Hello All, I am just wondering what you all take for the neck, shoulder and back pain. I was thinking about going to the doctor and asking for some sort of muscle relaxers or something. Sometimes it is unbearable. I’d like something, that I can take when it gets bad, but nothing habit forming and certainly not something that will wipe me out more than I feel on most days.
Also, my insurance company just got switched at work and ALL of my doctors are now out of network. It’s a 5000.00 deductible out of network. I am just beside myself and have no idea where to even begin. Any insight to either of these would be greatly appreciated.
I have taken stuff for almost 20 years. I take Soma and hydrocodone for pain. I've tried other muscle relaxers but didn't like them. When I was born I couldn't turn my head, and they thought it was congenital torticollis, although now they think it was chiari. I also get massages, and every time I go to a new massage therapist they always remark how tight my neck and shoulder muscles are....and then I tell them I take muscle relaxers 4 times a day and they are floored.
Try the FLECTOR patch. It is a strong anti-inflammatory, in a patch. I cut a strip off the patch, and paste it to the back of my neck just below the hairline. It has helped the chronic neck, shoulder pain more than anything I've tried. It is prescription, but I'm thinking your doc would give you a Rx for it, and be happy that you had a suggestion. Be sure you tell him that you got it from the blog, from another Chiari patient, who had a decompression 26 years ago. Don't tell the doc that you're going to stretch the prescription by cutting it up.