I pushed through the pain for several years by chowing down on ibuprofen. By the time I "retired" at 58 to be my mom's caretaker, I was on the road to kidney impairment. Now I have to add a nephrologist to my list of specialists. The moral of this story is, "Be careful in using any NSAID medication. There are consequences."

Yes, you feel like a cartoon character that has had your belly button undone and your air is all gone out!! But for some damn reason your the one everyone leans on so you try to keep going but you finally shatter like a cheap wine glass and say “enough”!! There is a point at which you have to say that’s it!! So if you have to go on a disability like i did then. For me there is no going back; severe vertigo, severe migraines, the disc S1-L5 is buldging into the S1 root nerve to the legs and the padding around the spinal column. So when people tell me it is in my head I get upset. Don’t let them tell you that either!!

@A MyChronicPainTeam Member
Don't be too hard on yourself. I would say that most of us on this site just do what we can when it comes to housework. I do some when if I can and my house isn't half as clean as I'd like it but pushing too hard causes pain levels to spike.
As for being lonely, is there a group you could join, maybe people who get together for coffee once a week. It could be worth looking into what's available in your area...through a church or your local YMCA. Hugs!

Mentioned Users

A MyChron...

My techniques have had a positive impact on my daily life. Thanks to the Persistent Pain Clinic at the Nambour Hospital Sunshine Coast Queensland Australia and to my love of listening to Sunshine FM community radio 104.9 playing the music l like and some of the witty comments on the radio.
Also, I read a lot too, mostly fiction.
The Psychology dept lady at the Persistent Pain Clinic sorted me out about my sleep patterns which are better by not going to bed too early, and I stay upnow until I start yawning, rather than going to bed because my back was sore.

Thank you for answering. I didn't know about this site until about a year ago. I had no idea so many had some of the same problems. Doctors here are afraid to get real patients addicted. What they don't know is that it just helps me cope and I have never abused medicine.