If I go to a back specialist will they give me any pain pills?

They can do an acupuncture where they give you a shot in your back, but it’s supposed to be really good for pain!

Hales, Did you mean lumber puncture? It is good for the pain, but not very comfortable.

However acupuncture, where a lot of small needles are placed in various areas of your back, is not painful, but very effective.

No, no, I don’t think she meant lumbar puncture. It’s used to treat increased pressure in the skull.

Thats not true. They use narcotics for all sorts of pain, especially chronic and severe pain (like back pain). Tylenol 3 is handed out after dental surgery. Vicodin is handed out for many things…

When a doctor gives me a prescription for pain medication I don’t need I usually hold onto the script just in case my pain gets worse before I can see my doctor again and only fill it if necessary. Nobody is going to force you to take pain medications you don’t want. In general if your backache is caused by muscle spasm they will prescribe a muscle relaxant and if it is caused by inflammation they will prescribe an anti-inflammatory. While pain medication may be optional you should take your muscle relaxant or anti-inflammatory since it can help your back get better sooner. Your doctor also may recommend stretching, exercise, or lifestyle changes and in severe cases an epidural or surgery. Whatever happens I hope you feel better soon!

I dont even know what a lumbar puncture is!

Yes yes yes, you’re right on that one. But before they give narcotics, they will consider every alternative drug like NSAIDS, etc. depending on the severity of the pain. If the pain could be handled by a non-narcotic, doctors would prefer it over the narcotic ones, because narcotics have a side effect of respiratory depression [it makes it hard for you to breathe, without you noticing it].

Imagine the brain and the spine as a water-filled balloon, alright? It’s sooooo filled with water that if I add a teaspoon more water inside it, it will explode. Now, the “water” in our analogy would be the blood, the brain and the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF - the fluid the circulates in the brain and spinal cord). These 3 (brain, csf, blood aka our analogy’s “water”) are maintained in a very specific amount, and an increase in the volume of any of which (usually the csf, or blood, in cases where you have a blood clot on your head) will cause you a very very severe headache (sort of feels like your head is splitting in half. Usually, this head ache will resolve itself in minutes. BUT if it doesn’t, well, you’re in for a Lumbar Puncture. Lumbar Puncture (LP) is a procedure where you’re gonna go into fetal position (You know that. It’s the position you assume when your tummy hurts really, really bad), and the doctor will insert a LONG NEEDLE between your 4th and 5th lumbar vertebrae (the spinal bones on your lower back) and drain the excess CSF to decrease the pressure build-up and relieve the head ache. It’s also used to diagnose diseases like meningitis, etc. To answer your next [and very important] question, YES, it hurts really really bad. :)

Yeah, maybe if you tell them them that you’ve got a dr.ug problem, or maybe it’s where you live. I’ve had several doctors hand out this stuff out like it’s candy. Despite the fact that I have asthma.

Eww! Okay yeah…I dont need that!

Eww! Okay yeah…I dont need that!