My Name is Craig Silko. I have been suffering from LPHS since I was 12 years old. I was actually diagnosed when I was 17 because it took so long to rule out every other possible medical reasoning behind the constant pain and blood in urine. I have been treated with many medications but none actually rid the pain completely. Under the advise of my first surgeon (Dr. John Marks, NYC), I went to a surgeon (Dr. Zelik Frischer, SUNY Stony Brook, Long Island, NY) to undergo a Renal Autotransplantation. Dr. Frischer performed the surgery in May of 2000 when I was 13 years into the syndrome.

Back in May 2002 I was invovled in a bad motorcycle accident. I was fortunate to survive, but now I'm left to deal w/ the aftermath of what happened to me that day. Due to all the fractures in my left leg,and all the hardware that is left inside,my problems now extend to the rest of my body. My hips on both sides are starting break down. My lower back has been severly painful. And also my neck has been a huge problem, causing severe migrains and shoulder pain. I wish there wasn't such a stigma placed on pain medication. It seems so far the only thing to help me through a long day.

I am a 43 yr old female with a long history of kidney stones going back 18 yrs. 2 yrs ago I started having chronic left sided kidney pain with the same type of symptoms as the stones however no stones. It has taken me the full 2 years to convince the medical community I am not a drug addict nor am I suffering from a mental disorder of any kind. I am currently being treated by the pain clinic in my area and along with oral narcotic medication I am getting injections into the nerve area around my kidney with long acting anestetic medication.

hi i'm 21 years old and 5 weeks ago i was diagnosed with lphs. it took the doctors 5 years and 17 ops to finally diagnose me.

i dont see how doctors can leave a human being in pain as its against there Hippocratic oath. if i was an animal they would put me down as i'm a human i have to live with the pain but i dont think i can.

i am looking for people who know what i am going through because i need to talk to them . right now there is no light at the end of the tunnel.

My name is Tara and I am from Ohio. I am 29 years old. I have a daughter that is 8. Everything she knows is mommy being sick.

I have Lupus and Loin Pain Hematuria Syndrome. It struck me in 2000. I had several kidney stones and had to have surgery to remove them. Ever since I have had dibilitating pain. I went to many urologist and they all told me the pain was in my head. went on antidepressants and began thinking maybe it was me! I met a wonderful urologist who said I was the first patient he had diagnosed with LPHS. That's when all my medications started being prescribed. The pain was not being taken care of. I could barely get out of bed. I was vomitting every other day. I had lost 30 pounds in 4 weeks. I slept 20 hours out of everyday. How could I take care of my daughter? My pain was not my first worry but my daughter seeing me that way and worrying what kind of chances she will have in getting these diseases. That thought just killed me. My depression sunk even lower and I was going through a divorce. I noticed I was a totally different person and hated it.

I started physical therpay Monday. They showed me them exercises. I have alot of pain when doing them. More on the right side. Its always the right side. I can do them. I have been told at this time, chiro care is not good. Until I get a MRI.

I was in a serious car accident 10 years ago. Shattered the bone in my right arm. Had a rod, pins, wire put into the arm for six months. For bone to grow back. Took a year to get use of the arm back. Since then, downhill. Not the same since. I am lopsided in posture. The right side of my body is taller by 2 inches. Chiroprators have tried to straighten it. My hip is also not right. I most likely got a pinched nerve. I have also scars that took quite a time to accept, but have now.

Banker hopes to help others get off drugs

Kristi Metzger had it all: a job she loved as a bank vice president, loving family and friends, community activities, a house to shelter her at the end of a productive day.

And a secret.

Metzger was addicted to the prescription pain reliever Vicodin.

After 10 surgeries in 15 years in a fruitless effort to relieve chronic pain caused by endometriosis, Metzger had almost quadrupled the maximum number of Vicodin she was allowed. And to keep her secret, she had turned into a liar.

Now, after two stays in chemical dependency treatment centers, Metzger, 31, has decided to keep that secret no longer. She has begun talking to civic groups about her addiction to painkillers and the resources available.