Re: True or Not?

[Guest guest]

--- jade tadaima wrote:

>

> A doctor I saw in Physical Medicine said that after time, narcotics mess up

(he

> said it more technically) the nerves and make them raw (ultra sensitive),

> especially when narcotics are taken either in high doses or over long periods

of

> time.

>

> Is this true?

Ask that doctor to show you the published research studies in reputable medical

journals demonstrating this effect.

They don't exist. This is BS.

There are documented CASES (single incidents, not statistically-generalizable

data that averages across many people) of individuals who had reactions to

opiates that increased their pain. However, these cases were situations where

those patients had never been exposed to opiates before and were suddenly put on

EXTREMELY high IV doses in hospital - nothing close to what we take via pills.

Moreover, they were able to be treated simply by reducing the dose and switching

the type of opiate. Those cases exist in the medical literature - I've read the

articles myself, although I don't have copies of them now - but that's the only

evidence of such an " increased pain due to opiates " effect.

I'm a research scientist myself, I read the medical journals and understand the

statistics behind the data. This doctor is repeating a rumor put out by the

detox industry - those companies that make money from detoxing people off

opiates. Those claims made by those companies have made it into " common

knowledge " but they are completely unsupported by reputable scientific studies.

I have yet to see any doctor provide a cite to a reputable medical research

journal reporting primary research demonstrating this effect through

experimental testing with appropriate controls and double-blinds. It simply

can't be tested in a laboratory setting, and that's the only credible evidence

that would prove this to be the case - everything else is just rumor and single

case episodes without appropriate experimental controls to rule out alternative

explanations. In other words, BS.

Cheryl in AZ

Moderator

[Guest guest]

Not so, I've been on the samedose for years without any need for more drugs.

Carolyn Eddy

" Sweet Goat Mama "

[Guest guest]

Thanks for the info Cheryl. As a person who has been on opiates a long time with

death as the only end in site that post alarmed me. It is a horrible thought

that I could have been doing that to myself.

I appreciate your knowledge

CaringCandy

[Guest guest]

Absolutely not. Some doctors will try to convince you that your pain is caused

by your pain meds and this is just asinine. Opioid induced hyperalgesia does

exist, but the prevalence is nothing compared to what some doctors think.

You can read a free copy of 'The Intractable Pain Patient's Handbook for

Survival' written by Forrest Tennant MD, it is available at:

http://www.foresttennant.com/pain_management_patient_self_help.html

Bennie shared this and it is a great handbook for people this chronic pain. The

author has released it free of charge to anyone who wishes to read it, print it,

pass it along, etc. There are also some great tips for improving pain relief.

-Steve M in PA

Jade wrote:

A doctor I saw in Physical Medicine said that after time, narcotics mess up (he

said it more technically) the nerves and make them raw (ultra sensitive), >

especially when narcotics are taken either in high doses or over long periods of

time.

Is this true?