This is the pain that I myself experience chronically. As a result of
an MRSA infection in a rectal cavity wound the raw nerves left behind
in that area were irrepairably damaged and now give me pain all day
everyday. This section aims to explain why neuropathic pain can be so
severe, what can be done to help ease it.
People often think og pain as having a physical cause. Get
rid of the root of the problem and then the pain should ease and you can live
happily ever after. However, this is not always the case as neuropathic pain
sufferers can tell you. Nerves themselves can cause pain – severe pain at that,
and with no underlying causes it means that there is no way to “get rid” of the
problem. It is a very frustrating pain for the patient and can often lead to
depression issues and more.
neuropathic pain not only seems to have no real cause to it
on the whole, but also it is usually very bad at responding to standard pain
medications, and can often get worse over time instead of better. In worst case
scenarios it can lead to disability.
The most famous form of neuropathic pain is the mysterious “Phantom
Limb Syndrome”. In my case when I had my rectum removed I experienced “Phantom
Rectum Syndrome” which is where I felt like I desperately had to go to the
toilet for a poo but obviously I couldn’t, because there was nothing there
physically – yet the sensation was so real and as it got worse it became a real
pain in the bum… no pun intended. Likewise with the phantom limb syndrome,
patients often state that they can feel their leg even though its not there and
often times this can become a painful sensation.
These pains occur because the brain still gets pain messages
from the nerves in the area that originally catered for the missing area – be it
limb or rectum or something else. These nerves seem to misfire and so the pain
is felt.
In cases where the nerves themselves have been damaged and
are causing pain, then the patient could find themselves having pain in that
area for the rest of their lives. Indeed that is what Ive been told to expect
with my MRSA eaten nerves in the rectal cavity, and after only 4 years of it Im
finding things very difficult indeed now at age 31 and cannot imagine spending
another 40 years+ with it.
Diagnosis:
Diagnosis of neuropathic pain is relatively simple compared
to some of the other pain’s diagnosis paths that I’ve talked about in other
sections of this site. In most cases a simple Doctors Q&A session can
determine if the pain is neuropathic or not. neuropathic pain is always
described as a shooting, burning, stabbing pain. I likened it to a red hot poker
being stabbed into my rectal cavity and all the remaining muscles in that area
gripping it as hard as they can as if my life depended on it. On top of this
neuropathic pain is often worse at night. In a lot of cases as well the pain is
coming from an area that is damaged in some way or has missing or injured
nerves.
Common Causes of
neuropathic Pain:
·
Alcoholism
·
Amputation
·
Back, leg and hip problems. (Sciatica)
·
Cancer Chemo
·
Diabetes
·
Facial nerve problems (Neuralgia)
·
HIV or AIDS
·
MS
·
Shingles
·
Surgery – spinal or elsewhere.
Treatment:
Medication is always the first and usually only port of call
for the neuropathic pain patient. At least for the moment. There is talk of
special nerve blocking surgery coming in the next few years or so, but who
knows when it will actually arrive and which patients it can help). The types
of medications used are usually opiates or strong painkillers such as morphine
or pethidine etc. On top of this you may well find you are prescribed some
anti-convulsants like Gabapentin and anti-depressants like Amitryptiline both
of which help ease neuropathic pain.
Depending on the location of the pain alternatives to
medication could be TENS therapy – where a minor electric shock is passed onto
the affected area to numb the nerves below. Or another option is spinal freeze/epidural
blocks which I’ve talked about in a previous chapter if you want more info on
them.
I know that for me personally Ive found neuropathic pain to
be a very depressing and difficult challenge to face, and a number of times Ive
broken down due to its pure unrelenting nature of the pain. The more you take
of opiates the more you need to do the job, and then dependency can become an
issue.
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