Thinking I shouldn't even bother trying pain pills

[Guest guest]

I've been reading the stories at the IC Network and I'm becoming

very depressed and pessimistic that pain pills could help me.

I am urinating 40-50 times per day (I keep a voiding diary, that's

how I know) and not sleeping at night more than a half hour to an

hour at a time. So my life is really disrupted.

But from what I am reading on the ICN messageboards, it goes

something like this:

Have pain, pain taking over life, ask for pain pills, get put on

narcotics, develop tolerance, quickly work up to max dose, pain

pills don't work any more so then you have the original pain to live

with PLUS a narcotic habit.

Ummm....not good...

Anyway I'm really bummed out. I guess I will just have to somehow

endure each day and hope and pray for a cure.

Blessings, Lori

[Guest guest]

>>...get put on narcotics, develop

tolerance, quickly work up to max dose, pain pills don't work any

more so then you have the original pain to live with PLUS a narcotic

habit. <<

Hi Lori,

Don't believe it!

I've been on narcotics for a year and a half and they changed my

life. I have severe sciatica and used to spend every day curled up on

my floor, wracked with pain and muscle spasms. I could barely even

sit up for meals. When I went on powerful narcotics, suddenly I could

sit up for long meals with guests, enjoy short walks, ride in a car

comfortably for more than 15 min...I am still in pain every day but

at least now it's tolerable.

My dose of narcotics has stayed the same (relatively speaking - I've

been switched between a few) so no, you don't develop tolerance

quickly. I used to be a pharmacist and dispensed narcotics to many

people with chronic pain, and the vast majority stayed on the same

dose of narcotics for years and years. Anyway there IS no maximum

dose for morphine (which I'm on), Dilaudid, Fentanyl, and all the

pure narcotic agonists

So I urge you - please please DON'T deprive yourself of something

that can so powerfully improve your life. Please give pain pills a

try!!

If you want to ask me any questions or just talk, feel free to e-mail

me privately.

Take care,

Di

in Vancouver, B.C., Canada

[Guest guest]

Lori, It took my doctor 3 months to talk me into taking oxycontin, I had a

life again. I had been at around three 40s a day for a long time, What I did

was take what I called a " weekend out of it " . I would spend about 3 days taking

about half of my doses with Klonipin (lots, I slept) and when I was thru I was

able to use less then the amount I was on and until I built back to my dose and

as long as that worked it was cool. When that amount didn't work I took a

weekend again. That way I was able to keep my doses down for longer periods of

time.

When my husband threw me out of the marriage (17 yrs) disabled, unable to

work,not able to get ss disability because I stayed home with the children and

the work I did my husband billed out as a contractor and did not pay ss for me.

I have not been able to take very many of my weekends and the disorder gets

worse and worse. Not to use a pun, but the stenosis is kicking my butt.

I have to be functional to keep custody of my son and scramble as much as a

woman that's crippled up can to not become homeless. I have no one else, just

me. I'm alone here with God. That's my best resource. But my doses have

increased to 360mg a day. But I am not on morphine yet and won't be for a long

time, I'm determined.

So what I am trying to say around all this venting is you need a bladder drug I

have that problem too) drink lots of water and a narcotic.

You don't need to be afraid of them. Check out some of the chronic pain sites.

There is a huge difference between drug abuse and drugs for pain control. I am

not getting high and don't want to. I just don't want to hurt so much that I am

sobbing in pain. I would encourage you to get a great doctor that knows what

he's doing with meds. and don't waste another day of your life feeling out of

control and miserable. Studies show that being in pain actually causes more

pain by strenghening those pathways in the brain. It is a balancing act, but it

is the challenge we have. Good luck, your days are too valuable. Pam, a timex

Lori wrote:

I've been reading the stories at the IC Network and I'm becoming

very depressed and pessimistic that pain pills could help me.

[Guest guest]

Hi, Di, thanks for the reassurance!

My pain isn't nearly as bad as yours - it's bearable during the day, but the

biggest problem is that my painful bladder will not let me sleep at night. It's

easy to understand why that is when you think of times you've woken in the night

with a full bladder, and been unable to get back to sleep until relieving the

full bladder. For some reason, anything doing with the bladder, even if it's

relatively mild pain, seems to trigger the " stay awake " thing. And you think

you would get used to the pain, eventually sleep in spite of it, but I have gone

many months with no more than ten minutes sleep (if I was lucky) at a time and

just feeling like a zombie and of course the horrible depression that comes with

severe sleep deprivation.

No one seems (doctors I mean) to think that that lack of sleep is a big deal,

but I wish they could spend a week or two with the symptoms I have because I

think they'd consider it a big deal then.

Anyway, thank you so much - I am going to try to ask for something to help me

sleep at night and then go drug-free relatively speaking during the day if it's

possible.

I have heard that they never give you anything your first visit to a pain clinic

- that the prescription writing or other procedures (nerve block, TENS etc.)

come in later appointments.

That worries me - I am stretching the 25 percocet my uro gave me to last these

two months until my appointment, but it takes two months I guess to get into

that clinic, and if they don't help me on the first visit it means waiting

another two months for another appointment in the hopes that they will help me

then....that seems like a long time to wait to be comfortable. I mean, it's

certainly better than nothing but...

Blessings, Lori

[Guest guest]

Oh, Pam, I can't believe that scoundrel of a husband did this to you! I know

there is an afterlife, and he will understand someday what pain he has caused

you.

I hope that you will survive, and even thrive, without him and that you will be

okay.

Our society is so heartless when it comes to the disabled. Or poor. Sometimes

when I look at how the Europeans treat their sick, their old, etc. I am almost

ashamed to be an American. What is WRONG with our country? Why do we begrudge

help to those who need it??

Sorry for the rant, I hope that you will have a good life from now on and that

they will find a cure for your chronic pain.

Blessings, Lori