View Full Version : it's starting to build up again
Hello
I have my GP appointment on Friday about my neck pain and going to ask for a private MRI and hopefully have it done next week.
I'm terrified what it might show but I've been putting it off for too long.
I know I have been slated and told off on here for not going for physio first but that is my plan if the MRI is clear.
I want the MRI first because if I go and get physio i dont think i will give it a chance and in the back of my mind i just want an MRI scan.
I do actually think the MRI will reveal something nasty which is so sad because my friends and family will be gob smacked as they've all forgotten about it.
I'm not telling anyone except my partner that I'm going for it.
nomorepanic
08-01-14, 14:18
How much is that going to cost then Darren?
I have done a bit of research and between £250 and £500 depending on where I want to go.
I think i will go to the spire and thats just over £300 for a neck scan.
my concern is that it's me ordering these tests and don't really know what i'm doing. my gp should be finding out what is wrong with my neck!
Didn't you already have an MRI on the NHS?
My guess is your problem is muscular and caused primarily by anxiety. The scan will most likely show nothing or at MOST a small pinch in a nerve somewhere (which they can't do anything about anyway).
To be blunt, you have had this anxiety and pain a long time - if there was anything seriously wrong it would have got worse and be causing serious* symptoms by now.
*note I am NOT trying to say your pain isn't serious. Chronic pain is horrible. Also note the GP doesn't have to order you a scan if he doesn't think it is in your best interests.
Didn't you already have an MRI on the NHS?
My guess is your problem is muscular and caused primarily by anxiety. The scan will most likely show nothing or at MOST a small pinch in a nerve somewhere (which they can't do anything about anyway).
To be blunt, you have had this anxiety and pain a long time - if there was anything seriously wrong it would have got worse and be causing serious* symptoms by now.
*note I am NOT trying to say your pain isn't serious. Chronic pain is horrible. Also note the GP doesn't have to order you a scan if he doesn't think it is in your best interests.
The doctors have also been 'guessing' what the pain is. My consultant haematologist wrote in my discharge letter that she was unsure what was causing the pain.
The fact my symptoms have not got worst is the only thing that gives me comfort.
All I want is pain relief now and the only way I'm going to find that is by finding the root cause.
Well if this is the step that will finally get you to physio and you are prepared to pay then go for it.
I still think you need to apply your rational mind to this though: how big is a human neck? Think about it for a moment. It's not that big a thing is it, either in length or circumference? And what you see is the walls that surround your throat, it's not even a solid object.
Given all that, it should be fairly logical that if you had had a tumour growing unchecked in that area since last May it would have spread somewhere. It would have have grown into your brain and be doing serious damage - you wouldn't be able to function normally. Or it would have grown into your throat and be obstructing your breathing. Or it would have grown externally and be visible on the outside.
It would not, at this stage, be completely invisible and giving you the same level of pain that you had at the beginning. It just couldn't. You would be seriously ill and be in unbearable pain which would have got progressively worse. As you've said yourself, that hasn't happened.
Muscle or nerve pain, on the other hand, can stay at the same level for weeks, months or even years without treatment and is more or less invisible.
Given your current symptoms, Which is more likely do you think?
All I want is pain relief now and the only way I'm going to find that is by finding the root cause.
That's not usually true with chronic pain, though, and with soft-tissue problems testing and scans aren't going to get you to the root cause anyway.
I think you're going on a model of medicine that's based on cancer treatment without realizing that it doesn't work for other stuff. Doctors aren't making guesses because they're slackers; they're making guesses because that's how you deal with chronic soft-tissue pain--medicine doesn't offer certainty in that area. Sometimes treating soft-tissue pain can give you insight into what's contributed to it ("Oh, I lean on the arm on that side when I type on the computer"), but just as often you never do--it's just the way your body adapted, and now you need to redirect it a little so it's not overusing the wrong muscles. The goal is to change the future more than to understand the past.
What's concerned me about your posts generally is that you sound more determined to have cancer than to feel better; additionally, you seem really invested in the idea that you've been badly treated by doctors, and I worry that you won't look into a physio because it might mean that the doctors treated you appropriately. Why can't you at least make an appointment with the physio and do the repeat scan you want, rather than making it either/or? I hate to think how long you've been spending on this when you could have been feeling better--why not broaden your approach?
That's not usually true with chronic pain, though, and with soft-tissue problems testing and scans aren't going to get you to the root cause anyway.
I think you're going on a model of medicine that's based on cancer treatment without realizing that it doesn't work for other stuff. Doctors aren't making guesses because they're slackers; they're making guesses because that's how you deal with chronic soft-tissue pain--medicine doesn't offer certainty in that area. Sometimes treating soft-tissue pain can give you insight into what's contributed to it ("Oh, I lean on the arm on that side when I type on the computer"), but just as often you never do--it's just the way your body adapted, and now you need to redirect it a little so it's not overusing the wrong muscles. The goal is to change the future more than to understand the past.
The bits in bold - I've said the same things or very similar to Darren on numerous occasions. I know from experience that one can experience considerable pain 'just' from soft tissue dysfunction - note dysfunction not necessarily even a detectable injury.
Just google fibromyalgia or myofascial pain syndrome. Two disorders that can cause severe pain in the muscles and soft tissue but will not show abnormalities on X-ray, MRI, CT, etc. And most importantly are NOT linked with cancer or early death!
Darren, you should be looking for a way to manage the pain better (as it appears to be the main symptom you talk about). Seeing a physio or pain management doctor would be a start. There are also numerous self-help options: relaxation, meditation, over the counter medications, heat-pads, etc. Trying to keep testing for something that isn't there will not help you function better.
Hi Darren,
I have to jump on the band wagon with what the others are saying. I've taken the time to read through your posts and while I don't doubt that you're experiencing pain and symptoms, I just don't feel they're sinister in nature. Keep in mind that when a cat chases it's tail, it sometimes catches it only to discover it's just a tail ;)
I hope you seek treatment for the root of the issues.
Positive thoughts and good luck!
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