Hello All!
I'm Cassandra Quakenbush, but everyone calls me Cassee. I'm a 27 year old mother of one beautiful almost 6 year old son named Joshua. He is my life first and foremost but at the moment he lives with his father as I am getting back on my feet. I have a wonderful boyfriend named Branden, who is probably the best boyfriend I could have dealing with something like fibromyalgia. I am in the process of getting back into classes at the local community college, but I am more worried about gaining employment first. I actually just moved here to Coldwater, MI on December 1st, so I have only been here for a little more than a month. I am a Kalamazoo, MI native, born and raised. I moved here to be with Branden and to take the chance at starting a new page in my life in a new place. A choice I do not regret at all. For Christmas Branden got me a beautiful black and white pit bull puppy, which I named Roxy. Branden works a ton of overtime so he is usually at work or asleep. He figured a dog would be a great companion for me while he is gone, and he was right. Roxy is about 6-7 months old and as sweet as can be.
Medically speaking I suffer from many disorders, diseases, and syndromes. I blame this on bad genetics, as I am quite young to have the list of problems I have. I suffer from migraine headaches, multiple psychological problems, asthma, GERD, esophageal ulcers, IBS, and a few other minor problems. I'm actually going in for my first surgery ever on this coming Monday to have my gull bladder removed, as I have multiple gull stones. I'm kinda nervous about that but not because of the type of surgery. I'm nervous because this is the first time I'm going under anesthesia to the point where I will not be able to breath on my own. Luckily I have a great personal support ring between Branden, my family, and my friends so no matter what I have to endure I know someone has got my back!
Now to speak of my fibromyalgia. I started experiencing random pain/stiffness and moderate muscle spasms within hours of giving birth to my son in March of 2008. As the months went by I started to experience more pain/stiffness/muscle spasms, moderate to severe fatigue, more frequent migraines, changes in my mind, 'fibrofog', more frequent gastro problems, and many of the other classic fibromyalgia symptoms. Many of the doctors at first saw me as a 21-23 year old seeking drugs and made it clear that's what they believed. In 2009 I went to the walk-in clinic at my doctors office for fibro related problems and that is when I met the most wonderful doctor that I have had the pleasure of being under his/her care. Dr. Goodwin D.O. listened to me, believed me, and treated me the way anyone suffering from any disease should be treated. He treated me with narcotic pain relievers, Gabapentin, and anti-depressants for a few years until I opted to discontinue use of opiates in early 2013. The longer I was on them the more I 'needed' them and the less effective they were on my pain. Because I was on opiates as long as I was, I voluntarily chose to seek treatment for opiate addiction and completed 2 weeks of residential rehabilitation. I feel that was the best choice I ever made. Tomorrow, January 9th will be a year since I checked myself into treatment and that excites me very much! I can't honestly say I haven't used opiates in the last year though. I was given vicoden when I had a tooth pulled and recently when I went into the ER and found out I needed my gull bladder removed they gave me a shot of dilaudid, so only in times that it was necessary. Opiates actually work for my pain now that I use them only when in dire need. Even though they work for me now I still do not desire to resume narcotic treatment for my pain, and mostly likely never will. Dr. Goodwin now has me on 50-100mg of Ultram as needed for acute pain and 800mg of Gabapentin 3 times a day for preventative purposes and also Gabapentin has an affect on my normally severe panic/anxiety disorder. I also use Lomotil 2.5mg as needed for IBS symptoms, Phenergan 25mg as needed for nausua, Imiterx 100mg as need for migraines, and asprin to supplement the Ultram for acute pain.
I have been through a lot at such a young age but anything I can do to help anyone who needs it, I'm here. I'm not perfect and never will be but I am very understanding and I great listener. I am also open to any suggestions for any non-narcotic treatment ideas or option for fibro pain. Also I can give advice on anyone who thinks they may be developing/have developed an opiate addiction. It can be hard to accept the idea but once it sinks in, reaching out for help becomes a little easier.
Thank you for taking the time to read my introduction and for the warm welcome into this community. I wish you all a Happy New Year!!