Many patients see a pain management specialist only after months, or years, of trying to “live with it.” For Gordon Heins, that meant sleeping in a recliner for almost a year because of severe neck pain. Then he met Dr. R. Andrew Lehn.
Gordon shared his experience in a letter that captures exactly why so many patients trust Dr. Lehn with their care.
“He cured me of an absolutely horrific neck injury two years ago,” he said. More recently, Gordon returned with chronic low back pain that responded to injections but always came back after a few months. He had already been told by a spine surgeon that the pain couldn’t be treated because it was a complex degenerative issue.
When Gordon then injured the other side of his lower lumbar spine, Dr. Lehn convinced his patient to get another MRI of the full lumbar area. “This was number four in a two-year window, so clearly I was not thrilled at doing another so soon,” Gordon says.
But Dr. Lehn suspected there might be more going on. Gordon says that after reviewing the images, “Dr Lehn found a fragment of something and subsequent irritation on a nerve near my spine that was MISSED by the radiologist and that appeared to him as the cause of the pain which he thought to be treatable.”
With a clear target, Dr. Lehn recommended an epidural injection. Gordon arrived for the shot barely able to stand upright. “I hobbled into the room hunched over, which has been my state for weeks now,” he recalls. When he got off the table, Dr. Lehn asked how he felt.
“I kind of laughed thinking, ‘how could it possibly help this quickly;’ but it did!” Gordon says, “I cannot say enough about how thrilled I am to be in relatively little residual pain, and it has not even been 24 hours!”
When you’ve been told “there’s nothing more we can do,” it’s easy to assume living in pain is your only option. Stories like Gordon’s highlight what sets Dr. Lehn apart: careful listening, compassion, and a genuine commitment to finding answers, even when they aren’t obvious.
Gordon’s letter concludes: “I am so grateful to have him on my ever-growing medical team. He is clearly brilliant and such a caring person.”
When patients talk about great doctors, they often mention technical skill or bedside manner. With Dr. Lehn, they talk about both, and how important the combination is when it comes to treating chronic pain.
If you’re struggling with chronic pain, you’re not alone. And you don’t have to settle for unexplained symptoms and unanswered questions. Schedule an appointment with Dr. Lehn and take the next step toward relief.
