened! I would have never slipped. I would be working, smiling and in good shape!
Thanks again Ken.