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need guidance for tailbone pain

Hi there,

I am looking for any advice you may have.  I injured my tailbone this past Jan 2020.  I went to the Urgent Care the following day and the xray showed no injury.  I later had another xray and MRI done at a hospital this past June, and the MRI showed a healed fracture.  The orthopedic dr said there was nothing he could do for me and was unwilling to prescribe pain meds.   They did a steroid injection which did not help.
However Percocet Rx'd by my generral PA had been working for me, and I had been taking it twice a day.  She later told me she would not continue prescribing it and I needed to go to a specialist for pain management.
I then saw a spine dr who did a different type of steroid injection on 2 separate times, trying to target the nerves that are causing me pain. Again,  the shots had no effectiveness for my pain.  They then said there is nothing they can really do for me but agreed to "bridge " me with Percocet until I could be seen by a general chronic pain specialist.
   I recently saw the new pain specialist but they show no caring nor concern. The only thing they recommend is an epidural steroid injection which I will have done later this week.
    I have diligently been icing my back and I also use a daily Lidocaine patch -both provide minimal short term relief.
I also take Lyrica 75 mg, three times a day.

Any advice you have is much appreciated.
-jodi
3 Responses
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Avatar universal
So sorry for your pain.  I broke mine 20 years ago giving birth and it still tears it’s ugly head if I sit too long or in an awkward position.  I cannot sit on a hard chair period.

I have consulted an ortho doctor several times over the years and they offer nothing but what’s already been mentioned.  I take hydrocodone for migraines so I imagine my tailbone pain would be much worse if I didn’t.
Not trying to scare you because ortho doctor says my case is unusual but it happens.

I did have an ortho once tell me the ONLY thing they could offer was removing the tailbone and then said he wouldn’t let a doctor do that if he were me!

Hope yours resolved soon!

Cindy
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
I myself have been dealing with tailbone pain for almost 3 years.  I don't know how or why, but a recent MRI shows that I apparently had fractured it at some point, and it healed.  I've been told that the residual pain of a healed tailbone fracture may never go away, or at best take several more years of sitting on a cushion or "donut" to go away.  Unfortunately it seems that in that area of the body there isn't much they're able to do other than manage pain, and if you take narcotic painkillers you're running the risk of addiction and worse problems down the line.  If you aren't already using one try a Coccydynia cushion, as those are designed specifically to allow you to sit comfortable while redirecting the pressure away from you coccyx.
Helpful - 0
973741 tn?1342342773
A fractured sacrum is painful but typically left to heal on it's own anyway.  We've got a child we're close to that had this happen and we learned a lot about it since them.  Have you tried physical therapy?  This may be your best bet to ultimately heal.  It sounds like they are trying to wean you away from the concept of narcotic pain relief which may ultimately be in your best interest.  But I know that's hard.  I hope the epidural steroid helps and definitely see a Pt.  I'm sorry you are going through this.
Helpful - 0
2 Comments
Thank you!  I’ve already had 8 sessions of PT and she wants to see me two more times and that’s it. I do the home exercises she recommended.
I’ve fractured my tailbone with displacement twice. There is really nothing that can be done, other than injections and perhaps sitting on a donut/pillow. Since mine has been displaced twice, other than some anti inflammatory meds temporarily, and using a donut to sit on, there really isn’t much else.
You shouldn’t be experiencing pain this long after the injury.
The nerves end in the spinal cord end higher up in the coccyx, so the odds of on going nerve issues are rather slim.
Have you tried just anti inflammatory meds to ease any inflammation. Using a pillow to cushion your buttocks when sitting?
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