Re: Newbie...my story...and questions...sorry so long.

[Guest guest]

Hi Robin...

Back pain knows no limitations when it comes to age. Apply for your disability.

Don't worry, almost everyone gets denied the first and second time, so don't

give up. Get a lawyer to help you...more is explained later in this email about

that.

What part of SC are you in? I used to live in the ton area.

As for the chiropractor...might be worth it to go to another chiro and get a

second opinion. Sounds like something fishy going on here. Go in and request

that the medical file be copied right now, while you wait (and be prepared to

wait awhile). Or call and make an appt under your middle and maiden name. That

way you know she has the time to copy them, but also be prepared to pay for that

visit. Might be worth it. Unless she gives out free consults, and then just make

an appt for that. That way, again, you know she has scheduled the time for you.

Doesn't she have office staff to do that? There is also the " The next time I

come in here, I am bringing my attorney " threat, but make sure you are able to

back that threat up. Most attorneys will do free initial consults also. Pick one

that specializes in social security law and go in and discuss a disability case

with him/her, and then bring up the chiro and your difficulties.

Good luck!

>

> From: power_of_3x3@...

> Date: 2004/09/18 Sat AM 01:50:42 CDT

> spinaldisorderssupport

> Subject: Newbie...my story...and questions...sorry

so long.

>

>

Viv in GA

[Guest guest]

Thanks for the reply. I guess in the back of my mind, I knew there

were others out there who possibly had pain like mine and couldn't

sleep like I can't, but until now, most of the poeple I've known

don't quite realize that someone can be in such pain. Most of the

people around me have their own pains to deal with but I feel they

don't understand to extent to which mine is. I've always constantly

felt like no one understood and I've always felt like most people

would just see me as a complainer, a whiner, weak, or lazy when I

tried to explain the extent of my pain. And I can't count how many

times I've been told " just try to push through it and you'll be

alright " .

Anyway as far as the chiroprator...you mentioned that they have 30

days to hand over the records. Well it's been exactly 62 days. Does

it count that she has told me she's sent them even though my doctor

is telling me they haven't gotten anything from her? If it all

rely's on the date I signed the release forms, what can I do next? I

am really kicking myself that I didn't just demand my records the

last time I was there, but instead I guess I got so excited when she

was actually telling me that she sent the records to my doctor, which

before she was just ignoring me.

As far as the spondylothesis and spondolothesis, that sounds like

what she keeps telling me but the definition doesn't match up to what

she's told me from the xrays. Basically this is what I know about

what she's told me: 1) my pelvic bones are smaller than most peoples

2) one side of my pelvic bones is shorter than the other on the

bottom almost like it hadn't formed all the way which has left the

middle hole which normally looks like a circle or heart-like looking

more like a wopsided egg shaped hole 3) my two pelvic bones are not

aligned correctly...one side is shifted forward more than the other.

I can even feel this when I sit on any no-cushioned surface 4) the

holes in the bottom of the pelvic bone where the nerves go to the

leg: one side is smaller than the other side so that the nerve is

actually rubbing on the bone which is probably causing my severe leg

pains. This is not including the neck xrays that were done because

of my headaches: which she found that I had too big of a gap in one

of my neck vertabrae's which is probably causing my headaches...but

that's a whole other story...LOL.

Now from all that, I really don't know where the spondo or

spondylothesis would come in at, unless there is something else she's

seen now. There's really no telling.

Now my previous doctor had xrays done on my back, but they always

came back negative. Then, believe it or not, I started working for

my chiropractor (yes the one I'm having problems with) and was able

to really get a chance to look at the xray forms they usually send

out. I notice right there on the forms it asks for what the patient

is complaining of, and 99.9% of the time, my doctors have never

filled that out, not even with anyone I know. So I started thinking

about it and realized that maybe that's why the xray technicians they

sent me to always came back as negative...because they didn't know

what to look for and were probably just looking for major things like

breaks and fractures. Anyway, while I was working at my

chiropractor's office, I ended up changing doctors to the doctor I

have now. I finally got insurance through my husband's job and

decided to put it to good use. I requested from my new doctor to

have MRI's and Xray's done on my pelvic area and back and requested

that I actually take the forms to the xray place myself instead of

them calling it in or sending it themselves. By the way, most if not

all the doctors here in my town contract their xrays out to a local

xray place. So I decided this time to completely fill out the form

myself where it asked for patient symptoms and listed everything I

was complaining of. It was from that round of xray's and mri's that

they found the scoliosis and spinal stenosis. I don't feel I can

really blame the doctor because even if they did get the xray's, I'm

not sure if my doctor or any doctor here would know what they are

looking at. I think that's partly why they contract them out like

that.

Well that's a little more about my situation. Hope that added a

little more and hope to get some more suggestions if you have them.

Oh, I tried clicking on the chat on the left side of the screen, and

all I got as a blank screen that said chat at the top and chat help

on the right. I clicked on the chat help but all it has was the

requirements which I met all of them. Any idea as to why that didn't

work?

Thanks again ,

Robin

> Good morning Robin, you will soon find quite a few of us up at all

hours of the night due to the inability to sleep. By law (HIPPA) the

DR has 30 days from the time of receiving your request and release

your records. You can by law go pick them up with request in hand,

but you will find that some DR's will draw it out the full 30 days

until they release the records. I used to work for a medical

retrieval company that did nothing but retrieve medical records for

insurance, malpractice etc, and they can be buttheads. You mentioned

sponda .... there is spondylothesis and spondolothesis (I believe I

spelled them right or close) spondy I believe is when the vertabrae

moves inward (grades as the DR refer to them) and sponda is where the

vertabrae moves outward. I dont know on spondys being from birth,

now a pars defect (in which the pars - the little wings that

interlocks the vertabrae) is more or less a fracture of the pars and

that can be I believe from birth, but % of people it

> happens to in adolescence and go on through life not even knowing

until (god forbid) the are diag. with a spondy or spondo. Now if

your DR (not the quackpractor) took pics of your back, and he is a

good DR then he/she would of found it. Have you maybe checked into a

spine specialist? That may be the route to go, but dont ease up on

the quack, and basically if it has been this long, then demand your

records including the pics. Now the pain could be from a tipped

pelvis also, may be something to check into. But once again, your

reg. docs should of picked up on this. We here all know it is very

frustrating and yes we all feel helpless, and I tell ya what I hate

it.

>

> Good luck and if you wanna chat, just come on in. Oh yeah

welcome!!!

>

>

>

[Guest guest]

" Back pain knows no limitations when it comes to age. " ...AMEN TO THAT!

Thanks for replying Viv...I left some more info too if you want

to go look.

I talked it over with my husband this afternoon and he told me that I

should go ahead and apply for disability. I wasn't sure how he

really felt about it because he's one of those that's always tried to

encourage me by telling me to push through the pain. But since our

talk, I'm feeling a little better about it, but I still feel

embarassed and I know that once I actually go up there I'm going to

feel like I'm being put on trial or something. Now it's just a

matter of figuring out a day when my husbands not working and can

take me up there.

Just curious if you know...why do you get turned down so much by

disability if you have valid proof that you are in a considerable

ammount of pain? Plus, do you keep filling out the same forms over

and over or is it a matter of them asking you for more and more

proof? I've been told they may even send you to their own doctors

and specialist, but would I have to pay out of pocket to get sent to

their doctors? And what happens if I can't afford it?

Should I get a lawyer after the first time they deny me? Would that

almost ensure that I would get the disability the next time?

I live near Orangeburg County.

I really wish I could afford to just visit another chiropracter.

I've debated it several times, but money is stretched so tight as it

is, I can't even afford my pain medicines anymore. And when I mean

thin, I'm talking around $30 to live off of for 2 weeks, after the

bills are paid.

Like I said to , I'm kicking myself for not demanding my records

the other day went I dropped by and she told me she had faxed them to

my doctor. So now it's just a matter of waiting for my husband to

have a day off so I can go up there again, and just hope she's open.

As I explained to , I used to work for her also so she would

know it was me. She won't just allow walk-in's. You have to go and

fill out papers first. Plus she always checks her caller ID, and if

it isn't a customer she knows, she'll let the answering machine get

it. As far as office staff, she doesn't have any. When she hired

me, it was just me and her, and that was it. I think once I refiled

and straightened all of her files for her, she figured she didn't

need me anymore. You may ask, why didn't you just make a copy while

you were there. Well, because she didn't hardly keep files. I had

to look in my file at one time when I was straightening all of them

and found out that she only had documentation of my first visit in my

file and nothing else. So I do know that in order to get this xray

report she says she's write up, she'd have to go back to my xrays and

actually look at them to remember. As far as all the files, she'd

have to remember the dates I came by heart I guess. I kept really

good records of when I went there and what I had done and what we

talked about, but I know she didn't, so if I can get ANYTHING out of

her it'd be a miricle. Needless to say I will NEVER go back to her.

I know when I first started going to her she had one secretary and I

believe that's all she's ever had. But now, she doesn't have anyone

working for her. Well, I take that back, when I went there the other

day, she had her 11 year old sitting up at the front desk feeding her

1 year old. LOL That's one reason I would never go back to her.

When I first started going to her she seemed pretty professional,

then as time went by, she started bringing her kids to the office and

letting them run around and barge in rooms when they wanted to, etc.

The time I initially asked her if I could write down the condition I

had, the place looked horrible. She had kids toys scattered all over

the floor and they were running wild. Which by the way, on that day

when I asked if she had time to look at the xrays while i waited, she

told me she was swamped and didn't have time while she was printing

cartoon stickers out for her kids on her printer...plus she didn't

have any customers at the time. But I didn't get upset, I just left

hoping that she would actually do it this time.

Oh and the first time I went to her and asked her if she could send

my records to my doctor, I made the comment " on the advice of my

attorney, I need to have my records forwarded to my doctor " . That

was the time she said, " Ok, no problem, I'll do that at the end of

the day " , which she never did, and that was the start of my calls to

her and her ignoring me until i finally got a letter saying that I

needed a release form etc.

I think I will talk to my attorney about it though. Although I'm a

little worried about how much it will cost me. Should I try for

disability first before I talk to him about the chiropractor and

disability?

Hope this helps a little and hope you can give some more advice.

Thanks Viv,

Robin

> Hi Robin...

> Back pain knows no limitations when it comes to age. Apply for your

disability. Don't worry, almost everyone gets denied the first and

second time, so don't give up. Get a lawyer to help you...more is

explained later in this email about that.

> What part of SC are you in? I used to live in the ton area.

> As for the chiropractor...might be worth it to go to another chiro

and get a second opinion. Sounds like something fishy going on here.

Go in and request that the medical file be copied right now, while

you wait (and be prepared to wait awhile). Or call and make an appt

under your middle and maiden name. That way you know she has the time

to copy them, but also be prepared to pay for that visit. Might be

worth it. Unless she gives out free consults, and then just make an

appt for that. That way, again, you know she has scheduled the time

for you. Doesn't she have office staff to do that? There is also

the " The next time I come in here, I am bringing my attorney " threat,

but make sure you are able to back that threat up. Most attorneys

will do free initial consults also. Pick one that specializes in

social security law and go in and discuss a disability case with

him/her, and then bring up the chiro and your difficulties.

> Good luck!

>

> >

> > From: power_of_3x3@y...

> > Date: 2004/09/18 Sat AM 01:50:42 CDT

> > spinaldisorderssupport

> > Subject: Newbie...my story...and

questions...sorry so long.

> >

> >

>

> Viv in GA

>

>

>