Managing chronic lower back pain gets Chambersburg woman back on court

Vickie Group just wanted to play pickleball.

That’s what the 66-year-old Chambersburg, Pa., resident told Chiemeka Onyima, M.D., D.ABA, with Meritus Pain Specialists.

But her chronic lower back pain sidelined her from the game — and many other activities, including going to work.

She started with physical therapy, but “it didn’t do much,” she said.

“And then I finally got ahold of someone with Meritus,” Group said. “Once I got ahold of Dr. Onyima, he went through the process and helped me considerably.”

The first step was trying to figure out the cause of her pain, Dr. Onyima said.

“I conducted ‘diagnostic blocks’ to confirm the cause of her pain,” he said.

Group said that involved getting a few shots in her back to help locate the source of the pain.

“Once the diagnosis was obtained, she underwent radiofrequency ablations to provide her with long term relief for her chronic back pain,” Dr. Onyima said. “She did great with the procedure and reported a significant improvement of her quality of life and overall daily functionality.”

Group complimented Dr. Onyima’s bedside manner and the thoroughness of the procedures.

“He told me everything that was going to happen,” she said. “For every step, whenever he was doing anything, he told me what was about to happen.”

Once the procedures were done, she was able to do most things without experiencing pain.

“It made life a lot easier, that’s for sure,” she said.

Dr. Onyima said making it easier is his main objective.

“The main goal of pain management is to not only treat pain, but to allow individuals to re-engage with society from a social, mental, physical, and often times economic standpoint, despite their current ailment,” he said.

As for Group, she’s just thankful she could get back to doing what she enjoys, playing pickleball.

“I play almost every day,” Group said, “for like three hours a day.”

If you would like to learn more about how to better manage your pain, visit Meritus Pain Specialists online at www.meritushealth.com/painspecialists.