Suicide is a huge issue for chronic pain patients and their loved ones. Recently, we have heard from family members whose lives have been impacted.
I read this in a comment section on one of our National Pain Report stories and realized almost immediately that this must be shared with our audience. It is a story from a woman, Marilyn Pittman, whose sister committed suicide.
Here’s what she shared!
It has finally happened! My sister killed herself 2 weeks ago after 20 +years being treated like an addict from her own pain doctor. He had forced her down to a very low dose of morphine. The whole family has been researching to see possibly an answer for her pain. Since it was never just one issue, her husband was taking her to other doctor who specializes in neck, back and joints…no help despite having 5 back surgeries.
At least before the taper down, she could manage little trips to shop for groceries and she did not talk about suicide all the time. When she was at home, she was in bed. Last time I saw her was Christmas day which she had insisted on cooking dinner. A month and two days later, she died in her bed.
This opioid crisis is just fine for the bad people, but I think the doctors can determine who is legit and who is really in desperate need. I so wish that the powers to be would look at the percentage of good people suffering needless and chronic pain. They want to have a good quality of life, but is anybody really listening?
The next note we heard from was a man who may have been named Joseph Magnum from Las Vega and he shared a similar and disturbing story:
This angers me to the core. Our family just suffered a tremendous loss. January 5th my wife’s cousin Chris took his life with a gun blast to the head. Years prior Chris worked on a set in Las Vegas that dealt with pyrotechnics. His coworker and him were up on ladders working above the parking garage at one of the casinos downtown. His coworker began to fall, and Chris sprang into action and grabbed him preventing his certain death. (He would have fallen 4 stories to the pavement.) During this heroic act Chris (in his twenties) ruined his lumbar spine. Constantly in pain he managed for many years with opioids. The last conversation I had with him which was December 25th, 2019 at my in laws house. He stated that he was tired of his pain management doctor not treating his pain with the minimal medication he was receiving would leave him a week and a half in agonizing pain and withdrawal on a monthly basis. I sympathized with him. I too suffer in silence due to an unknown anomaly I inherited from my mother which causes degradation of the nerves in my lower legs and arms. Constantly burning twitching and cramping. 7 years later no diagnosis or suggestions for treating this often-debilitating pain other than weight loss and exercise. This tragic event was especially painful as his sister Morgan went into labor with the first grand baby for Chris mother a week later. Can you imagine mourning your child dying and then having your first grandbaby born a week later? This has got to stop! How many more people will die or suffer?! The opioid crisis is at the border and being manufactured and cultivated in underground and outdoor labs in the jungles. Not in our doctor’s offices. This is evident in the statistics of overdoses since the CDC and DEA criminalized chronic pain patient prescribing. God speed everybody! Much love and hope for you if you are struggling with pain! Remember there are others that fight the same fight and winning the same war just like you are!
So there you are….do you have a similar story to share? Do you think these stories resonate with you? What is your story?