Hello everyone :) I frequent the Addiction and Recovery board because I detox myself at times to keep my tolerance to my pain meds in check so I dont have to up my amount or my dosage.
And ALOT of the members over there either are or started out as CP Patients.
My question to everyone is....well actually I have a few questions.
1. Did you start out on opaites or did you (like me) wear out your welcome with NSAIDS and every other non narcotic pain reliever before you started on opaites?
2. I see ALOT of CP patients over there trying to detox and get off narcs for good...my question is how do you plan on handling your CP if you get off the pain meds?? Is your CP condition cured or do you plan on handling your pain in another way or with NSAIDS or PT?
See with me I can never take a NSAID again Docs orders after 10 years of them tore open my stomach even using them as directed IE..taking with food, milk, anything to coat my stomach. My CP condition is lifelong now it cant be fixed by surgery or any other means my PM doc says the surgery will bring more problems then I have now because after 12 years the pain is Nerve Pain and it forever. I have learned other ways to manage my pain as well as the percocet I take. I have about 3 conditions I take them for the first and longest condition is my TMJD due to an excessivly long condyle joint I was born with then a car accident in 89 knocked the disc into my cheek and the bones have been rubbing together for 12 years..also the right jaw joint is arthritic. So as well as the meds I wear a splint,,I stopped chewing gum, soft diet, avoid stress etc.
Also I have many cysts and adhesions from prior pelvic surgeries my left ovary is fused by adhesions to my intestine. I have been offered a Laproscopy BUT my OBGYN also read me the risks and suggested I waited untill the pain crippled me because the risks of a perferated intestine during surgery is VERY high.
Thirdly...I have a rotten Siactic nerve in my left lower back...I cant bend over at times the pain shoots down my calf and has numbed my big toe for life.
I manage that with heat and excersise as well as the meds.
Alot of people have asked me why I put myself through the HELL of detox every 2 weeks or so and I just finished a 10 day detox in Missouri which because it was a change of scenery (I live in Canada) it was easier than all the other times plus I had my lifesaver Red Bull energy drink that I cant buy here in Canada.
So I am happy to say I keep my intake to 6 tabs a day...2 when I get up...1 around noon or 1 pm...1 around 5 or 6 pm and 2 at bedtime. Sometimes I can get by with one.
I didnt mean for this to become a novel :)lol but I figured maybe we could get some ideas from each other in manageing our pain especially members that are trying to get off the narcs and still control thier CP.
Wishing you all a pain free day :)
Luv
Autumn.

[This message has been edited by Autumn Angel (edited 08-23-2003).]

Hey Angel, well you know I had a spinal fusion surgery 4 months ago and have been in bad pain ever sice then! Well I decided a few weeks ago that I was addicted to my pain meds and that I was gonna stop c/t. Well that was not the best idea cause I had w/ds but when that finally stopped I could do nothing but lay in the bed on my heating pad, I could not even walk without severe back pain so I went back to my orthopedic doctor and he ordered a discagram and found that the 3 discs above where I had surgery are all degenerative and one is hurniated, so he said after the fusion finishes healing, a few more months, that I need to have another surgery and that this time he would have to go in from my front side because of all the steel rods and screws that are already in my back would be in the way, this would be a very long and complicated surgery. Anyway I had to go back to work and the only way I could was to resume my pain meds or loose my job and med insurance, so Im taking 4 oxycontin 20mg a day and 6 percocets and 4 Somas and wellbatrin, but without the meds I could not go to work at all!!So I had to face the fact that my body was probably gonna be addicted but because of all my pain in my back and legs its the right thing for me and my family right now!So when its time to stop the meds I will lean on my doctor heavily!! Hey by the way, please tell me how to get the icons that you use all the time, please, I wont tell anyone else, I promise, just put it on this thread if you would!! Thank you, rlcowboy

Hey Rlcowboy nice to hear from you :) I am so mad I typed you a novel reply and they cancelled it because I put too many :) in it lol. The max number is 8.
You asked how to do them..you should see on the left side when you hit reply to a post SMILIES LEGAND you click on that and it shows you. A :) is this : ) with no space.
I understand where you are coming from hating being on the meds but having to be. I was on ALOT more than I am now in the past.
I was on Oxycontin 20 mg twie a day..with percocet for BT pain and Dilaudid 2mg at bedtime.
The oxyontin worked great but wasnt covered by my plan so after a couple months at 60 bucks a month I had to quit it. The Dilaudid I quit because I was sure I could find something else to help me sleep the doc suggested 1mg of Ativan with my bedtime Perc. I rarely take it anymore now that he said I can take 2 percs at night.
So I was put on 6 percs a day....2 in the am when I woke up...1 at around noon or 1pm...1 at about 5 or 6pm and 2 at bedtime. When my friend Steven died 3 months ago my pain level shot up so high my PM put me on 8 percs a day that was 2 tabs 4 times a day. With Ativan 1mg 3 times a day and I tried my best not to take it often cuz I heard Benzo Wd was really dangerous. Well as it stands now I am back down to my 6 tabs a day. I detox about every second weekend if the 1 tab in the afternoon isnt cutting it so my tolerance doesnt go up too much.
I just finished a detox for 10 days in Missouri when I went on vacation and I dont know if it was the change of scenery or what but it wasnt that bad. I had my Immodium of course but only needed it twice..I used tylenol for headaches and Ativan for sleeping if needed and of course the Red Bull energy drink I swear by but we cant get it here in Canada :(. By the way I met a friend of yours her name is dchick08..she answered my "I'm back updates plz" post at the AD board. Very nice girl. She told me about all the hard times you are having with your pain and I am really sorry to hear that and I do know how you feel. Needing relief but at the same time hating the meds that bring that relief. I am glad we finnaly caught up with each other I have been following your posts for a long time now. Take care of yourself and I wish you a pain free night...Oh ya I EXPECT to see some smileys in your next reply lol. God Bless.
Autumn Angel.

[This message has been edited by Autumn Angel (edited 08-23-2003).]

Oh and Cowboy when you said your body was probably gonna be "addicted" you meant "tolerant" right? I use the term addicted too but I know I am not just as you probably are not. I got a lil spacey once when the doc upped my dose to 2 percs at once but that went away quick enough thank God. Have a good night.
Autumn.

Hey autumn, I was wondering if that is your real name? http://www.healthboards.com/ubb/confused.gifAlso I just wanted to say thanks for the smileys http://www.healthboards.com/ubb/blob_fire.gifI gotttell ya, I dont know what to tell my pain managment doctor, wich I was refered to by my orthopedic doctor,cause I went to him and told him I flushed all my oxys and I was gonna stop taking them, he asked me how many I was taking and I told him 4 on some days but only 3 days did I do that when the pain was real bad,but I was only prescribed to be taking 3 a day, he asked me again how many I had left and I told him I flushed them, wich I really did but I told him I was there cause I was having bad withdrawals and he said you shouldnt have stopped by yourself and he left the room and sent the nurse back in there with a prescription for the Catapres patch, so I think he was a little mad at me and I dont think he believed me about flushing the oxys, I think he thought I was taking way to many and I just ran out, but that was not the case at all. Anyway I did stop the oxys for 2 weeks but Like i said I couldnt even walk because of my back and I had to call my ortho doc and he ordered that discogram and it was positive on all 3 discs they tested, all degenerative with one being slightly hurniated so I explained that I had to go back to work or loose everything I have so he told me that I was gonna have to go back on some pain meds so he prescribed me oxycontin 20mg 4 times a day with 6 percocet for b/t pain. So Im back at work taking my meds and the pain is somewhat managable but now he has refered me to go back to the pain managment doctor for continued treatment for my pain. So I dont know how he will react when I tell him I had to go back on the oxycontin and percocet when I was in his office a month ago in w/ds?All I can say is that I made a mistake getting off the oxycontin, because when I see him it will be time for another prscription on that day. And my orthopedic doctor told me I need another,bigger, surgery in order to fix the 3 bad discs in a few months. :( So now that I have told you the whole story, what do you think? Please let me know what I should say to my pain managment doctor?

Thats easy Cowboy ( I am sure thats not your real name either ;) lol. No Autumn isnt my real name wish it was lol. But I am an Angel some would say :).
I would tell your pain doc the truth as you have just told me. Actually write a journal I always did that for my Pm doc. Tell him and he should know this...that most CP patients get so mad and depressed they have to live the rest of thier lives on meds at times they do things like throwing them out or flushing them and trying to go it alone. You werent thinking of the WD at the time you were angry. Then tell him the pain got so bad ( make sure he knows it was after the wd was gone) you went to your ortho doc had tests done because you HAVE to go back to work and the xrays revealed your back was still bad and your doc told you if you even had a hope of returning to work and functioning on a professional level you need to be back on the pain meds you were on and you may be looking at another surgery. By all rights your Ortho doc should be faxing your PM his findings and suggestions anyway. But thats what I would do just tell the truth and you also know that if he doesnt treat you for whatever reason...your ortho will because he is the one that put you back on the meds right? When do you go to the PM? How are you coping back on the meds? I hope they are helping, Do you keep a pain journal? I always do that..I had this pain then and how I coped with it and how often it gets worse and take it to your Pm every month and he can ajust your meds acording to your pain level. Well time for bed now...Take care and God Bless.
Autumn :)

Hey, right now I'm able to work with about 60%of the pain gone while taking my meds. But like you said if he refuses to treat me I WILL tell my orthopedic doctor because he does know how bad of shape im in, he knows he just put 4 rods and 6 screws around my spine, but the worse pain right now that the meds do not help is when I had the discagram they hit my nerves twice while sticking the needles in my discs and that has caused excrusiating pains going down my legs, I have fell twice so far because when I stand up after sitting the pain get totally unbearable all at once and my legs just buckle!!!!! I cannot describe how dang painfull it really is!!!!But the oxycontin and the percocet do help my back to where I can manage the pain, but my leg pain is totally undescribable! Anyway my doctor just gave me another prescription Friday called Wellburtrin, Im gonna get it filled On Monday I hope because it is over a hundred bucks and there is a temp hold on my insurance because of a screw up at work because my personel lady at work failed to do her job and take me off medical leave so even though they have been deducting the money from my pay check another department at benifits still is looking for my payments that I was sending in while I was out of work. So you can imagine how madd I was at that situation :mad:So I go back to my orthopedic doctor on Sep. 3rd, my b-day, and I go to my pain doc on the 4th, so we will see what happens, but either way my ortho doc knows Im in severe pain and that I have to work at this point.

All I know is Wellbutrin is an anti depressant alot of CP patients take. You would have to ask others here if it works or not as I have never taken it.
My BD is in September too :) the 20th. Hope your having a good day. By the way nice faces ;) lol.

Autumn