YES! I will tell the doctor about my bowel issues... (Quit emailing me now)

Thank you all for your concerned emails, private comments, phone calls and text messages about my comment in my emu oil update about occasional bowel incontinence. Yes, I know this is supposed to be some big deal. Up until now I just get odd looks and "huh, that's weird." from the doctor. I finally became too embarrassed to say anything else and he didn't ask how that was going so I dropped it. I figured maybe it wasn't a huge deal after all and didn't say anything else.

As for the questions, no I don't need to do more kegals. When I am not in horrible pain, I do fine. No problems. But when I start hurting, everything gets numbish feeling. Depending on how bad I hurt depends on whether or not I can tell you if I have I have to go... drop the kids off at the pool.

The first time it happened, I was mortified! I ended up giving up trying to get anyone to listen after awhile and I started wearing Poise Pads around the house and Depends when I need to go out.

I have to say, out of the "protective underwear" and pads that I have tried, Depends and Poise are by far the best.

But I thought I would hop on here and tell you all, YES, I will talk to my doctor tomorrow and see what he says. I'll update tomorrow evening.

Emu Oil and Back Pain... the Experiment Updated!

So I bought emu oil as I said in my other post and it is helping... but it's not as "miracle treatment" as I hoped it would be. Here we go... back to the form. You can read my other post to compare the answers.

Pain Level Right Now: 5.2 (I am doing this about the same time of day)

Describe your pain: It's still a burning pain that radiates and it still turns into a stabbing pain but it takes a little longer for it to hit the stabbing pain part. I also noticed that if I lay down on my side, the stabbing pain subsides quite a bit. I have only felt the shock sensation twice since starting the emu oil. I still feel the crunchy and popping feeling but it doesn't hurt now. It just feels weird. 


I have to say, while I still hurt pretty bad, it is less intense. I also noticed that I can move easier which is rather nice. Although the burning pain is pretty bad by the end of the day or after attempting to clean my house.






Pattern: The pain is still constant. It gradually builds up during the day still and it's still until my legs feel like Jell-O. I have noticed that the lead feeling on my legs is more now. Which kind of confuses me. I figured it would get better the more I move... NOPE! But, I am still hoping it gets better. Maybe it still needs more time. Go ahead and tell me I am delusional, I have heard it already. The pain is much worse in the evening still but relaxes faster when I am sitting and chilling.

What relieves the pain? I still drink 3 celery stalks juiced but not as often. It makes me have the runs. Not a fun way to get rid of pain. I also found that 50 mg of Benadryl helps to knock me out so I don't really care that I am in pain. But then I wake up in agony because I slept in one position all night. So it's a "damned if I do, damned if I don't" kind of thing.

What Causes or increases the pain? Yes, that is still the same as before, but it's not as intense as quick, which is rather nice.

Effects of Pain
Accompanying symptoms: When it's bad enough, I start shaking uncontrollably still, just not as often now. I get headaches from lack of sleep still. Sometimes it hurts so much that I get nauseous still. I am really starting to feel exhaustion. Not "oh I worked a lot and I am exhausted" but, "holy crap, I think I am going to collapse because I can't function anymore from the lack of sleep" exhaustion.

Sleep: Sucks still but now I sleep about 4-6 hours each day, not all at once though. Occasionally, I will take the benadryl and knock myself out for a bit. It's solid sleep but I still wake up very tired.

Appetite: I noticed I have a better appetite now. I am not sure what to chalk that up to... Less pain, more moving or what. But it's nice.

Physical Activity: I do a lot better at dressing and bathing now. I don't always have to use the shower chair. I do if it's at night, but in the morning I don't need it anymore. I can walk farther now! That's really exciting! I do have to take a day to rest still but it's not so bad. I just chill at home and walk around at home. Before I would just chill, very little walking. Now I can chill with walks around the house. I can clean the house for 30 minutes at a time now. Sometimes a little more, about four times a day with breaks in between, usually about on hour or two. I can stand long enough to cook real meals again. It's actually quite nice :)


Relationship with others:  I still get bitchy, just not as often. I am more social now but with the occasional bowel incontinence (something I was too embarrassed to mention before) I still don't want to go out anywhere for any length of time. It's rather embarrassing and I just die inside thinking I might crap myself out in public.

Emotions:  Mostly it's the same, although I don't cry from pain as much. I am in a better mood thinking that there might be an end in sight. This has given me a lot of hope.

Current Pain Medication: None. The other day I did get my TENS unit. On Monday I am getting an epidural steroid injection. I am hoping a combo of all these things will eventually WORK and I can get back to my regular life. I was really starting to feel bummed and down about the whole thing but I am renewed when it comes to hope and thinking positive about the outcome again.

Other Meds: Benadryl PRN for allergies, Chew Vitamins (2 daily), Flovent (2 puffs in the morning and night), Albuterol inhaler PRN

I bought Emu Oil for my Injured Back. Let the Experiment Begin!

I read a lot about the wonders of Emu Oil and was looking for some. The only one I found in Libby was so pricey that I don't care how much pain I am in... I can't afford that! I found a bottle of Emu Oil at Mountain Meadow Gifts just about a block and a half from my house. It's a half a fluid ounce for $8.99 which is still pricey. But it says to use 3 drops on the affected area. If it works, I will be back at work in no time (I hoping!) and then I can afford the pricey big bottle.

But, before I start the experiment, I wanted to document how I am doing right now without the emu oil so I can compare later with better clarity. I will do this by using the Pain Management worksheet I got in the mail for my pain specialist appointment that is on Wednesday. Here it goes...

Pain Level Right Now: 6.7 (I have a pain scale app I use)

Describe your pain: It's a burning pain that starts in my lower back and radiates around and down, all the way to the soles of my feet. It ends up turning into a stabbing sensation just in the back and has intermittent "shock" like sensations that start in the middle lower back and radiates outward to my sides (it's not daily). It's a quick shock feeling and then goes away. Every once in a while, I have this "crunchy" feeling in my lower back. It doesn't really hurt though it's just disconcerting and uncomfortable. Every once in a while I also have a "pop" feeling in my lower back (it's not daily either). Not sure what that is. It hurts for a few seconds and then subsides.

Pattern: The pain is constant. I only one or two pain free days since June 26 (and I was so excited! I thought I was better... next day, HELL NO!) It gradually builds up during the day until my legs feel like Jell-O by nighttime. It feels like someone has tied lead weights to my feet and lifting my legs becomes so difficult that I sometimes end up tripping and falling. It's like my legs don't work anymore. The pain is much worse in the evening than in the morning and any movement makes it worse also.

What relieves the pain? 3 celery stalks juiced (makes about 1 cup of celery juice) really helps. Actually it helps more than I thought it would. The problem is that with my rotation diet I can have celery juice once every 3 days. And according to research, I can't take more than 1 cup of vegetable juice daily or I will overdose on the good stuff in it. I tried drinking 1 cup each day, but eventually I was so nauseous from it that I had to stop and wait for a few days to start again.

What Causes or increases the pain? Any movement at all. Walking and sitting are horrendous. But I can't just lay around all day so I make myself walk, even though I am dying inside.

Effects of Pain
Accompanying symptoms: When it's bad enough, I start shaking uncontrollably. I get headaches from lack of sleep. Sometimes it hurts so much that I get nauseous. I haven't actually thrown up though.

Sleep: Sucks. I sleep maybe 4 hours a night. Usually I sleep for an hour at a time and wake up in pain. They gave me ambien to help me sleep. I can sleep 6 hours (sometimes) on ambien but I wake up every couple of hours miserable and then I feel out of it for the rest of the day. My sleep hasn't been solid, restful sleep for awhile now.

Appetite: I noticed I either starving or have no appetite. I'm not sure if I should count that... but before I was almost always wanting to eat something. I had to eat every 2 hours. Now, i make myself eat a few bites every couple hours and have a main meal for the day.

Physical Activity: Uhm, well, I can dress myself and bathe myself. I force myself to walk 2 blocks and back each day (sometimes more) because I am afraid my legs will atrophy and cause more problems. But I have to skip days because the pain is so intense I can barely function. I do manage to do light housework. I am up to 20 minutes about 2 to 3 times a day. I can sometimes stand long enough to cook a meal, other times I can stand long enough to microwave oatmeal.

Relationship with others: When I hurt, I am a complete bitch. I don't know how anyone can stand me sometimes. :( But I do pretty well most of the time. Although I am pretty irritable from pain a lot. I try to cope with it when people are around, especially hang out night! I usually end up going and laying down in bed so I don't start getting cranky when everyone is here. I just lay there by myself.

Emotions:  When I first wake up, I am in a pretty good mood. I try to be positive as much as possible. When I really start hurting bad, I am not as chipper. I end up crying from the pain a lot. Mostly it's when I just can't take being in pain anymore. I have days where I am pretty angry about the whole thing. I have days where I just don't really want to do anything. Partly because I am exhausted and partly because I just don't want to move. If I move it hurts worse. I just want a day without intense pain.

Current Pain Medication: None.

Other Meds: Benadryl PRN for allergies, Chew Vitamins (2 daily), Ambien (not taking it though), Albuterol inhaler PRN