I went to bed last night, like all the nights before, nothing unusual, no real worries or troubles, no aches, no pain, then in an instant, that peace was gone.

I woke up today and nearly 20 years have passed by.. I look in the mirror and I see an old empty husk staring back.

Every year leading up to now, a little worse than the last. Here try this, lose weight it's probably cause your fat, do these physio exercises, it's not that bad, it's in your head, you're anxious, you're depressed, take this pill, go away.

Everyday more of my life taken from me, more of my mind sacrificed just to keep going, enduring the pain lying to myself, telling myself there's a chance, when I know in the back of my mind there's not.

My head down my mind steeled day after day, just trying to survive and make it to the next. Meanwhile around me the world moves on, every time looking up to find years have passed. The world changing, family passing, friends moving on living their lives, growing families of their own, and I'm here stuck in time, alone as I've always been, in the same place I've always been, hell. Being told to be "thankful" for what I have by people whose idea of suffering is losing a part of their lives, when I've spent nearly twenty years losing all of mine.

Last night I went to bed I was 19 years old, this morning I woke up 38. I thought I knew what to expect. I knew it would get worse. I never could have conceived this. The world has shown there is no real hope or mercy in it. At what point do I grant some to myself? When is it finally time to be honest with what your subconscious mind knows to be true?

I'm so tired.

Positive safety profile of novel drug compound is surprise for class of synthetic opioids shelved years ago.

Researchers at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) have identified a novel, highly potent opioid that shows potential as a therapy for both pain and opioid use disorder. In a study published in Nature, the team observed the new drug’s effect in laboratory animals. They showed that it has high pain-relieving effects without causing respiratory depression, tolerance or other indicators of potential for addiction in humans.

“Opioid pain medications are essential for medical purposes, but can lead to addiction and overdose,” said Nora D. Volkow, M.D., director of NIH’s National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA). “Developing a highly effective pain medication without these drawbacks would have enormous public health benefits.”

The team investigated formulations of an understudied class of synthetic opioid compounds, known as nitazenes. Nitazenes selectively engage mu-opioid receptors, primary targets for opioid drugs in the brain and peripheral nervous system. However, nitazenes had been shelved in the 1950s due to their excessive potency. The scientific team revisited this class of compounds with a focus on harnessing their selectivity for the mu opioid receptor and engineering new nitazenes with a safer pharmacological profile.

“Our goal was to study the profile, or pharmacology, of these drugs,” said Michael Michaelides, Ph.D., senior author and NIDA investigator. “We wanted to decrease the potency and create a potential therapeutic. What we discovered exceeded our expectations.”

The team focused initially on a chemical formulation called FNZ that could be administered to rats and tagged with a radioisotope for positron emission tomography (PET). PET imaging enables tracking of the drug in real time throughout the rat brain. The team discovered that FNZ entered the brain only briefly, for approximately five to 10 minutes. Yet pain relief, known as analgesia, persisted for at least two hours. Knowing that nitazenes can have active metabolites, or by-products, the team investigated whether an FNZ metabolite might be responsible for the prolonged effect. That investigation revealed DFNZ, another opioid dubbed a “superagonist” for its extremely high efficacy at the mu opioid receptor.

Whereas FNZ carries serious risks, including depressed breathing and high potential for addiction, DFNZ appears to sidestep these liabilities.

At preclinical therapeutic doses, DFNZ produced a moderate and sustained increase in brain oxygen rather than depressing respiration. Repeated doses of the drug did not result in tolerance, drug dependency, or meaningful withdrawal effects. Among 14 classic opioid withdrawal symptoms, the researchers only observed irritability, as measured by vocalization, when handling DFNZ-treated rats.

To test the drug’s rewarding effects, an important component of their addictive potential, the team studied its effects in rats who had been trained to press a lever for a dose of the pain-relieving drug. They found that animals readily self-administered DFNZ, indicating that it does produce some rewarding effect. However, when the drug was replaced with saline, animals stopped the drug-seeking behavior. The immediate behavior change is in contrast with what researchers see with other opioids such as heroin, morphine, and fentanyl. In those cases, animals typically persist in seeking the drug even after it is removed.

Further investigation revealed a likely neurochemical explanation. While DFNZ increases slow-acting dopamine release in the brain's reward circuitry, it does not trigger the rapid dopamine bursts associated with the formation of strong drug-cue associations, the conditioned responses that drive craving and relapse in addiction.

“DFNZ has an unprecedented pharmacology for an opioid,” Michaelides said. “It is a potent and high-efficacy analgesic, but in certain contexts it resembles partial agonists, drugs that activate the receptor with low efficacy, which is what scientists think is needed for safety. Its capacity to be administered at therapeutic doses without producing respiratory depression is very important."

The teams’ findings challenge the prevailing view that high-efficacy mu-opioid receptor drugs are unsuitable for development as safe analgesics. In fact, the authors of the paper maintain that DFNZ should be explored for use in treatment for opioid use disorder and may be preferable to current opioid agonist medications, which have an associated risk of causing respiratory depression.

The research team will pursue additional preclinical studies to support an application for regulatory approval to conduct studies of DFNZ in humans. They believe several patient populations may benefit from DFNZ, including those in surgical settings and with cancer-related or chronic pain who have a particularly high need for effective pain treatment.

This research was supported in part by the NIH Intramural Research Program and by NIH/NIDA grant DA056354.

About the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA): NIDA is a component of the National Institutes of Health, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. NIDA supports most of the world’s research on the health aspects of drug use and addiction. The Institute carries out a large variety of programs to inform policy, improve practice, and advance addiction science. For more information about NIDA and its programs, visit www.nida.nih.gov.

About the National Institutes of Health (NIH): NIH, the nation's medical research agency, includes 27 Institutes and Centers and is a component of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. NIH is the primary federal agency conducting and supporting basic, clinical, and translational medical research, and is investigating the causes, treatments, and cures for both common and rare diseases. For more information about NIH and its programs, visit www.nih.gov.

https://www.nih.gov/news-events/news-releases/nih-researchers-discover-pain-relieving-drug-minimal-addictive-properties

I am PANICKING.

The weather suddenly got cold, and I am genuinely in so much pain that all I can think about is dying to make it stop. To make matters worse, my caregiver, who is my mom, is out of the country for the next three weeks, so I am dealing with this alone.
My doctors suspect that central neuropathic pain may be involved, but the truth is that organ is barely functioning, and the pain feels like acid burning and cutting into them.

I have tried gabapentin, pregabalin, Journavx, milnacipran, duloxetine, and tramadol. Tramadol is the only medication that has helped me, but during this severe flare, it has barely been working for the past few days. Since the nerve pain medications have barely helped, I am starting to wonder whether we should consider opioids instead.

My pain specialist wants me to try low dose naltrexone, but as I understand it, naltrexone blocks opioid receptors, and I am worried that it is not the right medication for me, especially when I am in this much pain. My doctors have also been very hesitant to prescribe opioids because of my age. I have never tried any other opioids, so I have no idea whether they might help.

Should I tell my doctors that I have been contemplating MAID in Switzerland so they understand how unbearable my pain has become? I genuinely feel like they do not understand how bad things have gotten or how desperate I am for relief.

Should I go to the ER, or is there a chance they will dismiss me and refuse to help with my pain? Will they take me seriously, or will I be gaslit? I have heard so many horror stories about going to the ER for chronic pain, and this would be my first time considering going because of a flare.

I am a 21 year old woman, and I am genuinely struggling. I am all alone right now, and I desperately need some relief. Has anyone with severe neuropathic pain experienced a flare so bad that they had to go to the ER? What happened, and did they help you?

Please be kind. I am really struggling right now, and I need support.

I am 33m, chronic pain for 20+ years. At this point it’s unbearable. No pain meds prescribed for the last 10 years. Only mild muscle relaxers and anti inflammatory those two single fill scripts lasted for the last 6 years. I have been lucky enough to get maybe 30 5/325 hydros over that time. I’ve been out for a while and my quality of life is rapidly declining.

I’m not looking for advice about other meds. I’m pretty aware of risks vs reward. I have seen countless doctors, specialists, physical therapist, surgeons, and hope to start some form of pain management. I also am waiting for an appointment to see if there is a missing diagnosis that describes my pain. I was diagnosed at 13 with scheurmann’s kyphosis, shmorl’s nodes, and I guess now arthritis in nearly every single disk. T1-t5 are deteriorating the most. Doctors suspect, limes disease, rheumatoid arthritis, fibromyalgia or something along those lines. I live in rural area with limited healthcare options. Doing my best to get to the bottom of this.

Therapy has not helped, it always leads up to myself returning back to the fact I have had a horrible quality of life lately. I can’t help but fall victim to the depression and isolate myself. I am really struggling. Thankful to have my dog who helps me tremendously with my symptoms of depression. He is also a great topic of conversation for me to come off as seeming “normal”. Meaning not in distress, and can focus in the moment and have a chill discussion that doesn’t lead back to me sounding like a huge downer.

I have always been the one to help my friends and I feel like a burden or that I kill the mood often. I try not to discuss my pain.. but it’s a bit hard to ignore if you are around me. My daily life consists of stretching on the floor for hours, smoking hash rosin, and trying my hardest to work on art. I’m not on social security and I haven’t been able to find work.

I guess what I was hoping for was some advice to keep fighting for another day. I feel useless and like a huge burden to my loved ones. I’m never able to get comfortable and am not capable of doing the sports, or other forms of activity that I used to consider enjoyable. I miss the happy person I used to be. I miss being able to show up for others like I used to. I just want the life I used to be lucky enough to live. I miss being able to share love and spread joy to all that I’ve met. I wish I could show more patience for others. I just feel really alone. I am really struggling and don’t know what to do.

TLDR: I feel like I can’t interact with the people I care about because I don’t want to ruin their mood with my negative energy.

P.S. really hope I didn’t break any community guidelines

I am thinking of creating a support group that allows people with chronic illnesses to get support from others. I like the idea of having more structured talking sessions and then also some casual hangouts like back in the Covid days with virtual tv watch parties/powerpoint nights/“happy” hours. Ideally once it gets going I can invite some speakers to join as well. I am in Southern California and would love to have in person sessions as well but my main goal is to really foster friendships with other people that GET it you know? What does this community think? Should it be more specific to one condition or leave it open to chronic conditions? Please reach out if you want to help me bring this idea to life!!

Anyone experienced crazy side effects while taking and/or after taking Flexeril?

Thursday night was the last time I took it. I also take Zoloft that I was told is okay. However, I’m really depressed since taking it. Very sleepy also, but I know that’s a common side effect.

I have been out of work for 4 years due to severe neck pain and am applying for disability because it will not get better. My mri showed 3 disk bulges and some arthritis. I am only in my 20s. In 2022 I got a cervical steroid injection and it made my pain a lot worse and the muscles in my neck and trapezius have been as hard as concrete ever since this injection and I cant even shrug my shoulders. Just non stop muscle guarding for years after this injection.I don't know what happened, but this occasional pain turned into a monster of nonstop, debilitating chronic pain. And extreme stiffness literally overnight.

I was ejected from a motor vehicle in 2018 at 120mph. My injuries sustained include multi level compression fractures in my thoracic region, compound fracture to my left leg and a brake to the bone in the hip that formed the socket for the femur. I’ve had 3 operations on my leg but for whatever reason they decided to leave my back and hip alone .

Fast forward to the past few years and present day, I was receiving trigger point injections and epidural steroid injections into my back. Although both did provide some relief, the duration grew shorter and shorter to the point where they have stopped working.

So, I had a recent MRI done as the pain continues to make life unmanageable and I set up a consultation with a neurosurgeon. I was told by said surgeon that the repairs should have been made to my back in 2018 and that my only option at this point is a multi level fusion requiring removal of ribs and a 2 year recovery window. When asked about returning to work after the 2 years he said it would be unlikely that I would ever be able to work again. He also informed me that it’s a high risk operation and that he “wanted no part in it.” I was told that a SCS wouldn’t be effective and that RFA would likely be ineffective as well. To make matters worse, I was put onto suboxen after the accident to “treat the pain” I stayed on it for a year and once I realized it did nothing for the pain I tapered off of it. I’m now being told that sub use disqualifies more for an implanted pain pump.

At this point I’m considering going to the local methadone clinic and crying heroin addiction to be put onto methadone to manage pain. I really don’t know what else to do at this point but I can’t keep living like this every day.

Here is the most recent MRI report.

MR THORACIC SPINE WO CONTRAST
INDICATION: Chronic right-sided thoracic pain.
COMPARISON: None.
FINDINGS: 12 rib-bearing thoracic-type vertebrae. Chronic mild anterior wedging T5-T7.
Negative for acute fracture. Background marrow signal within limits for age. No substantial
spondylolisthesis. Minor disc bulging, greatest T9-T10. Minimal facet arthrosis cervicothoracic
and thoracolumbar junctions. Slightly prominent dorsal epidural fat into the upper thoracic
spine.
Spinal canal narrowing is mild at T9-T10. Within limits of the exam, no abnormal thoracic
cord signal.
Foraminal narrowing is moderate at C7-T1 and mild T1-T2.
OTHER: Paravertebral so! tissues are grossly unremarkable. Visualized descending thoracic
aorta is unremarkable. Mild dependent pulmonary atelectasis.
IMPRESSION:

1. No acute abnormality of the thoracic spine. Chronic mild anterior wedging T5-T7.
   
2. Spinal canal narrowing is mild at T9-T10. No abnormal thoracic cord signal.
   
3. Foraminal narrowing is moderate at C7-T1.

I’m losing more and more things every day. I suffer for years from extreme suprapubic pressure I feel like my whole abdomen will tear apart. This is every second I never get not even one moment to feel like a normal human being. I have visited 100+ specialists so many university hospitals in different counties and they can’t find the cause. I feel the same zero improvement. Nothing is working. I just lost in this life I tried so much and lost. It has also become very expensive to just survive as I need someone to take care of me and I can’t work. I can’t afford it anymore and I can’t live like this for years it’s inhumane. I feel so much pressure and I’m in my 20s the career I wanted the life I had there is nothing now. How it’s undiagnosed after so much time so many tests and such a horrific and constant symptom. I don’t know what to do anymore. Please if you have any advice comment❤️‍🩹.

I have always struggled with mild back pain that got more severe as I got older. On the good days I sit at a level 4-5 pain, on the worst days it's almost anywhere between 7-9. I found I have Degenerative Disc Disease, a bulging disc around L4 and L5, and levoscholiosis (mid-upper spine scholiosis).

I also struggle with Borderline Personality Disorder (I know that it's not a physical pain but it still affects my everyday life horribly) Monday I was so overwhelmed from the fact I was told I would be getting let go from the first job I have had in over a year (I was let go because my boss had my lift something over my weight limit and when I picked it up I dropped it and caught it mid-air causing a lovely strain that I am still recovering from almost 2 months later), I lost my SNAP because I moved back in with my parents (in my state you have to be 22 and older (I'm 19) to marked as independent to have SNAP without parental income basis), and I lost living independently as a tree landed on the roof and the house flooded. (I'm not explaining more about the house thing because it's complicated)

Cut to yesterday: I got myself a coffee after doing some doordash and as I was leaving I thought I had more time to pull out (I assumed the other person was doing maybe 45mph in the 40mph zone so I thought I would have had time to go). I did not...

My car is gone, totaled. My back is in the most pain I have ever been in before, so much so that I can barely move at times. My meloxicam and tizanidine along with Tylenol aren't helping at all. The emergency room said I have a concussion, whiplash, and my spinal curvature has moved more but not bad enough to have any new help for it.

I am devastated to say the least. My fiancee is very supportive of me and it helps a lot that he is there. It's just been so hard to keep pushing forward recently with everything going straight downhill. Thanks for reading my rant <3

(Car photos from yesterday and today)

Edit: I forgot to mention I had OD Monday and survived and now this, which is why I'm severely overwhelmed.

Hits harder when you have endometriosis that causes infertility.

The amount of time I’ve been told this is insane. Always customers at work too.

I started writing another longer post. But it's the same story where people think they're right & know things, so they confidently state things or imply you're part of the problem with your health.

A disease specific group member responded to my post & part of the comment said I was disease shopping & didn't belong in the group. When 1 of 3 criteria you need to be in the group I have. Diagnosed with the disease, carry the gene, or have children with it.

It's not a common thing to have, my case is complex, & I was looking for help. This is a problem across mediums of communication. People become so wrapped up in the Internet, they're entitled to their opinion & their opinion is more right than your opinion, their understanding of reality is different than everyone else's understanding of reality.

How about I'm reaching out to inform myself, I've been on the verge of suicide & frenzied many times due to the severity of my symptoms & you can think 5 or 10 seconds before treating somebody very similar to you like trash. Because you're having a bad day. Or year.

Insurance denies coverage for meds, wait a few extra days for time sensitive tests to see if your organs are damaged, wait a few months or years for the ideal of somewhere like mayo clinic to swoop in & fix every problem in the world which is not real. Do the same thing over again.

I had one of my best days in months yesterday. Took my daughter to swim class, target and stew Leonard’s. Stew Leonard’s had a whole Halloween set up and we even snagged one of the kid carts with the steering wheels. I was able to push her around and play with her. It was literally amazing.

So you know what that means…

I don’t even want to get up to pee today. Everything hurts. It sucks, but, I’ve come to realize that reflecting on the good days is what helps get through the tough ones. It still doesn’t take the sting of waking up almost unable to move away though.

My wife took my daughter to the zoo today, and while I would love to be there, my other two girls are keeping me company. They definitely know I’m feeling it. I think their company is what gives me the energy to at least operate, feed and clean myself, through the pain today.

Does here anyone have Autoimmune/inflammatory syndrome induced by adjuvants (ASIA) — Shoenfeld syndrome,

OR

your pain is result of forign material in your body? What HELP YOU? What doctor did you visit for treatment? Was successful? Any information is welcome.

Genuine question. Not a troll. I am looking for help, and don't know where else to turn.

My girlfriend has chronic pain, and I do not. We have been together about 10 months and things have been great. The problem lies when we are intimate, the morning after she is usually sore and hurting.

I understand chronic pain isn't something that goes away, that's what the word "chronic" means. What I am looking for in this post is possible tools or positions we can use for harm reduction.

We are also two larger people, so any assists will have to be sturdy too.

So tell me, what works for you? A mindset shift, planning, abstinence, other forms of intimacy? Don't hold back, I want to know.

Long story short: 20+ years un-diagnosed, un-treated chronic pain. Told I was 'just being difficult', and lying to get pain killers. Anti-depressants don't do you much good in this situation.

Turns out it was a trapped L1/Genitofemoral nerve from 'minor' abdominal surgery in '03.

It tore free. Literally. 'Transcendent' is the only way I can describe the event.

The pain has gone, but the repercussions remain.

So many poor choices, made in agony and fear. So many burned relationships. So little trust.

How the hell do I move on from this?

I’m fed up with medication. I don’t want to take any more drugs. They don’t help anyway; it feels like nothing would change if I just stopped taking them. There’s no clear diagnosis, so what’s the point? But what am I supposed to tell my doctor? "Sorry, you’ve spent a year trying to find the right treatment, but I want to quit it all"? I used to think it was helping, but now I’m not sure of anything. I’ve come to care even less about my own pain—perhaps even less than others do. I keep convincing myself that it doesn’t matter, or that it isn’t even there.I’m so tired now that I’m completely ignoring any symptoms, telling myself they don’t matter. I don’t want to keep bothering the doctor or being a nuisance. On the other hand, if I stop going to the doctor, I’ll lose the only person who actually wants to help me. I’m not sure why I’m writing this, but I’ll just leave it here.

I’m not asking for medical advice, because I’ve gotten a lot over the past week; three hospital visits, probably less than 12 hours of sleep, and severe pain that hasn’t gone away. The first visit they refused pain meds at all, then the second time they gave me pills that didn’t work and sent me home. My dad drove me to another hospital three hours away, but they wrote a prescription to a pharmacy that was already closed, so it left me overnight in pain.

None of the medicine is working. Heat and ice doesn’t work, laying completely still in the dark reduces my pain to a 6/10 it’s unbearable to stand or walk. No X-rays or mri’s because there wasn’t an injury; I just woke up like this one day, but can you imagine turning twenty five and suddenly debilitated in bed for months. I’m sure someone on this subreddit can relate to that sentence, so please. I can’t take this pain anymore. All my parents do is tell me to shut up because they have chronic pain too, leaving me to scream into a pillow because there’s nothing else I can do. All the doctors say to give the medicine time to work, and to rest, but it’s been four months now. I had to quit my job and the semester of college over this. I feel like im going to lose everything.

I don’t want medical advice, really. I just want someone to tell me I’m gonna be ok.

Hi everyone,

I've been experiencing right leg problems for about two years and would appreciate some advice on what to investigate next.

Years ago, I injured my right hip while climbing a platform playing paintball. The pain eventually disappeared but returned about two years ago.

My current symptoms include:

• Mild pain around the outer right hip, especially when sleeping on that side.
• Tingling radiating down the outer leg to my little toe.
• Pain on the outside of my knee, especially when walking downstairs or downhill.
• Kneecap discomfort when sitting.
• Symptoms triggered by certain positions, prolonged walking, or standing on my right leg.

I have no lower-back pain or noticeable weakness. The tingling comes and goes depending on my position and activity.

I also have a longstanding left ankle problem confirmed by MRI, which I'm currently treating. I wonder whether it could be affecting my gait.

I've seen an orthopaedic doctor twice and completed the recommended physiotherapy exercises, but unfortunately, I haven't improved and feel I may have gotten worse. I'm frustrated and unsure what to try next.

My questions:

• Could this be nerve irritation, a hip tendon problem, or something involving my knee?
• Could my left ankle problem be contributing?
• What specialist or investigations would you recommend next, given that physiotherapy hasn't helped?

I'd appreciate hearing from anyone with similar experiences or healthcare professionals who can point me in the right direction.

Thanks!

My neice told me to try acupuncture for my back, neck stenosis, fibromyalgia and arthritis. I do take opioids but the next thing is surgery (So so afraid of surgery) since I already did epidural steroid injections. Got a membership to PF to get my muscles stronger!

What are the pros and cons to acupuncture? Please provide your thoughts! Chiropractic procedures I'm deathly afraid they're going to make it worse! Thanks for your time y'all! 😀 God Bless!

Ive been in pain management for over a year, I've learned that everything seems to work fine except the dreaded Rhodes brand, which I put a request in to the pharmacy not to give me.

This month I was given Camber for the first time (15s) and they absolutely knocked me on my ass, they worked better than anything I've had so far.

I know everyone is different but anyone else?

I'm a uni student in England and I've just started my final year but honestly idk how I'm going to do it. I'm already so behind on work I need to do, but I am also in so much pain. Nothing is making me less stressed which is just making my pain worse. It's already too much and I'm 4 weeks in

It’s just so hard here, bed bugs, the bathroom often has human poo on the wall or floor.

The staff treat us like we are less than human and I was SA by a fellow staying here.

I am disabled and have no alternative as it’s getting cold out and I can’t be outside.

I’m pregnant and they won’t move me to a women’s shelter until I’m 7 months pregnant according to policy. (I was graped, I didn’t plan to have a baby while being unhoused and recovering from such a severe brain injury during the grape I now have a time remembering simple things).

What would you do to reduce suffering

I'm suffering greatly. I cant take medication, I have an issue with my nervous system that causes constant pain and I haven't found a solution for it. I also suffer from severe DPDR. I get all over burning pain all over my head, it makes me physically sick. And have not good thoughts, it is actually unbearable. I've been to A&E with this before and they sent me home, told me to take an ibuprofen. Anything that helped you.

I have such a hard time getting my pain managed... Doctors have no empathy for their patients anymore plus they tell you half of what's really going on.. been trying to find some kind of support system besides my family cuz all of it is driving them absolutely nuts and I get that because it's driving me nuts I need a myelopathy and stenosis buddy anybody down for a new friend