Frustrated & Worn Out
Tue, September 25, 2018 6:09 AM
I was diagnosed with UC when I was 13 and have been living with all that comes with the disease for 20 years now. I have been through a lot over the years and most recently had j-pouch surgery to help improve my quality of life (I was very sick for years and not responding to meds anymore). For the most part I have been doing really well these last few years with my j-pouch but a couple of months ago I experienced a new kind of severe abdominal pain and tonight I experienced the same pain but even more intense. I had to take a trip in an ambulance for the first time tonight because the pain was so bad I could barely move and couldn’t make it to the car or sit in a car (or the waiting room) for who knows how long. The ER ran all their tests and said all my results came back normal and there is nothing wrong. I don’t understand how being in unbearable pain for over 3 hours doesn’t constitute something being wrong. The pain has subsided and I have my theories as to what caused it and why it has gotten better but it seems that this doctor (and many others) think that if the cause of the pain doesn’t show up on the test they’ve run it doesn’t exist and there is absolutely nothing wrong with the person. Now I have to follow up with my gastroenterologist who will probably take a day or two to get back to me and will probably say I should come in and have more tests done at his next available appointment in 3 months from now. I understand that there is only so much a doctor can do. I understand that doctors are afraid of contributing to the pain medication addictions that a lot of people are dealing with. I don’t understand how doctors have become so afraid of prescribing pain medication that they have gone to the extreme opposite end of the spectrum and started completely ignoring pain and acting like it doesn’t exist and has no significance or relevance or need to be acknowledged if it isn’t being caused by something that shows up on their test results. They have become so afraid of pain medications that they don’t even acknowledge that pain is a problem. When someone is crying out in pain for over 3 hours the pain should be acknowledged and at the very least that person should be shown some level of sympathy. More needs to be done to help people with chronic pain and people who are experiencing severe pain that a doctor can't explain. I can’t understand how doctors feel it is okay to ignore extreme pain. It is so infuriating! So now I’m home, feeling okay at the moment and hoping to God that the pain doesn’t return because if it does there is absolutely nothing I can do about it. When living with a chronic illness some days are harder than others. This has been a really hard day. I try to stay positive but at times like this I have to say I am just really sick of it all.
Joined Apr 7, 2021
Alrightalright