Spinal Cord Stimulator: Psych Eval and Approval

In order to get approved for the Spinal Cord Stimulator, as I mentioned before, I had to undergo a psychological evaluation. I went to the psychologist's office 2 weeks ago, went through the charade, and went home to wait. A week and a half later, I was notified that I passed the evaluation, and therefore would be allowed to continue on to the trial round. I am thrilled I get to do the trial stimulator, and am keeping my fingers crossed that it helps the flank pain. I will be at the surgery center tomorrow morning getting the leads inserted!

For those of you interested in the psychological evaluation, the rest of this post is dedicated to the appointment, and I am writing it so you have some sort of idea what you are in for. I certainly would have loved to have had some insight to this process beforehand. I jotted down the names of the tests while at the office so I could leave them in this post for you. Hopefully this helps anyone who may have to undergo this same scrutiny.

The psychologist's office was supposed to send paperwork for me to complete before my appointment, but they rushed me in due to a cancellation, so the papers hadn't even arrived in the mail. It wasn't a big deal, it just made the appointment even longer. I was in the office filling out questionnaires and completing multiple choice and true/false tests for roughly four hours, then I had an hour-long appointment with the doctor. By the end, not only was my back/flank on fire, my hands and wrists were hurting me so much I had to go sit in my car with ice packs on them for a half-hour before I was able to drive away. While I understand that psychological factors play a big part in patient care, and especially treatment for chronic pain patients, I was appalled at the length in which I had to prove my pain to a doctor who had never even met me. I was frustrated that I was being asked asinine questions like, "Do you enjoy science?," "Would you like to be an artist?," and "Was there ever a time when you were a child that you were considered a trouble-maker?"

I found myself over-thinking every question during the appointment. There were multiple questions asking if I enjoy crime shows. If I answered "yes" to these questions, would it make me seem like I was interested in crime, murder, violence? I love the show Law & Order: SVU, but, what would it mean for my horrific flank pain if I said I enjoy watching it? I also had to answer a question about being gay, like that has anything to do with my flank pain. Hours and hours of questions, mostly personality tests. I was hurting so badly, I was having a hard enough time focusing, let alone filling in the bubbles on the scantron sheets. I barely finished, really had to push myself to complete all of the tests. There must have been over 2,000 questions, and that isn't an exaggeration. Information regarding the two largest tests is below.


LAQ-2: The Life Assessment Questionnaire (click here to view entire test):

According to HealthNetSolutions, "The LAQ-2 is a well-validated instrument for determining the likelihood of deception and malingering in the chronic pain population. The majority of the LAQ-2 requires patients to indicate if they are experiencing various physical and psychological symptoms. They are queried about symptom complaints across all major bodily systems. Patients are also asked questions measuring a variety of beliefs such as perceived suffering, cynicism, and general health."

Deception and malingering? Basically, this test is to decipher whether or not you are lying about your pain.


The Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory, Version 2 (MMPI-2):

According to Wikipedia, the "MMPI is one of the most frequently used personality tests in mental health. The test is used by trained professionals to assist in identifying personality structure and psychopathology." Topics: concern with bodily symptoms, depressive symptoms, awareness of problems and vulnerabilities, conflict, struggle, anger, respect for society's rules, stereotypical masculine or feminine interests/behaviors, level of trust, suspiciousness, sensitivity, worry, anxiety, tension, doubts, obsessiveness, odd thinking and social alienation, level of excitability, people orientation. A lot of the questions on here were meant to figure out textbook cases of depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, etc. I was concerned if having bipolar disorder and PTSD would ruin my chances of trying the stimulator.

Since I wasn't able to find a copy of this test, thankfully a kind person on AntiPolygraph.org typed out the first 75 (567 total) questions from the MMPI-2. I don't attest to the accuracy of these questions, but I can tell you they all look very similar to what was on the test I took. They are as follows (and no, this isn't a joke, these are really the questions):

TRUE OR FALSE

1. I like mechanics magazines
2. I have a good appetite
3. I wake up fresh & rested most mornings
4. I think I would like the work of a librarian
5. I am easily awakened by noise
6. I like to read newspaper articles on crime
7. My hands and feet are usually warm enough
8. My daily life is full of things that keep me interested
9. I am about as able to work as I ever was
10. There seems to be a lump in my throat much of the time
11. A person should try to understand his dreams and be guided by or take warning from them
12. I enjoy detective or mystery stories
13. I work under a great deal of tension
14. I have diarrhea once a month or more
15. Once in a while I think of things too bad to talk about
16. I am sure I get a raw deal from life
17. My father was a good man
18. I am very seldom troubled by constipation
19. When I take a new job, I like to be tipped off on whom should be gotten next to (this question isn't correct, but it was something about getting info on who to be buddy-buddy with at your new job)
20. My sex life is satisfactory
21. At times I have very much wanted to leave home
22. At times I have fits of laughing & crying that I cannot control
23. I am troubled by attacks of nausea and vomiting
24. No one seems to understand me
25. I would like to be a singer
26. I feel that it is certainly best to keep my mouth shut when I’m in trouble
27. Evil spirits possess me at times
28. When someone does me a wrong I feel I should pay him back if I can, just for the principle of the thing
29. I am bothered by acid stomach several times a week
30. At times I feel like swearing
31. I have nightmares every few nights
32. I find it hard to keep my mind on a task or job
33. I have had very peculiar and strange experiences
34. I have a cough most of the time
35. If people had not had it in for me I would have been much more successful
36. I seldom worry about my health
37. I have never been in trouble because of my sex behavior
38. During one period when I was a youngster I engaged in petty thievery
39. At times I feel like smashing things
40. Most any time I would rather sit and daydream than to do anything else
41. I have had periods of days, weeks, or months when I couldn’t take care of things because I couldn’t “get going”
42. My family does not like the work I have chosen (or the work I intend to choose for my life work)
43. My sleep is fitful and disturbed
44. Much of the time my head seems to hurt all over
45. I do not always tell the truth
46. My judgment is better than it ever was
47. Once a week or oftener I feel suddenly hot all over without apparent cause
48. When I am with people I am bothered by hearing very queer things
49. It would be better if almost all laws were thrown away
50. My soul sometimes leaves my body
51. I am in just as good physical health as most of my friends
52. I prefer to pass by school friends, or people I know but have not seen for a long time, unless they speak to me first
53. A minister can cure disease by praying and putting his hand on your head
54. I am liked by most people who know me
55. I am almost never bothered by pains over the heart or in my chest
56. As a youngster I was suspended from school one or more times for cutting up
57. I am a good mixer
58. Everything is turning out just like the prophets of the Bible said it would
59. I have often had to take orders from someone who did not know as much as I did
60. I do not read every editorial in the newspaper everyday
61. I have not lived the right kind of life
62. Parts of my body often have feeling like burning, tingling, crawling, or like “going to sleep”
63. I have had no difficulty in starting or holding my bowel movement
64. I sometimes keep on at a thing until others lose their patience with me
65. I loved my father
66. I see things or animals or people around me that others do not see
67. I wish I could be as happy as others seem to be
68. I hardly ever feel pain in the back of the neck
69. I am very strongly attracted to members of my own sex
70. I used to like drop-the-handkerchief
71. I think a great many people exaggerate their misfortunes in order to gain the sympathy and help of others
72. I am troubled by discomfort in the pit of my stomach every few days or oftener
73. I am an important person
74. I have often wished I were a girl.  (Or if you are a girl) I have never been sorry that I am a girl
75. I get angry sometimes

Hope that helps! I'm in awful pain tonight, but keeping my spirits up for the big day tomorrow. I am off to get some sleep. :) Love and strength to all of you!

xo
dani