My tailbone pain, still searching for a solution

Pawan, India - pawan.navy@yahoo.com

Posted 2021-12-12

My intro-

I am Pawan from Rajasthan, India. I am a 31 years old young man. I am a marine engineer working on ships. I was on my official leave from Feb 2021 to June 2021. I am very fit, regular running, exercising, taking healthy diets and being a marine engineer I must be fit medically and physically all the time.

Tailbone pain story-

July 2021

One day I suddenly starts feeling some pain in tailbone area (previously I didn't know this term). I thought may be due to some wrong exercise or some muscle spasm, so I didn't think about it and continued my daily activities as I used to do.

In few days I had to join ship back but my pain was increasing day by day. I started searching some exercises on YouTube and same I continued for some time but I didn't get any relief from pain.

After that I was thinking about its seriousness and searching for medical help on internet and found some orthopaedic doctors nearby.

5th Aug 2021-

I visited one Orthopaedic doctor by listening my symptoms he said it's coccydynea and prescribed me some antiinflammatory medicines + vitamin C supplement and gave me a coccyx cushion to sit. I myself asked him to do X-RAY because I was worried about any fracture. But X-ray showed nothing.

After taking medicines for 10 days and taking all precautions, nothing changed in pain.

I again visited the same doctor and this time also he was prescribing medicines and I told him sir please investigate first what is the problem, then he wrote for MRI again in MRI also nothing found specific.

After that I changed doctor, this time also I visited an another famous Orthopaedic doctor and he also said there is no treatment for this, he said that there was no problem in the MRI and for pain he also prescribed me some medicines including Tramadol and taught me some exercises which I was doing before also (learned from YouTube videos).

I also visited a chiropractor and he did internally manipulation but I didn't get any relief.

Mid August, my company called me to join the ship in September and I agreed unintentionally, hoping that by the time I will be alright.

After that I researched lot of on the internet and came across one pain management doctor. This doctor offered me to have Ganglion Impar block injection and he said me that this treatment is 99.99% success. I instantly agreed because I had to become fit for joining the ship.

On 2nd September 2021-

I received injection Ganglion Impar block under fluoroscopic guidance, I was happy that after the procedure I was not feeling any pain (actually it was due to local anesthesia). Doctor prescribed tramadol medicines also for 5 days.

After 1 day my pain again started and this time it was more than as it was before. I waited for one more day and then called the doctor and he said don't worry its only injection pain you continue take medicines for 5 days. After 5 days also same, after 7 days also same, the I called him again and he prescribed me some more medicines and asked me that don't think much about it.

I told him sir, its paining more, previously I could sleep at least but now I couldn't lie down on my back, please try to understand. And meanwhile my company called me to come for medical and physical check-up for joining the ship.

Unfortunately I couldn't pass the medical fitness test and returned home and visited the pain management doctor. I told him everything. He said please repeat the MRI, I want to see any infections.

I got MRI and again the MRI was okay other than some local inflammation around coccyx.

I asked me either take medicine for 15 days or I will give some local infiltrations injection around coccyx under ultrasound guidance. I denied for injection and took medicines for 15 days. Unfortunately again my condition was same.

I tried some physiotherapy also but no relief. I visited the pain management doctor again and this time I agreed for local infiltrations injection and this also didn't work for me.

Now I was totally upset and become very sad, was thinking that nothing is working for my pain, and without fitness I couldn't join ship so that I was jobless also and thinking about my future that what if didn't go.....

After that I tried physiotherapy again, internal manipulation again, tried different exercises, different diets supplements but nothing worked. I started feeling some grinding and popping sound coming from my coccyx area. And I was sure that problem is there in my coccyx but why doctor could not find.

I was keep searching on internet regarding coccydynea and its treatments, I discussed my issue to many online doctors and during this time only I came to know this website.

Now in my case I was developing continuous pain in my coccyx and even strong painkillers not working for me... I tried Tramadol, Tapentadol, Gabapentin etc. these all medicines didn't work for my pain but after taking that I some how managed to sleep in the night.

Now I was thinking about surgery and watched many YouTube videos of coccygectomy and read many stories of coccygectomy patients on this sites. I was worried about not getting any relief even after surgery also.

Then same time I came across one doctor who asked me in your case before surgery try the Radio-frequency ablations treatment. I also thought that lets try this also before surgery and good part was this was covered by my health insurance.

On 16 November 2021-

I went for Radio-frequency ablations treatment, ohh god nothing worked for me... I depressed...!!!!

Now finally I decided to go for surgery but in India I searched only few doctors who perform this surgery that also only 1 or 2 per year. I talked to 3-4 doctors but all are saying that there is 80% chances of relief from this surgery but I didn't personally met the doctors I only messaged them and they replied.

I planned to visit spine surgeon Dr. Damandeep Singh from Ludhiana, Punjab, India mentioned here on this site by one patient but I couldn't get story of that patient.

I hope that I will get some positive result from the surgery.

Thanks Jon for creating this website, its very informative and helpful patients like me who only have only one hope remaining for my future and my life, for my career.

Update, 2023-01-08

After surgery I got a wound infection and that took almost 4 months to heal. After surgery I started a continuous pain deep behind the coccyx, when I try to find my pain location with the help of my finger I can not able to actually find the location of pain. The pain feels still deep inside.

I explained many times this condition to my surgeon but he couldn't diagnose my pain cause. He gave me one injection also at that site but that didn't work at all. I was taking many medicines like Gabapentin, pregabalin, Tramadol, methylcobalamin etc. But nothing worked on my pain.

I consulted a proctologist for anal examination but he also couldn't find any thing in anal canal. All the doctors I consulted till now all says that its nerve pain, nerve pain, nerve pain... But no one actually gave any solution to relieve this pain. No medicine worked on this pain.

Last 4-5 months I am not taking any consultation from any doctors and also not taking any medicines but I am tolerating this pain some how.

My financial condition is very weak now. I lost my job. I lost my life and everything. 2 years before my life was on boom, I never thought of this kind of condition of mine at this young age of 32 years old.

If you have any suggestions or any treatment please help me. I am hoping that if I get relief from this pain while sleeping and standing that will be more than enough for me. Because right now I am having pain 24/7 whether standing, sleeping, walking, sitting (increases more even using cushion).

Note from Jon Miles:

I emailed more than a year after this story was posted, to ask for an update, as the long-term outcome of treatment is of great interest. In this case I did not get a reply.