First visit to pain clinic today and what an arrogant patranising doctor. He asked me what my diagnosis was and why I was using a walking aid. I asked if if he has read my records at all as it was obvious he hadn't, he then went on to mention I have suffered from anxiety and depression in the past( so he did read some of my records), I answered havnt we all. He then asked me what I wanted must from the pain clinic, isn't that obvious TO GET PAIN RELIEF. He then went on to say that I need to be positive and exercise etc but and I loved the but I may have to admit that nothing can be done for my chronic pain. After all that he then said right we will inject your sacriolatic joints in theatre but it may be 8 weeks. GRRR I even told him I work full time but struggle to which he asked how many hrs and I said 37.5 to which he replied so what do I do with the remainder 140 hrs. I have a home to run and a family to cook and wash for the arrogant so and so. I have severe OA of spine and fibro. I came out livid but had to see nurse for swabs and told her about his attitude she explained she has had to go after patients who have walked out crying due to his attitude and she confided it all depends what mood he is in as sometimes he can be lovely. I just felt he either wanted an argument or wanted me to break down.
Pain clinic: First visit to pain clinic... - Fibromyalgia Acti...
Pain clinic
Update. Had this in preview and forgot to send stupid fibro fog. . Had si injection in theatre yesterday morning and it wasnt as bad as I though just burning stinging pain as needle goes in. Was totally pain free in left hip andback yyesterday but pain is back with a vengeance today. Hoping steroids will kick in 3
/4 days time.
That is so bad! They are meant to be there to help us, the one I went to said I cope to well! It is a matter of having to, like you I work don't mean the pain is not there is big time when ee work we are not resting enough so flares are worse.
Maybe a second person will be more understanding, I have tried to get one not hsd any more appointments as yet, strange.
Take care x
Hi. Had a very similar experience a couple of weeks ago. I was told by the doctor at the Pain Clinic that my pain was Caused by my pain relief medication! and he said that it was imperative that I stop all my pain relief immediately and exercise.
He then produced out of nowhere five pages of yoga moves. I said I was not able to exercise and was told that I'd get used to it.
At the end of the consultation he said I didn't looked too convinced. Unfortunately for me I was unable to speak, not anything polite anyway. My hopeless surgery is now pushing and rushing me to get me off my meds. I seriously wish I'd never gone and am now in more pain than ever if that's possible 
Good morning wall and blue mermaid,you have both had horrible experiences,something which I encountered myself recently with my g.p.I was told that I shouldn't think of myself as ill as Iam so called fit and healthy and do not have weak muscles despite me tellng her that I do.She kept going on about exercise and said it was the depression making me ill.She wasn't really listening to what I was saying and even said that fibro is just what you are told when you have been excluded from all other illnesses.How she can say I was fit and healthy when I can't work and I need two carers to help me is beyond me.There should be a bad g.p and consultant pool where all the ignorant doctors get chucked into.Try not to let that docter get to you and pull you down Hun.Iam still angry myself but I have a plan to complain about her and get a new g.p as soon as I get my blood test results back.Iam hoping that you get some releif real soon Hun,Iam sure that there are good docs out there somewhere xxx
I get the impression they think everyone with fibro has depression and its depression causing pain. I have oa of spine aswell as fibro so he couldnt write me off so easily its do wrong as when I did have depresdion years ago I didnt have fibro do how do they work that out? If everyone is honest including doctors most of us have suffered from depression in some form or other, its life but it certainly should not be used against us.
It's always best if you can to take someone with you to your appointments.....i find if my husband is there they are not quite so quick to have a rude or dismissive attitude
I agree with you Kate on many counts, not least the fact I find I don't necessarily remember everything that has been discussed during a consultation. The fact that so many doctors are so dismissive of fibro annoys me hugely, I would like them to come and live a few days of our lives when we are really suffering and then tell them it's all in their heads and down to depression, actually but by the end of it they would probably be feeling fairly depressed !! quod erat demonstrandum !!
Foggy x
I agree xxxzeb
Wow! I have got to reply to this. I have no idea whether I have fibromyalgia, arthritis, an injury or what it is but I have been in very bad pain for the past twelve years. I have had appauling treatment at pain management to the point that if I had have been feeling "better" or stronger in myself I would have put in a formal complaint. I have had consistently the same or similar symptoms for the past twelve years ; although they vary slightly they are all either in my spine or my neck or down the left hand side of my body. I don't think that I have ever been taken seriously due to also suffering from depression and all I can say is that some people in pain management have weird and warped ideas that we somehow "think" ourselves into this pain. My depression had actually improved somewhat before I got this pain so how come I didn't have it before? I was told that it was my "attitude" that was wrong and that if I "wanted to end up in a wheelchair" then I should carry on the way that I was. The second time I went I took a mental health support worker with me as a "witness"; although she said to them she was a "friend". The doctor said that as a friend I was manipulating her and she was "mollycoddling" me. What a load of rubbish! I am the one who goes to an exercise (yoga or pilates) class every day, the one who takes myself to the swimming pool to do my own hydrotherapy exercises, the one who pays out of my meagre amount of money for phsyiotherapy when I can afford it. Do they really think I would do all this if it was "just in my head". I am probably not allowed to say which hospital but just to say it is in the West Midlands. In contrast to this to be fair I have eventually had two MRI scans (not organised by pain management but by an orthopaedic surgeon) Unfortunately to my horror they did not show much and so I was dismissed shortly afterwards. I have no idea where this ridiculous culture of "blaming patients" has come from. Even the orhopaedic surgeon laughed when I told him I had fallen down a manhole cover and that was what had possibly caused my injuries (long story but it was on the premises of a physiotherapist who was already treating me for back strain). It sure got a lot worse after this fall, I have sciatica and everything else; have never been right since. He found it funny and said "Don't go having any more falls down holes" and also told me to work as if me not working now was due to me being lazy and not due to the real pain that I experience.
Just to make things even more complicated, on another occasion I was told over the phone that I was "too high functioning" for pain management programme (to be honest I'm doing all that they advocate anyway so they were right) ; but how can this concur with the other picture that was painted of me?
Again on one occasion I was told I had trigger points and they would inject, and on another I was told that I didn't (and there was a general implication during the whole of this interview that i was exaggerating things) I am glad having said that that they didn't as I have heard that these "mask" symptoms rather than curing them. I still cannot understand that when for example people can recover from complex car accidents that my body has been unable to cure itself despite everything I am doing to take care of it and try to help it heal. (done all sorts; acupuncture, chiropractor, osteopath; really spent a fortune)
I know the NHS is very hard pressed but the rudeness of some of these consultants is beyond all belief. Just for fairness I will say I do know of someone else that went there and said they got good treatment, but in my case it stank!
I am still left not knowing what is causing my pain but living with it and managing it every single day. Some days I feel scared, terrified even of the future as if i have this pain at my age (55) what will I be like in the future? Other days it is slightly better. I do what I can like I say to "manage" it. Currently I am using exercise (mainly stretching as I cannot do much weight bearing exercise) hydrotherapy (my own brand having learned from a book and based on some of the simpler stuff in aquaaerobics) resting (as I am always exhausted); generally just not doing much sitting; and my concentration is rubbish and there is no real explanation for this as I don't take painkillers, as they have not worked for me. For the bladder problems which I also have they have at least given me the option of botox once a year which is something and I would say to anyone considering it that it has worked for me although there can be complications with some people.
Rant over. It does make me feel better though to see that other people have had these problems with doctors and I'm hoping that my post also may reassure someone that thinks they are going crazy (like i did) or constantly questions themselves; that in my opinion it is THEM and not you!! They may not know what is wrong with you but they should at least give it proper time and treat us with proper respect as they would wish to be treated. Any other comment/views?
gemmalouise
Hi Wall
Sorry you had a bad experience hunny but it happens often in the world of fibro and I agree with many of the others who have replied its totally unfair to be dismissed as being time wasters which is pretty much what they're calling us If only they could come and live a day in our lives as Foggy suggests they may understand and learn a valuable lesson about dignity and self preservation. Both are huge issues to me as a sufferer also the pure lack of independence and the pain the issue, which is at hand let them have a day without pain relief and write a diary so they can refer back to it 
I hope you get a re-referral hunny and get to speak to someone a lot nicer who will not only listen but treat you with respect 
You could report this consultant, if no-one reports these consultants they don't get reprimanded and then they are left in the system to dismiss the next person to go in to see them 
Many warming healing fluffies for you
xxxzebxxx
I had the same problem with my pain relief Dr as well, told me it was all in the mind and gave me a CD to listen to....... half an hour later the physio was telling me I had 17 of the,18 points of fibro!!!!! Refused to go back to the Dr done everything through the physio.
Says it all with all your responses and so unfair. As I stated in my update , I think it was only the fact I have chronic oa in lumber spine that I was offered si injection basically I was offered nothing for fibro. He didn't even have my notes I had to mention my spine. At least this may help anyone preparing for an appointment with pain clinic to everyone else, I feel your pain and frustration which is enough to cause depression. X
OMG I had my first visit to my pain clinic yesterday and I must say I am shocked to hear how you were all treated. I went in feeling helpless, depressed and as if no one was there and I was all alone with my pain. I have been having a flare now for over a week with no medication pain relief no anti depressants so you can imagine how I was feeling. and I came away feeling like a whole weight had been lifted from my shoulders, I had the most wonderful understanding consult. When I bubbled like a child she put her arms out to hug me. I was given the choice of treatments whether to try pregablin together with an antidepressant Or to retry something I have already used, and her phone number to call her if I need to chat. So all in all I just need to make a choice of medicaccation.
It sounds horrendous, try and gather the energy and strength to write a complaint letter to the hospital (I know that can be tough). No one has the right to treat you that way or to speak to you like that.
Back when I was a teenager and pre-fibro diagnosis, a Consultant told me that it wasn't worth spending the money on complicated tests (NHS I should add) and told my mother that it was all in mind. Boy did he pick on the wrong teenager to push around! I wrote a complaint letter to the hospital and after 2 years of letters to and from the hospital I finally got a phone call from someone high up (can't remember how high but it was fairly) saying he had quite a large file on me (I pointed out I had exactly the same thing) and eventually apologised for the way I had been spoken to by that particular doctor.
Whilst all that was going on I asked my GP to refer me to another hospital and after two appointments was diagnosed with fibro and hypermobility. It took a lot of energy and determination to finally get my apology but it was worth it.
*gentle hugs*
Hi I have FMA and hypermobility.
Iv been ill over the weekend and this week I honestly feel I can sleep for a week.
Xx
Iv got an appointment for pain clinic if they talk to me like that il shuv it where the sun doesn't shine xx
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