Dear Sunflower, I am really glad you started this thread. After reading all the answers you recieved, I felt I needed to share my story with the dear people here because it just might help someone else. I sent you a PM about your post as it upset me so to see you say you are an addict.
I am a nurse also. In 76 I had my 1st Laminectomy for 2 herniated disks, In 80 I had my 2nd. Both times I was off all meds after surgery & went bk to nursing. In 83 I got hurt again & after a couple of yrs of conservative treatment had an Ant/Post Fusion with Harrington Rods. I was in a body cast for 3 mts. I was no better after the surgery. I had terrible pain. This went on for many yrs & in that time I had 4 more bk surgeries & none of them helped the pain. I had many epidurals & was on every pain reliever & any other type of drug you can think of. In 92 I finally found my present dr & he put me on MS Contin. It did not take the nerve pain I had from Adhesive Arachnoiditis away but it made it bearable. In 1999 I started walking pitched forward. I went from dr to dr & none of them gave me the correct diagnosis, I finally read a paper from Elizabeth Minney & found out I had Fixed Saggital Imbalance or Flat Back. The reasons no dr would tell me is it was caused by the Harrington Rods. I belong to a Support Group online for people with this & I found the names of drs that are specalists in operating on people with this condition. I went to 5 of these drs before choosing one to do my surgery. I flew to AZ & to Missouri to see drs & also saw 3 in NY City before having Dr Boachie do my revision in 2005. Before surgery I had been bent literally in half, could not walk without the aide of a rolling walker & was headed for a wheelchair. Now I can walk & by the grace of God am leading a relatively normal life. I still need to take pain meds for the Adhesive Arach & OsteoArthritis etc but I now take a quarter of what I needed before. I do not consider myself an addict though I know my body is physically dependent on it. You know I have been dealing with pain since I was in my 20's & how I have been treated by the medical profession in the 70's & early 80's would make anyone crazy. I was not believed, called an addict by nurses etc etc. Thank God over the last 15-20 yrs there is a realization that severe chronic pain must be treated.
Love,
Diane