Karen's Journal is now required reading at Duke School of Medicine.

A reporter at the local paper summarized Karen’s story as: “Karen’s first-hand account of her illness gave an honest, heart-wrenching depiction of what it is like to live with debilitating pain day-to-day.”

For nearly 25 years, I watched my wife Karen struggle with nearly constant head pain to be relieved only by laying down, a loss of friends and a family that did not believe her.

I was at times frustrated by lack of support from the medical community. As I explain in The Karen Paddock Story on Pain Nation:

After many years of her own research, Karen suspected her diagnosis to be a spinal CSF leak so she sought treatment from the best physicians in the field. In the end, Karen took her own life when the treatments did not stop her pain; it is my belief that fluoroquinolone antibiotics (Cipro, Levaquin and 20 other names) and steroid use complicated her treatments.

It is my conjecture that these antibiotics are why none of the treatments worked for Karen. 40 people have now told me that their CSF Leaks started from two weeks to one year after taking Cipro or Levaquin. There is currently ZERO research on this. I will be addressing this at the first ever CSF Leak Symposium.

Sometimes we choose our mission in life, other times it chooses us. I have become very active in the medical community in raising awareness of Intracranial Hypotension due to Cerebrospinal Fluid (CSF) Leaks. A condition that is more common that many think (for example Actor George Clooney had/has a CSF Leak and considered suicide), yet is so unknown that some doctors argue the condition does not even exist.

To raise awareness and to attract research dollars, I initially collected her writings into a web site kpaddock.com and then into a book. We must lose no one else to suicide due to this condition. I had hoped Karen would be the last, sadly, this is not the case.

I created this book edition of Karen's Journal for the Spinal CSF Leak Foundation who will receive 100% of the royalties from the sales.

New York Times Bestseller List author Andrea J. Buchanan interviewed me for the Spinal CSF Leak Foundation. Brings tears to my eyes.

When Pain is Relentless

100% of the royalty from the purple cover book goes to the Spinal CSF Leak Foundation.

The cost of the physical paper book is $14.25, the cost of the Kindle version is $2.99. Click the red price links to reach Amazon to buy.

The defunct publisher Create Space no longer sells directly. Sadly must now always pay the Amazon markup. If you do want buy a quantity of five or more to give away to your doctors and/or family contact me to discuss now to get at lower price.

See http://www.kpaddock.com/book for more information on the book. Read it here for free: http://mystory.kpaddock.com

PAIN WARRIORS tackles the other side of the OPIOID CRISIS ~ that of under treated pain patients and the slow death of compassion that surrounds them.

As a result, there have been a burgeoning number of suicides in the international pain community in recent months. My late wife Karen among them. Pain Warriors weaves together five stories, four of Chronic Pain patients (two that committed suicide from the pain) and one doctors that was punished for help his Chronic Pain patients.

Both Doctors and patients alike suffer~ when a “one size fits all” political strategy is implemented to end overdose deaths and addiction, without foresight to what happens on the other side of the equation.

Addiction and overdose deaths are serious issues that warrant being faced head on. Equally important but not addressed in any depth, are the lives of abandoned pain patients and the doctors treating them, left with limited options.

Legitimate , responsible patients are being denied treatments that in many cases, have been their only lifeline to some small moments of function and dignity in an otherwise bleak future.

Intractable pain is often a life- long condition. There are no known cures for many chronic pain conditions that cause severe loss of function, loss of jobs, community and dignity.

Chronic pain has the potential to become epidemic in proportion in our lifetime. Without timely education, strategies for treatment and financial planning for the millions who currently suffer from this disease, the cost to society has risen to billions annually in both Canada & the USA.

https://www.painwarriorsmovie.com/

“Karen's first-hand account of her illness gave an honest, heart-wrenching depiction of what it is like to live with debilitating pain day-to-day.” - Savannah Barr Staff writer The Derrick Newspaper; September 8th 2014.

Karen's Journal may be read for free here: http://mystory.kpaddock.com

Reviews :

“I watched the video [the full movie]. What an eye opener! I’ve been lucky enough to have never had to deal with chronic pain. I feel for those who do. I hope this documentary helps them to get the care and medication that they need. It’s the abusers that ruin it for the ones who need it.”

“Such pain and difficulties, and expressed so powerfully. Your segments were very honest and striking. You're [Bob] very brave to show such vulnerability for the sake of sharing your knowledge with other people who are suffering.

I hope that the film helps some people who need to know they are not alone. Unfortunately, there didn't appear to be any resolution for them. Still, it's good to know there are people working on this and trying to be reasonable about treatments.”

“I just watched the documentary. It’s powerful, and brought me to tears several times, not only you telling of Karen’s suicide but the boy and his sister, Hunter and Willow. It’s humbling, what people get through, or don’t get through.

As an asthmatic, I have had a lifetime of a repetitive – but far from continuous, and not always particularly painful – condition. I do know how even the sheer persistence of the condition can wear you down; not just the condition but the persistence of the condition, making normal life difficult or impossible.

People who haven’t experienced it, themselves or second-hand, really don’t know how to understand it. For people who take normal health for granted, it may require a great effort of the imagination. This film may help some of them make that effort. Let’s hope so.”

“I am off from the first weekend of my show season and made the time to watch this. Wow, just wow! I have spent my whole life talking to people who have either physical or emotional pain. I know that if you just scratch the surface of someone who has a seemingly normal life, you will find a different story just waiting to be told. I didn't know it was soooo pervasive!

The idea that it is 100M Americans living with chronic pain is mind-boggling. The fact that each one of those touches at least a few other lives implies that the whole nation is dramatically impacted by chronic pain. I'm assuming that number represents physical pain and doesn't even touch the ones with issues like anxiety and depression…. which in my observation is pretty consuming these days as well….

I must admit, I cried numerous times during this video. The most during your segments, because I feel like I know a small part of you and what you have gone through….

Of course, all the stories are sad and tragic and American life and the medical community has let so many down…. is there a point of return?

Thank you for sharing this early with me. I hope of people see it after the festival seasons and awareness is raised. And maybe, just maybe, some doctors will examine their practices. And maybe, just maybe, families will stop avoiding 'the one' who always looks well, but is always having a health struggle and labeling it all in their minds….”