Last night i had to phone NHS 24 as i couldn't cope with the pain much more. I honestly have to ask my other half to do everything for me cos it hurts to move it is that bad.
I went to the out of hours GP and all that happened was: asked me what was wrong, asked me to provide her with a urine sample, then sent me home with pain killers as the urine test was clear. REALLY?
I specifically said pelvic pain that goes down my groin, the tops of my thighs and through to my lower back. She didn't even examine my stomach!!!
I examined it myself and my lower stomach is rock solid, and i am bleeding heavily (like a period coupled with niagra falls), i can barely bend or move without screaming out... Best part is, i phoned NHS24 again today feeling worse than i did last night and the same doctor from last night phoned me and asked why i was phoning again. She then proceeded to tell me she wouldn't be able to do anything unless it was an "acute problem"... Surely what i'm experiencing is an acute problem at the moment, and if she had examined my stomach she might of known how agonising it is. She wants me to try and hold out til my own GP opens on monday (which never has an appoinment open til the following week from the one i'm phoning) so yeah.... in the meantime i've to keep taking painkillers that don't help, not play with my daughter and basically become a hermit because the doctors wont help me!
Anyone have any advice about what to do next?
*hugs to everyone*
xxx
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Omorose
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I'm sorry you're struggling, do you think its bad enough to go to A&E? I remember reading on here before that some women have gone to A&E and have been seen, even then I think it's a case of some stronger painkillers for a bit before being sent home, but that might be enough to help until Monday?
Re your GP, I would phone on Monday and make a big fuss and tell the receptionist what's been going on over the weekend and that you need to see the GP ASAP as an emergency. I've had to do this a couple of times and they have always managed to somehow find me an appointment for that day (after saying they are full) or got my GP to phone me instead.
Go to A and E, and cause a massive fuss. That was the only way I was taken seriously by GPs to be referred to gynae. The actual A and E didn't actually help much in itself, but it moved everything else on after I'd been fobbed off or six months by GP as the A and E doctors wrote to my GP demanding that I have gynae scans. A and E can't turn you away if you say there's a chance you may be pregnant, so try that too if all else fails. I know it's deceitful but we are being let down by the health professionals and so we have to fight fire with fire by being very over the top and demanding help. Good luck!
I have been to a&e several times and they have been brilliant. They give me morphine which gets rid of the pain and then admit me till it settles down again. First time I stayed in hospital for a week while they did loads of scans etc. Now am on treatment for endo and on waiting list for a laparoscopy.
How did you manage to get morphine and to be admited I have gone to A&E and all they say to me is to take pain killers please help I am losing the will to live
I guess it depends on the hospital. I was admitted at the Royal Free in London because I needed oramorph, they wouldn't let me go home. But another time hospital in Kent gave me IV morphine and sent me home 5 mins later!! Everywhere is different. I would go to a&e in complete agony saying that my normal pain medication (tramadol at the time) wasn't working so they'd give me something stronger. Now I'm at home with all the meds - dihydrocodeine and oxycodone (synthetic morphine). I'm still in loads of pain believe it or not!!
Oxynorm is oxycodone - that's what I'm on. I'm told it's stronger than morphine. Get some dihydrocodeine as well. I'm having prostap injections but they aren't doing anything.
oh god, I guess you need IV morphine if all of that doesn't help. You poor thing. I am taking them both together and it helps most of the time. I am sure it's getting worse though. Are you taking the pills constantly? you shouldn't stop / miss a dose because you need to keep the levels up - supposedly to keep on top of the pain. I am looking at the endo diet thing - it's the last thing I want to do on top of everything else but if it's going to help then I have to try. Have just stopped drinking coffee, see what that does.
Only just saw this. The last month for me has been absolute hell. I ended up getting an urgent appointment with my consultant and he did a laparoscopy 2 days later (last week). So relieved. They confirmed endo diagnosis and removed some adhesions. Luckily I think the pain I have now is just from the operation. I'm praying endo pain doesn't come back. Still on lots of painkillers but hoping to cut down from next week. Tummy is a bit tender but I'm sure it'll pass quite soon.
They tell you to stick the pain out because they dont know what it feels like and they know theres not a thing they can do so they feel hopeless and stupid themself because they cant even do there jobs right!.
Go to a&e but me personaly when im in very bad pain i do just try and get get through it i have bad pains,dizzy spells, back ache, side of stomach ache all different kinds of bad acheing pains everyday and to top it of my legs have started acheing to now and i cant walk on it so im hopin around ^_^ i think when you have pain everyday like us girls you start to somewhat learn to deal with the pain because you got no choice but theres always them very hard days.
visit the A&E and tell them exacly how your feeling we shouldn't have to "deal" with pain we are = to everyone else!
I'm sorry you've been in so much pain and hope you are feeling better now.
The problem is....and I don't want to hack anybody off here...but the out of hours doctors are only GPs working out of hours. They're not specialists in anything, and they can only treat the symptoms that are presented to them. I had exactly the same problem as you one weekend, the pain had me climbing up the walls whilst throwing up non stop. We got the out of hours doctor out to the house and he gave me an injection of pethidine and an anti-emetic and just as I was drifting off to sleep, he told me to see my own GP on Monday.
Because my GP knew my history, he got me into hospital on the Monday by which time the pain had abated; I was just severely dehydrated from all the throwing up. I stayed in a couple of days while they got some fluid into me, and then went home. It had just been an endometriosis episode.
"Acute" means Do Something Now Or Somebody Might Die. Unless a cyst has burst and there's a danger of infection, endometriosis is probably not going to kill anybody. As Michelle said, pain is part and parcel of endometriosis; I know it's rubbish and nobody would choose to live like this, but it is what it is. Until there is a cure for this God-awful disease, there is literally nothing anybody can do. Least of all an out of hours GP.
If you're still really suffering, go to A&E. They have access to stronger drugs and the ability to admit you if they think it's necessary. But probably the best thing to do is speak to your own GP about your experience and get them to prescribe you the highest level pain relief they can give you - I have pethidine in my cupboard - so that if it happens again you can deal with it before it gets out of hand.
As I said, I really don't mean to hack you off, although I expect I have. It's just that I've had 20 years of dealing with this, which is a lot of learning through experience. And in my experience, when the mega-pain hits, the best person to look after me is men (and hubby, who has become an endo expert) - if there's no temperature, strong painkillers, hot water bottle, sick bowl and bed until it passes. Which it invariably does.
All of that said though - if you haven't had an endometriosis diagnosis by laparoscopy, get yourself to A&E anyway!
I don't think this reply warrants anyone being hacked off with you Chrissie. What you have said is an honest and practical answer. You are so right, out of hours Dr's are so limited as to what they can do, and they aren't specialists at the end of the day.
Omorose, I am so sorry to hear what an awful weekend you've had, I know how you feel! The pain can be so unbearable at times. Chrissie is right that A&E would have been able to prescribe you something stronger then what the Dr could have given you and this may have been able to help you get an appt sooner with your own Dr. Accute normally means 'A disease with an abrupt onset and, usually, a short course' so probably what you were experiencing at that time was accute. You didn't mention if you've had a diagnosis yet? If you haven't, you really need to be pushing for a Lap so you can get the right treatment for you.
I hope you start to feel better soon, and are able to get answers and the correct course of treatment!
i am sorry to hear you are in so much pain i have been on the floor scrunched over before with blood just flooding out sorry to be so gross lol i have been to out of hours in the past and they were so awful they couldnt even give me painkillers one time i went though they sent me straight round to emergency gynae and they gave me some morphiene which helped a ton but they dont take you seriously and i always feel like they are saying to themselves as if she is in that much pain what a drama queen but i know i am now so they can just go to hell i wish they would get more education about it to be honest because we are in so much pain last time i was really bad i just cleaned it up myself and cryed myself to sleep and kept screaming in pain but i knew they cant do anything for you the only thing they can do is give u strong painkillers and even then you have to wait minimum of 4 hrs to have any so now my hubby is really good he does me a hot water bottle or runs me a hot bath i dose up on the strongest painkillers i can find i prefer talking to people on here than the doctors hope you feel better soon hun big hugs xx
I'm sorry you had a bad time with out of hours GP, but has anyone with endo ever had a decent time with GPs or even gynaes it's rare to see a good caring doc. I found before I was diagnosed because I was in unbearable pain, twice my other half rang 999 but I would rather have a taxi in hindsight because the journey was like being on a bumby bus very uncomfortable and made the pains worse , but get yourself to a&e hopefully they can hav a gynae doc come see you, or ask for a gynae doc because the others don't understand about endo. I actually thought I was going to die the pain was sooo terrible!
Hopefully there will be a decent gynae, who will give you something strong. I've been admitted for pain relief on many ocassions now, and it was only because I was admitted so many times and presented to A&e in my opinion that my condition was taken seriously I had been under gynae for ages! With them doin not much apart from experimenting with different drugs. Now I hav been taken seriously and they prescribe me the strongest drugs and I have supplies at home! (but this took the above dramas to achieve)
Mefanamic acid can be given by gps for pain relief and also reduces the flow of menstrual blood! Maybe you cud ask for some of that. I have been doing my own research before going to see these docs GP consultants health professionals, because I know my body better and I know they do not know that much about endo or my condition. Maybe find out what you want and ask for it!
I hope you get sorted soon, it's no quality of life to be in such pain all the time and not be able to look after your family, I Pray things get easier for you Hun soooon!
Hey luv, agree with everyone, go to A&E!! I had to do this last month, when I went to the out of hours doc they told me they werent allowed to examine me & it had to be my own GP, maybe thats why she didn't...at the hosp they will try everything to get the pain settled, and I found the A&E docs so sympathetic, got admitted for a couple of nights & its sped up my appointment with gynae. I found once they gave me morphine it got it under control, its nearly like u just need that bit of relief to be able to get some sleep and feel so much better in a few days. I hope it eases for you soon xx
Hi. Had you been in Phuket and experienced such pain you could have gone straight to the Bangkok-Phuket hospital where you would have been welcomed at reception. You would have been directed to the appropriate department (GP`s are available in the hospital as well as specialists) and you would have been seen to with no fuss, no fob-off and no appointment. Cean, modern and efficient. Yes you have to pay for it but it is well worth it.
Compare this to what you are receiving on the NHS. Rmember you do actually pay for the NHS as well!
The NHS more and more resembles a fortress with a big moat around it. The moat is there to keep patients out! Fob-off seems to be their first line of defence for anything that isn`t deemed serious enough.
Not at all surprised by your experience with NHS24. From past experience they would be as well replacing the service with an answering machine " Go to the chemist`s when they open and get them to give you something for what you`ve got".
Not surprised you have trouble getting an appointment with your GP either. Perhaps if GP`s were paid on the basis of providing actual patient care rather than being paid on the basis of having patients registered with their practice it would be easier to get an appointment to see one.
The NHS may be ok when you actually get over the moat and into the system but why is the moat there in the first place? You deserve better. We all deserve better.
Get well soon.
if the pain is really bad go a/e i normally have to have iv morphine when at my worst !! x
I'm in tears when I think of my last a and e experience a few wks ago. I'm a student nurse and was on my summer hols when I had problems with pain. I do bank work at a hospital and went back there for the summer cos I moved to the south east to do my training.
Anyway prior to going back home for the summer. I had had missed a few lectures at UNi cos of severe endo pain mainly right sided abdo pain. It was so severe that it rendered me unable to walk without limping. I had another episode In July prior to breaking up for the summer where I passed out before class due to pain and heavy periods. I saw my gp who put me on marvel on as microgynam wasn't working
I did manage to do a few shifts over the summer included nights. I was thinking of my placement and testing myself to see how I would cope.
The latest episode started the night after an 8 hour shift with severe leg cramps and insomnia. Then it progressed into severe abdo pain mainly on the right but travelling round the back and to the left. When my sister phoned on her lunch break the next day she had to get my mother to come back from work. By then I was rolling around on the couch in agony. My poor mother called the ambulance crew out who were brilliant and who managed to get my pain under control with gas and air plus morphine. I was taken in due to pain high bp reaps and tachycardia. A and e were a nightmare. They left me on a trolley and didn't seem think it was a big deal because I had been admitted there last year with the same problem and stayed overnight with no results. I was given some pain relief and they were going to discharge me. I actually limped out myself even though I had passed out again. I couldn't cope and think the morphine etc had affected me. I shouldn't have left like that but they werent going to do anything about it. My sister and I aren't speaking now due to this
Anyway I was taken home by my sister and poor mom stayed with me for over a week. I wasn't much better the next day and a local gp came out who was excellent. She said I should have been kept in hospital to sort this pain out or get it controlled. She said if her painkillers didn't work then back to a and e. they worked but only after a week of rest and tlc
Ironically I saw my consultant a week before who wanted to try the zoladex injection for 3 mths. I am now on this and feel okay but still In fear of the pain returning. I am alone depressed and wonder about doing this nursing. But I love helping others and would make a great nurse.
Yet i am struggling emotionally and otherwise. I am also wondering at times if life is worth this Argo because it is very hard. Anyone else feel like this?
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Urine urgency during sleeping 
Today's Laparoscopy - Utterly pointless, and I'm still in the exact same situation!! And family stress is just making it worse
Help please!! 
Can't walk today - has anyone else experienced this?
