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As a chronic pain sufferer, with a diagnosis of a herniated disc along with bone disc degenerative disease, for many years I have needlessly suffered from chronic pain. During the many years of needlessly suffering in pain, I have learned how chronic pain is treated, or should I say undertreated.

First of all, patients seeking treatment from the medical community are greeted with a negative stigma that's associated with chronic pain treatment. This is due for a variety of reasons. Some physicians and healthcare professionals are afraid of the new and ever changing government regulations, patient addiction, diversion, or just the pure lack of knowledge when it comes to treating chronic pain.

Its a sad fact that chronic pain is grossly ignored and undertreated by healthcare professionals. Too many Americans are needlessly & silently suffering from chronic pain. It also appears that doctors are hesitant about what types of treatment is best for people that suffer from constant daily pain. As in my case, a doctor told me that he recommended back surgery. After several second opinions, and talking to many surgery patients who already had surgery with the same diagnosis as me, going under the surgeons knife didn't seem like a reasonable or logical option.

With failed back surgery being very common, and needed follow up surgery from damage or complications due to surgery, and the possibility of permanent nerve damage and paralysis from having surgery, again surgery wasn't worth the risk. But it seems physicians & surgeons try to pressure you into surgery, or some kind of invasive measures so they can justify the prescribing long term narcotic medications.

After trying physical therapy, biofeedback tactics, countless steroid injections, anti-inflammatory, to several different over the counter medicines with no great results, I felt helpless. Luckily, after years of low back and leg pain, I finally found the help needed to address my pain. I am now on a responsible drug therapy program. I no longer feel like a drug addict, or not believed when obtaining the proper pain medication needed to treat my pain. But after years of enduring chronic pain, I know there's so many people like I was, who are still silently & needlessly suffering in pain.

Chronic pain patients are discriminated against tremendously. If someone has tried every treatment program to treat their pain with no positive results, they should be entitled to the proper pain medication needed to address their pain. Chronic pain sufferers should not be a victim of the system and suffer needlessly. I myself am a chronic pain sufferer dedicated to helping other chronic pain sufferers live a more productive and a better quality of life.

Copyright 2005 Robert Gould