This past Autumn my Rheumy referred me to a Neurologist for trigger point injections. The Neuro said at the time that the knots in my back had been let go far to long and what I really needed was Botox injections. Needless to say my insurance will not cover these. He also asked me where I hurt the worst. I pointed to the area of my thoracic spine where I have always complained of the most pain,. It is so bad now that when I move other people who are 3 feet or more away can hear the back grinding and cracking all on its own. The Neuro said to me, "Well why haven't they ever done an imaging study on your thoracic spine? It is the only area that has not been imaged? " He also told me that he did not think calling my issue Fibromyalgia was helping me get the care that I needed, but was reluctant to help further when my insurance rejected both of his options for care.

So, after the pain got so bad at the first of this year, and the Rheumy was only prescribing the same drug to which I have already had a reaction 4 OTHER TIMES I went to my PCP for help. She prescribed Mobic, assuring me that even though I cannot take Advil due to an allergic reaction I would be fine on the Mobic. If anyone ever tells you this, they are just flat out wrong. After being migraine free for 8 months I started having them on a weekly basis 2 weeks after starting the Mobic. When I went to get the script filled again and the Pharmacy refused to fill it due to my allergic reaction.

I then had to wait 3 weeks for a doctors appointment before she could write me another script! So I went in yesterday and she told me that many of the doctors I had seen had labled me a "whiner" and that I did not do well on medication so I should just prepare to be in pain the rest of my life and spend my non-work time hanging out with my dogs. This was after her giving me a mini-psych exam to determine the level of stress that I am under.

Ladies and Gents, I totally lost my freakin cool. I said,"How the h_ll am I supposed to walk my dogs when I can barely stand by the end of the day?? My spine hurts in the same spot it has hurt for more than FIVE years. Mr. Neuro, who won't treat me, at least pointed out that none of you have ever even looked at that part of my spine with an imaging study!" PCP Doc starts rummaging through my file, which BTW, is still a paper file at this practice and obviously very incomplete. "We have been very diligent in pursuing many avenues for your diagnosis,"said the doc. To which I replied, "OK, please show me the imaging study of my thoracic spine." After more rummaging she said, "Well there does not appear to be one other than the Xrays taken by the Rheumy in 2011. But Xrays are usually not effective for spines unless one suspects a fracture . . ." To which I responded, "Which is exactly why I stopped seeing that Rheumy, she runs needless tests with little clinical value. So I could have 3 or 4 slipped discs or a cord impingement and it would not show up on the xrays, Meanwhile you have sent me to 7 neurologists, two teaching hospitals and run up thousands in medical bills thinking I have MS or ALS but NOBODY looked at the place where I keep saying it is hurting. Do ya THINK I could possibly get an MRI of just the part that hurts??"

She is supposedly getting the precert taken care of with my insurance, but scheduled no follow up appointment and kept mumbling something about pain management referral. I should think they would run the MRI and then decide where to send me based on results? Hubby is LIVID, as he and I both thought this testing has all been exhausted before then sent me all over looking for every known aliment under the sun. He wants me to start fresh with a new PCP as soon as possible. Thoughts? Suggestions? And yes, I may have been a bit rude, but when she suggested "DOg therapy" like I am some sort of fragile state it really burned my biscuits, especially since the Therapist that I did see found me to be exercising approrpirate coping tools and handling things very well. That report also seems to have been lost in the shuffle . .