Help with pain

[AnnLinds]

I Hi, I am 59 and have osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, diabetes, neuropathy in my legs and clinical depression. I am on methotrexate, hydroxychloraquine, Pregabalin, folic acid cyclizine and co dydramol and brintellix for my depression. I have severe pain in both knees with osteo and my right shoulder wrist and thumb with rheumatoid. I am sole carer for my husband who is unable to walk. I don’t know how to go on I can hardly walk or move without severe pain. I need to push my husband who is 6ft 4in in his chair and do absolutely everything to ensure our daily lives. I have been told my joints are suffering because of this and I am in so much pain, so tired that I need to find something to help or I just can’t go on. Any suggestions please would be most welcome. We are on benefits and have no family to help. If I could just get help with the pain. GP is no help.

[Nessa28]

Hello lovely , you are in a pickle . Do you receive any benefits that can be used towards care ( sorry for asking) . Firstly you do need to be straight with your doctor about your needs not your husbands and then about his . You should depending on money be eligible for council care component but you will need to contact them or CAB or help the aged or even NRAS for support and pointing in the right direction . I can assure you unless you kick up no one will help . So with this in mind enlist you family and friends to help you and get onto your gp . 🤗💐

[BUDGIEBURDEKIN]

Ouch Ann,your almost as bad as me lol, only playing, I know life is and can be, I had to just get on wth it which and I take 30 tablets a day and 5 injection of insulinfor many ills including vascular dementia, and I know when I get like that with pains and The exhaustion, what i do on a regularly is to

[BUDGIEBURDEKIN in reply to BUDGIEBURDEKIN]

Do some distraction methods, reading a book that I hate but takes my mind away, cross words, but not as easy for you as your care ring for ya man. Do you have any children?, and maybe get in touch with your OP, BECAUSE HE MIGHT be able to get an electric chair, and I mean one he can move around on, they are different from those on telly . Lol. Good luck chuck, and have a great Christmas.

Philip

[HappykindaGal]

Oh my. This is awful for you. You need help and as has already been said, the GP is first port of call. If you’re not happy with your GP, perhaps try your practice nurse and get him or her to badger your GP. I’m assuming, maybe wrongly, that your husband has a personal budget? If so, can that be used for help for him so you have some respite at least? There may be some volunteers in your area too to help you. What area do you live in and I can do some research for you if that helps. 🌻

[Stephenlangtonriley]

I am on Pregabalin for a Neuropathic symptom of my genetic illness, Enthesitis. I was diagnosed with Fibromyalgia, which annoyed me as I know it is a brain related disorder and it made me investigate all my symptoms which I presented to my RA consultant as the real cause, it was accepted by her. When I got the FM diagnosis I said to my GP that for 50 years I have been telling my brain my OA doesn't hurt and now my brain is telling everywhere else on my body hurts, so I must be schizophrenic as well, he laughed with me. I know what it is like to be a carer and have my own problems, I was caring for my father and a good friend as well, so double trouble, so to speak. My father had to go into a home as he was suffering severe dementia and that was making him violent, it was just too much for me I could still, just, restrain him but he was so frail that I could have caused more harm than good. I am fortunate that I have an excellent GP who has helped all the way along, his predecessor didn't understand FM at all. I also have an S7 prolapsed disc, which is agony, made worse by a car accident last year, the local CCG Richmond Upon Thames have just stopped funding my epidural injections, all the clinical evidence from NICE, from my own GP and consultant all prove it is effective yet they delay and delay with silly questions like who funded it before just to put it off again, I am in for an agonising christmas. It is the last of 3 they wil no longer fund and I know I will only get worse, at the moment I am taking Diazepam to help me survive, the alternative was maximum codeine which just put me to sleep for 15-16 hours and it takes me about 1-2 hours to get out of bed so that was an useless option, I can't live like that. We are all facing a continual uphill battle with the bureaucrats and as far as I am concerned it is very personal and they are out to make my life not just difficult but deliberately oppressive as well, for the very, very few that help most of them obstruct, avoid direct questions, (like my CCG that hated getting my email directly sent to them) and cause equal problems for the medical prefessionals that want to help their patients.

You should be able to get a referral to the local pain clinic, see another GP if you have a shared practice, they may be more helpful to you. As Ajay575 said contact your local council adult social services, they should also be able to provide some assistance to you.

You say you are on benefits but are either or both of you on PIP or DLA as it used to be?, it can only be claimed BEFORE retirement age but continues to pay after retirement once it has been awarded, that can provide you with sufficient funds to allow you to pay for extra care assistance from your local council. Why it can only be claimed before, yet paid after retirement is just a nonsense, our needs don't suddenly change because we retire, it just means we lose our limited independence and cost the state even more to look after us. Anyway that is enough of my rant. I hope there is some information in this to help you.

Steve