Will my legs get better?

[Jasonryda]

Hi I was diagnosed and sent away with nothing, no meds no advice just an appointment to come back in 4 months. My legs have got worse I'm in constant agony and i can hardly walk, I'm about to become homeless and not getting any support, is this permanent? Will my legs get better?

[TheAuthor]

Hi Jasonryda

I am so sorry to read that you have been left in such an untenable situation and I genuinely hope that you can find some resolution and relief to this issue. I was wondering what all of your circumstances were?

DO YOU LIVE IN THE UK? IF SO?

If you are not working you could put in an application for ESA (Employment Support Allowance) to go with your other benefits, please see link below:

gov.uk/employment-support-a...

Are you receiving any other disability benefits for your other illnesses? Such as PIP (Personal Independence Payment) or DLA? Which can be claimed even if you are working. Please see link below:

gov.uk/pip/how-to-claim

You said that you are about to be made homeless? Have you been to discuss your situation with your local authority and try and ascertain alternative housing? If you can successfully claim PIP, you will be classed as disabled and given more points toward your housing need? Please see link below:

gov.uk/council-housing

There are many options and avenues that you can take in trying to ascertain benefits and alternative accommodation so that you are not homeless, I implore you to please explore these options?

As for your Fibro, is there a different GP at your surgery who may be a little more receptive to your needs and offer you some medication? It is always worth a try? I have pasted you a link to our mother site below, FibroAction, it has lots of useful Fibro information on it:

fibroaction.org

I am not a doctor, so I am really sorry to say that I cannot answer the part of your question relating to how long you feel like this, as we are all unique individuals and therefore we all respond differently to both our illness and our medications. What may help you is if you can find a different GP at your surgery and ask for a referral to a Pain Management Clinic and / or Rheumatology.

I want to wish you all the best of luck with sorting all of this out, and please keep us up to date with how you get on?

All my hopes and dreams for you

Ken

[Hidden]

Hi Jasonryda

I can see that Ken has helped you with benefit advice and given you some excellent links.

Regarding your physical situation I can empathise as I have also lost and still losing the mobility in my lower half and am constanly fighting to try and prevent losing it altogether. I am not a doctor either and can only offer you my personal opinions, advice and experiences.

I think a visit to your GP to discuss your health issues would be a good place to start (regarding health) as there is help and support that you can access as well as medications to help you manage the condition. I am in the slow process of Hydrotherapy to help rebuild my back, hips, pelvis and legs as I have very poor/no stability. This is an excellent treatment, which I was to be referred for by GP under the instruction of my rheumatologist. I was also referred to see a pain consultant twice over the years and they can offer some very useful treatments and also pain management courses that help you learn how to adapt and manage life with a chronic pain disorder such as Fibromyalgia.

I see that you are a new member and welcome you to our forum where you have found a friendly place to come for advice and support, ken has already given you the link to our Mother site fibroaction.org where there is a wealth of information regarding firomyalgia. If you need answers about, doctors or even medicines, alternative medicines there are sections on the fibroaction site

There is a section about dealing with doctors and one discussing alternative/complementary medicines for example.

The following two links are to FAQ factsheets which I think you might find useful if you haven't checked them out already There are many useful links within the links

FAQ - I'm newly diagnosed, where can I get information on Fibro please?

healthunlocked.com/fibroact...

FAQ - I'm relatively new to this community, is there anything I should know?

healthunlocked.com/fibroact...

Apologies for the long reply, I hope you find the links helpful and wish you wellness in your quest for finding a home and am thinking of you

xxxsianxxx

[Hidden]

Hello Jason welcome to the site.I see that Zeb and Ken have both given you some very good advice'

I think that my first port of call would be a visit to citizens advice or see if your local council has a benefits advisor.

Both can give you help and advice in claiming benefits and finding you somewhere to live.

I can not help you with your pain problem. except to say that finding a sympathetic doctor goes a long way to getting the right treatment.

Wishing you all the luck that I can Hugs sue

[boudicca12]

I started having RLS after a operation for knee replacement., albeit at the time I thought they were just spasms, so severed that my knee would come right up to my chest I went to the doctor and was given various tablets etc but nothing would work. It was so severe that I sometimes wouldn't bother going to bed. When it came time to have my other knee joint replaced, I was lying in the hospital bed having had my pre-op when I told one of the theater staff about my RLS and the op was called off and I was sent home,(Of course I didn't know it was RLS at the time) My doctor finally prescribed a tablet called Requip and it worked, what a relief. It's a tablet that prescribed for people who suffer among other things Parkinsons., but it did the job for me, A relative of mine who suffers with RLS for 30 years was prescribed it and only has slight relief. HHope this helps.

[Jasonryda]

Thank you all very much, Ken great links I do live in the UK Im in Peckham, London. I cannot walk as far as the bus stop so going anywhere including citizens advice just can't work. I was working for myself so Ive currently not got any income at all. Ill apply for PIP and pray that comes through then go to the homeless centre

[Hidden in reply to Jasonryda]

Hi there Jasonryda

I hope you don't mind but I've done some browsing and digging and found this page from Peckham (Southwark) Council regarding getting help if you are homeless

southwark.gov.uk/info/20005...

Good luck and hope this helps you out a little

xxxsianxxx

[TheAuthor in reply to Jasonryda]

I am so sorry to read that, I have pasted you the link for welfarebeneftis uk. It helps claim the benefits for homeless people. It may be useful to see what they can do to help you?

homeless.org.uk/welfarebene...

Good luck with all of this.

Ken

[stimpy]

Hi, I feel your pain quite literally. it took my fibro getting to your point for the doctor to finally admit that I wasn't a hypochondriac as I quite literally couldn't walk. mine did get better but are always the first to go when I have a crisis. my advice is really hot baths (just short to scalding) and stick on heat pads on your lower spine above your bum. it helps me by relaxing the muscles around the nerve centre. I also use a walking stick to help when it is really bad, I hate the stick as I look stupid being only 29 but it keeps me able to move. my doc gave me over the counter co codamol which took the edge off but didn't really work. I would go back and demand tramadol or something similar depending on what woks for you. someone recommended physio to me to help stretch the muscles in my legs but i havent tried it yet. it may be an option if you can get a referral to a physio. I really hope everything gets better soon and you don't loose your home. the advice below looks really helpful so I wont reiterate things I know little about. it got better for me so it will get better for you (positive mental attitude is the only way I cope when things are bad). good luck and let me know if the baths and heat pads work. thinking of you.

[Ginsing]

Hi I see everyone has given you lots of brilliant advice so I shall just hallo I gins you will see me flitting about any thing I can help you with just tap me on the shoulder Try and keep smiling through the pain we find it helps us to keep going xgins

[Hidden]

Homeless? oh no...so sorry to hear about your legs and was sad to read that you received no advice or meds to help. There are days when I can't walk at all and have to permanently use a stick so I know how you feel but to have all that on top is just awful. I see Ken has helped you with the benefits pages, All I can do is hope that everything turns out for you and that you do not end up homeless. Hugs x

[mitziblue]

Geez Jason I'm so sorry!!! You need to go to a pain clinic if your doctor doesn't give you anything for the pain. That's crazy. I went and it as made my life more bearable. The pain doesn't ever go away and other symptoms pop up as well. But with the right pain med's you should be able to walk and get around. You need an understanding doctor to apply for some sort of aid. I'm not sure which country you live in, so don't know how to advise you on this. Hope this helps you sweetheart!!! xxx Mitzi

[shezzz]

go back to the docs you have a right to have an assesment and go to a specialist and even have a second opinion .. your in charge not your doctor and if you dont take charge and tell him what you want and need you will get fobbed off beleive me so go back and tell him your worse and you need help now not in four months

get a rush of blood to your confidence muscle and be firm doctors are only people most of them are very confused about what were going through they dont know what to do either so we have to help ourselves

[shezzz]

hi go back to the doctors your in charge of your health not him so kick your confidence muscle in the rear end and go and say you need help now

most doctors dont undersand the pain and dont know how to help so they do what most of us do and pass it along or hope it and you will go away , be a pest and go back and back again be polite but very very firm

and get in touch with your council and benefits if your disabled and try to find a local help group for benefits and disabilty who will come around and help and advise , citizens advice can often put you in touch with local groups or the library

[jaynief]

Hi Jason

I'm so sorry you are in so much pain and you are about to become homeless.

I suffer from fibro, CRPS and chronic pain. Four weeks ago I became homeless and it was the most scary situation I have ever been in. I am now living in a hostel, full of drug addicts and alcoholics. But, it's temporary and I hope I will be housed by next year. It's obviously not the Ritz, but I have my own room and lock myself in! Food is provided (sometimes horrid), but I'm trying to stay positive and I won't let the pain or depression win.

I hope your doc listens, but do your best to stay positive and if you do end up in a hostel, just tell yourself it's temporary

Good luck

[Hidden]

Hi I'm so sorry to hear about the problems you are having with your legs & pending homelessness.

I may have missed it in your posts but was wondering on the type of leg pain you have, the reason I ask is I started having knee & leg pain aged 15, and during the years, I'm now 50 and 7 operations latereventually having my knee caps removed, I kept trying to make anyone that would listen to me that I had what I described as joint bone pain & also nerve, muscle tendon pain, although no one listened as they tried op after op, eventually the knee cap removal did remove most of the joint bone pain, but the other pain had increased and was now in hips shoulders hands ... Eventually in 2000 I wS diagnosed with secondary Fibro, then finally as well as the various pain killers I had tried I was first given Quinnine and later Gabbapentin for my restless legs/ electric shock type pain that would make my legs kick out at random. The Gabbapentin has helped a lot with this but still get lots of times when I feel like rats are knawing at my knees & hands & days when bed is the only place I reside. Is your 4 month appointment at a hospital or Dr's ? I really think you need to be in contact with them to try to get in earlier being sent away with no help when your in the situation where walking is so terribly painful is not something you can or should have to put up with for 4 months & I'm sure the stress of possibly being homeless isn't helping your health either. I really hope you can get some help & relief soon Karen

[Summervile]

Sometimes the doctors don't seem very helpful . I wish you well