Help with Arthritis Pain-Spondylosis.

What is Spondylosis?

• Many patients suffering from spondylosis are initially diagnosed with osteoarthritis. Some patients unfortunately deal with the disease without ever knowing they have anything other than arthritis. In our world of medical and technological advancement, chronic and severe pain should be a thing of the past.

• Spondylosis attacks primarily the spine, although it can attack various parts of the body. The key to diagnosing this painful disease is a degeneration of boney spinal material, usually resulting in some sort of deformity. While this condition generally occurs with age, it is not a normal part of aging and it can be treated, although not eliminated.

What you feel.

• Most patients who experience spondylosis are likely to have significant lower back pain that drives them to the doctor’s office. This coupled with the feeling of occasional “shocks” felt throughout the hands and the feet lead to the correct diagnosis, eventually. The feeling of receiving “shocks” in the extremities comes from compression against the spinal nerves as the bones degenerate. This alone can be a very painful ordeal that strikes momentarily and without warning. Muscular weakness and severe pain throughout the neck, back, shoulders, and sometimes the clavicle region are classic symptoms of spondylosis.

How bad is the pain?

• The pain associated with spondylosis can be life altering. Many patients state that they can not achieve a normal life once this disease tears their world apart. Daily functioning and normal activity can be excruciating, and the pain relief options are not enough to combat the severity of their pain. This disease creates more shut-ins than arthritis. Patients report being unable to shower, alleviate bathroom needs, or even comfortably rest, leading to exhaustion.

• Exhaustion contributes to chronic pain. This becomes a vicious cycle that can be nearly impossible to break. The pain prevents the patient from resting properly and fatigue sets in. Fatigue creates more pain, and the cycle continues. Some physicians have attempted to treat the pain and sleep deprivation with low dose antidepressants. Used in very small doses, some antidepressants and anti-convulsants can actually help relieve the pain while assisting the patient by permitting them proper rest throughout the night. Not all patients respond well to the medication, and this should only be tried under tight supervision of a physician, but some reports find more effective pain relief from these medications than strong analgesics with the added benefit of not being cloudy and sleepy throughout the day.

Treatments.

• Hard neck collars are often worn by patients with spondylosis who experience severe neck pain. This helps to keep the vertebrates slightly segregated from each other and alleviates the grinding and pinching of nerves. Many patients report such a high incident of relief that it is recommended for patients who have not tried this method of pain relief to inquire with their physician.

• Physiotherapy is the most commonly prescribed pain treatment therapy to date. This involves an intensive therapy program involving the muscles of the neck. Patients have had tremendous success with this type of therapy when they are able to follow through with the recommendations. Unfortunately a lot of patients report being so chronically fatigued that they are unable to keep regular appointments with their therapist. For these patients, home visitation by a licensed therapist has gotten them over the initial hump and helped their pain enough to allow for proper rest at night. This of course helps to break the cycle a sleep deprivation related pain and permits them to at least become healthy enough to make their regular appointments.

Support Groups may help.

• A supportive group of other pain sufferer can make a world of difference in the life of a spondylosis patient. A place online to meet and discuss alternative therapies as well as traditional therapies and medications has statistically proven to be one of the most beneficial treatment options in a treatment program. The free sharing of ideas and being able to speak about what works and doesn’t work helps not only patients learn about their options, but helps physicians learn what treatment methods they are using that are most effective and which ones are not.

Surgery?

• Since there are surgical options related to helping alleviate spondylosis, patients need to become proactive in discussing their situation with others in a similar situation. Surgery is usually only an option when there is a significant spinal deformity, but some patients report this is very helpful while others responded that it actually made their pain worse. Talking this option over with those who have been there is vital in making this decision. Surgical procedures vary from the fusion of two vertebrates to adding bone from other body parts into the spinal column. These are serious procedures and patients should feel free to discuss these procedures with other patients who have already had them done.

Learn to be proactive.

• Chronic pain is a serious struggle. When a diagnosis is slow to come, chronic pain can seem overwhelming. There is just as much relief in a diagnosis as there is fear, and patients should never have to feel alone while dealing with such a destructive disease. Online support communities have already made a huge difference in the lives of many patients, and the continuing support patients can get from them is vital to returning to an acceptable level of functioning while combating the issues of pain.

• Pain is not the fault of the patient. Pain is a symptom of a problem within the body. Patients should above all, never be made to feel inadequate, wimpy, or otherwise responsible for their pain. It is the obligation of a physician to determine the cause and offer potential solutions until one that works is finally found.

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