Why don’t anyone see my pain?
Chronic pain gets in a way of everything and anything you do and yet it is invisible. MRIs, CT scans and x-rays are normal. Blood tests look OK too. You appear healthy, on the surface, to the world. Only you know how miserable it feels living with a constant pain. Proving you are suffering is more painful than the actual pain itself!
Why is it necessary to identify source and quantify the level when you are clearly in agony? Well, part of the reason is that clinicians need to understand conditions better before creating a treatment plan. And the other reason is your Insurance! For them, there must be an evidence, in order to approve any claim.
Painful diagnosis
Aren’t scans and x-rays supposed to show muscular-skeletal system? Yes. It can go undetected for long though. Here are few reasons:
Fascia has 6-10 times more sensory nerves than muscles and hence amplified feeling of pain. Fascia is a fancy Latin name for the connective tissue which spans the entire body and is responsible for keeping the entire body glued together. Fascia doesn’t show up in MRIs, CT-scans and x-rays. What makes fascia unique is it is remarkable ability to remain in liquid state to help support the movement. However, when there are external forces on a body part(e.g. constant sitting on a chair or standing long hours), part of it can become stiff to protect from potential damage. Fascia has been long ignored in modern medicine. Cadaver dissection, a method practiced in school for dissection, is emphasized on studying muscular and skeletal system. Fascia is literally thrown into the garbage bin as it is considered nothing more than filler material, for the purpose of packaging. Learn more about fascia[].
Physicians receive no training, in the school or in form of continued education, in pain. When the cause isn’t apparent, scans and tests are standard next steps in the diagnostics process. However, chronic pain is much more than biomedical. In fact, it is hardly ever detected this way.
What happens when pain isn’t diagnosed right?
In the absence of “evidence”, pain medications are prescribed for you that may seem to work for a while before exacerbating the condition. Learn more about vicious cycle of opioids[]. You may think of consulting other doctors, in the hope of finding the actual cause and then getting some much needed attention and help. Most likely, the outcome is going to be same.
Insurance relies on the doctor’s assessment to understand your condition. If pain isn’t evident, therapies such as massage, physical therapy and psychotherapy are unlikely to be covered by your insurance. As a patient, you’re on a tough spot: physicians are not well-equipped to diagnose and Insurance needs an evidence.
Without evidence, it becomes hard to convince your employer, school and sometime even your family. It is like no one believes you. This could be extremely frustrating.
Don’t manage. Get rid of chronic pain!
Pain is wearing you out and yet, you are trying to keep up with your life at reduced energy level. You desperately want your physician and insurance to believe you to avoid spending from your own wallet. At the same time, you are managing pain with medicines. This doesn’t work! Pain management is a pretty term for dragging the problem longer to a point where it becomes almost incurable. There is no medicine or a single solution for a pain-free life.
Stop wasting time and energy in proving what you already know! Rather use that time to start doing things that are in your control and that help you.
Our Patient driven care
At iBliss, we facilitate, support and guide you at every step. We strongly believe that you must be in charge of your own care and journey to bliss. Everyone has a unique history though symptoms may appear same. We take time to understand you before creating treatment plan based on our experience and supportive data from past treatments. We aren't perfect and sometimes what works for one patient doesn't work for others. However, we learn quickly and refine the treatment plan based on observations. Are you ready for your own, personalized healing journey?
