Hi Dale: I'm surprised your dr gives you Tylenol at all. Most people with Fibro have not found either anti-inflammatories(eg., aspirin) or Tylenol that helpful for moderate to severe pain. I use Ultram, a fairly mild med for moderate pain and Vicodin(Tylenol with Codein) for more severe pain. Some patients are finding anti-convulsants like Neurontin helpful and low doses of anti-depressants are useful for enhancing sleep. If your meds are inadequate, be sure to let your doc know and request something better: this is your right! God bless, Al
Hi Dale, I'm surprised too, for several reasons. I agree with Allen but also want to note that Tylenol#3 has a nice amount of codeine and that it is VERY addictive. Vicodin has less narcotic but it can still be addictive. Nothing wrong with taking strong medications if you need to and are careful but there are several non-narcotic medications now on the market, Allen mentioned the Ultram which is becoming very common for FM pain relief, there is something that's stronger called Soma that I don't know too much about. Neither are narcotic but they do have an addictive potential.
I think that MOST people with FM are taking some type of anti-depressant for sleep and pain relief. I've done VERY well with an SSRI which is a newer form of anti-depressant. Elavil/Amitriptylene is an older med but also is very effective in treating FM. The first line in FM pain relief is getting better sleep and I've found that the sleep greatly reduces my need for other medications.
With any of these medications, you and your doc need to work closely together to find the ones that work best for you and give you relief and a minimum of side effects. It is an experiment, what works best for one person doesn't always work well for another. From reading and talking to others, it appears that most people are taking 2+ meds and many are using vitamins/minerals/supplements as well.
I have been given a script for Paxil and Celebrex. From what I have read I do not believe I will get the scripts filled. Am still considering the possibilities and would welcome any input.
Hey Gal, you have to take everything you read here with a grain of salt,you are not getting medical experts or expert advice. Please talk to you doctor before making decisions on medication. Paxil is an anti-depressant (I believe) and has other properties that help other disorders and Celebrex is an anti-inflammatory and shouldn't have many side effects other than possibly stomach problems. There are sites and books where you can look up medications and find the benefits and possible side effects. With many medications it is trial-and-error to find ones that work well for you. Don't give up, medications CAN be extremely helpful!!!
Hi, Gal. Ciocc is right that paxil is an anti-depressant, one of the new SSRIs. It has been shown to decrease pain in about 15% of FM ppl who were given it in one study. Celebrex is one of the new NSAIDS (non-steroidal anti-inflammatories) and seems to work very well for some FMers. My daughter takes them both, as well as amitryptaline (elavil, 20 mgs) at night for sleep (the low dose of paxil in the morning). I think they are all helping her, but the celbrex the most.
I took Paxil for years before Fibro kicked in to controll my depression and anxiety. It worked great except for the pesky little side effect of NO SEX DRIVE! Because of this I swithced to Celexa. ALL OKAY NOW.
The doc gave me Celebrex a couple of weeks ago along with Amitriptyline and I am feeling great, I think its the Amit. not the celebrex, will know for sure in about a week when I go off the Celebrex to see if I regress.
I have written down all the medications I have found listed on the board. Plus, everything else people said to do. I go to the doctor soon. I will ask the doctor about it all.
I am also writing down a list of meds and treatment options to talk to my new Dr. about. I hope she doesn't plan on the ole 5 minutes per patient rutine. Do you ever get the impression they guess about 90% of the time. I just swiched to Kaiser I sure hope they have some good Dr's.
My first appmt. is the 16th. The Dr's. I have seen before don't know much about FM. They told me I would just have to live w/ it. http://www.healthboards.com/ubb/confused.gif
Smack & Dale (sounds like a cartoon doesn't it?), I have a suggestion(or2):
1. Write down all your symptoms from head to toe, even if they don't seem like they're related to FM. Current and back maybe a year.
2. Write down any and all tests you've had done if you've been seeing different docs for different problems.
3. Write down all your questions, starting with the most important ones you want to cover
4. Call ahead and let the dr's office know that you will need some extra time so they won't rush you.
5. If you are not comfortable with what the doctor tells you or you don't feel like they are flexible and will work with you then start looking for another doctor. FM is NOT curable but that does NOT mean that you have to SUFFER with unbearable pain and fatigue.
6. Keep in mind that there is no magic pill, treatment is usually a combination of meds and lifestyle changes including diet,exercise and quitting smoking if you smoke. Good sleep is also very important, it's almost impossible to do anything if you're in a sleep deprived walking coma.
These are just SUGGESTIONS based on MY experience and what I've been told and have read from medical sources and physical therapists. Take it or leave it.I belive that you need to develop your own program, working with your doctor. Just doing nothing or taking narcotics is not a good way to live your life, you will need to take charge of your own healthcare, no one will jump in and do it for you. Start by telling your doctor that you REFUSE to live like this,show them your list, and see what happens. I also had to change a lot of my thinking to tell myself that I would be openminded and that I would try anything that was suggested to me by a qualified person (doc or PT). Not surprisingly, when I do what I'm told-----I feel better.
Get organized and get ANGRY!! No one should have to live like this!!!! Don't let anyone tell you that this is your only choice!!!! There IS hope!! I'm angry for anyone who is told to just live with this illness because it is NOT LIVING, it is just struggling through day after day. I feel about 60% better than I did a year ago. I am still having some bad days where I'd lower that to 35% but it's certainly better than nothing. I'm still hoping for more improvement......
PS. If you are HMO and run into problems, post and let me know. I have Pers.Ch. now but I've fought HMO's several times in the past and there are some ways to cut through the red tape and get what you need!!!
[This message has been edited by cioc1212 (edited 02-07-2001).]
Do any of the new medications work better then the older ones? 
