Re: Chronic Pain Solution??

[Guest guest]

Dear Coral, I'm so sorry to hear about your husband's pain. I've been in

pain management now for almost 4 years and it has kept me from going

completely nuts. I really don't know if I would still be here if it weren't

for pain management. What I was wondering is if they have tried time

released morphine in the pill form? I hope they would try this before they

consider a pump.

There was a time when I thought I was going to need a pump. But finally I

got the dosage high enough that I can deal with the pain everyday. I'm not

saying that I'm pain free, I've actually given up on that thought even. I

had problems and horrible side effects from Humira, Enbrel and MTX. They

work just great for some people though.

As far as the pump goes, the way my doctor explained it to me, you need less

medication because the morphine goes directly to the spinal column. (That's

the way it worked at my pain clinic.) I know that some people feel like it

has saved their lives and I know I would consider it too if the other

medication were to stop working.

I also would find out how many your doctor installs and what his success

rate is with his patients. In other words, I wouldn't want to be his first

patient on the pump.

Kathy also had the right idea to be sure all the arthritis medications have

been ruled out before he does something this invasive. I know how bad the

side effects can be, as mine almost put me in the hospital several times. I

was ready to give up and luckily the last one I tried worked wonders for me.

I don't know if I was any help, but investigating the good and bad of the

procedure is sure the right way to go. Tell him to hang in there and not to

give up. At least we live in a time where these things are possible. Good

luck and I hope he feels better soon. I'm going to send you some pain tips

I came across one night when I was in bad pain and they seem to help a lot

of people. Take care and let us know what happens. Love, Fran

Tips for Dealing With People in Pain

1. People with chronic pain seem unreliable (we can't count on ourselves).

When feeling better we promise things (and mean it); when in serious pain,

we may not even show up. Pain people need the " rubber time " (flexible) found

in South Pacific countries and many aboriginal cultures.

2. An action or situation may result in pain several hours later, or even

the next day. Delayed pain is confusing to people who have never experienced

it.

3. Pain can inhibit listening and other communication skills. It's like

having someone shouting at you, or trying to talk with a fire alarm going

off in the room. The effect of pain on the mind can seem like attention

deficit disorder. So you may have to repeat a request, or write things down

for a person with chronic pain. Don't take it personally, or think that they

are stupid.

4. The senses can overload while in pain. For example, noises that wouldn't

normally bother you may seem too loud or glaring.

5. Patience may seem short. We can't wait in a long line; can't wait for a

long, drawn out conversation.

6. Don't always ask " How are you? " unless you are genuinely prepared to

listen - it just points attention inward.

7. Pain can sometimes trigger psychological disabilities (usually very

temporary). When in pain, a small task, like hanging out the laundry, can

seem like a huge wall, too high to climb over. An hour later the same job

may be quite okay. It is sane to be depressed occasionally when you hurt.

8. Pain can come on fairly quickly and unexpectedly. Pain sometimes abates

after a short rest. Chronic pain people appear to arrive and fade

unpredictably to others.

9. Knowing where a refuge is, such as a couch, a bed, or a comfortable

chair, is as important as knowing where a bathroom is. A visit is much more

enjoyable if the chronic pain person knows there is a refuge if needed. A

person with chronic pain may not want to go somewhere that has no refuge

(e.g. no place to sit or lie down).

10. Small acts of kindness can seem like huge acts of mercy to a person in

pain. Your offer of a pillow or a cup of tea can be a really big thing to a

person who is feeling temporarily helpless in the face of encroaching pain.

11. Not all pain is easy to locate or describe. Sometimes there is a

body-wide feeling of discomfort, with hard to describe pains in the entire

back, or in both legs, but not in one particular spot you can point to. Our

vocabulary for pain is very limited, compared to the body's ability to feel

varieties of discomfort.

12. We may not have a good " reason " for the pain. Medical science is still

limited in its understanding of pain. Many people have pain that is not yet

classified by doctors as an officially recognized " disease " . That does not

reduce the pain; it only reduces our ability to give it a label, and to have

you believe us

[ ] Chronic Pain Solution??

Hello everyone,

I am taking the liberty of writing because my husband has been

diagnosed with Psoriatic Arthritis and suffers from chronic pain.

After trying the usual treatmens such as Arava, Metatrexate, etc with

devastating side effects, one of the doctors recommended he use

an " Intrathecal Drug Delivery System " to deliver morphine

(specifically he suggested the one from Medtronic).

>From what I gather, this is an implantable pump that releases

programmed dosages of medicine thru a strategically implanted

catheter, and thus relives pain.

Now, all this sounds very promising, but before we do anything we

wanted to ask if any of you have used, tried or heard something

(either good or bad) about this sort of things.

We both thank you very much, and wish you all well.

Sincerly yours,

Coral Ruiz

[Editor's Note: Hi, Coral. Sorry to hear that your husband has been so

badly hit by PA. Before taking the drastic step of a morphine catheter, is

your husband under the care of a rheumatologist? Has he tried and failed on

all of the following drugs: Remicade, Enbrel, Humira? These drugs don't

work for everyone, but they have given many of our members " new lives " ,

myself included. Remicade is delivered by IV infusion every 6 weeks, while

Enbrel and Humira are delivered by self injection. They are miracles for

some. Please read our archives and you will see that many, many people have

been helped enormously by these drugs. I would discuss these options with

your rheumatologist as they are a lot less severe than a morphine catheter.

Please stay in touch and let us know how it's going. Kathy F.]

[Guest guest]

Hello Coral --

You don't tell us much about how severe your husband's condition but I would

assume it is horrible if his doc is recommending the intrathecal pump.

Kathy is correct, has he tried and failed on all other meds? I say this

because my mom has the pump and it is truly the last thing we tried to

relieve her pain from osteoporosis and osteo arthritis in her back. It is

drastic but very effective. It gave her back a quality of life we thought

was gone forever. Unfortunately, when it is no longer effective I don't

think there is anything else the pain specialists have to offer except drugs

that will rob her of her mental awareness and any hope of an active life.

Also, for her, the first month after implant was very painful. The device

has to heal into that pouch they make to hold it. But then it became less

painful although it is still uncomfortable, partly due to the fact that she

is so thin that there is no fat to cushion it. I urge you to explore other

avenues before you take the pump route. It is a miracle but seems to me to

be an almost last resort.

I wish you both a swift and helpful solution. Cheri

[ ] Chronic Pain Solution??

>

>

> Hello everyone,

>

> I am taking the liberty of writing because my husband has been

> diagnosed with Psoriatic Arthritis and suffers from chronic pain.

> After trying the usual treatmens such as Arava, Metatrexate, etc with

> devastating side effects, one of the doctors recommended he use

> an " Intrathecal Drug Delivery System " to deliver morphine

> (specifically he suggested the one from Medtronic).

>

>>From what I gather, this is an implantable pump that releases

> programmed dosages of medicine thru a strategically implanted

> catheter, and thus relives pain.

>

> Now, all this sounds very promising, but before we do anything we

> wanted to ask if any of you have used, tried or heard something

> (either good or bad) about this sort of things.

>

> We both thank you very much, and wish you all well.

> Sincerly yours,

>

> Coral Ruiz

>

>

> [Editor's Note: Hi, Coral. Sorry to hear that your husband has been so

> badly hit by PA. Before taking the drastic step of a morphine catheter,

> is your husband under the care of a rheumatologist? Has he tried and

> failed on all of the following drugs: Remicade, Enbrel, Humira? These

> drugs don't work for everyone, but they have given many of our members

> " new lives " , myself included. Remicade is delivered by IV infusion every

> 6 weeks, while Enbrel and Humira are delivered by self injection. They

> are miracles for some. Please read our archives and you will see that

> many, many people have been helped enormously by these drugs. I would

> discuss these options with your rheumatologist as they are a lot less

> severe than a morphine catheter. Please stay in touch and let us know how

> it's going. Kathy F.]

[Guest guest]

---

Hi Coral,

Sorry to hear about your husband. Welcome to our group. I feel bad

that his pain is so bad. I was taking Vicodin for my pain and some

days it wasn't even reaching my pain-now the Dr. has me wearing

a " pain patch " a duragesic that has fentanyl-it comes 25, 50, 75, and

100 mg.-I put it on my shoulder and you replace them every three

days. I'm on the 50mg and it does work-I have the Vicodin

for " breakthrough pain " . It seems like the Dr. would try something

like this or what Fran had said first-unless you already have used

them. Before I used these I felt like I was in a body of pain.

Prayers to you and your husband.

God Bless, Sue in Michigan.

In , " coraldelopez "

<coraldelopez@y...> wrote:

>

> Hello everyone,

>

> I am taking the liberty of writing because my husband has been

> diagnosed with Psoriatic Arthritis and suffers from chronic pain.

> After trying the usual treatmens such as Arava, Metatrexate, etc

with

> devastating side effects, one of the doctors recommended he use

> an " Intrathecal Drug Delivery System " to deliver morphine

> (specifically he suggested the one from Medtronic).

>

> From what I gather, this is an implantable pump that releases

> programmed dosages of medicine thru a strategically implanted

> catheter, and thus relives pain.

>

> Now, all this sounds very promising, but before we do anything we

> wanted to ask if any of you have used, tried or heard something

> (either good or bad) about this sort of things.

>

> We both thank you very much, and wish you all well.

> Sincerly yours,

>

> Coral Ruiz

>

>

> [Editor's Note: Hi, Coral. Sorry to hear that your husband has

been so badly hit by PA. Before taking the drastic step of a

morphine catheter, is your husband under the care of a

rheumatologist? Has he tried and failed on all of the following

drugs: Remicade, Enbrel, Humira? These drugs don't work for

everyone, but they have given many of our members " new lives " , myself

included. Remicade is delivered by IV infusion every 6 weeks, while

Enbrel and Humira are delivered by self injection. They are miracles

for some. Please read our archives and you will see that many, many

people have been helped enormously by these drugs. I would discuss

these options with your rheumatologist as they are a lot less severe

than a morphine catheter. Please stay in touch and let us know how

it's going. Kathy F.]

[Guest guest]

Hi Coral,

I tend to agree with Kathy. An implant such as the one your husband

is considering, seems to be a drastic step. If he hasn't already

tried all of the other drugs or isn't already seeing a

Rheumatologist, I strongly suggest that he explore those options

first.

While I agree, that your husbands pain must be addressed, if only the

symptom (pain) is addressed it will likely only continue and he can

build up tolerance to the drugs that address the pain. And that can

lead to ever increasing dosages.

The drugs that seem to have the longest and best effects are those

that address the cause of PA, an immune system that is working

overtime.

Wishing you and your Husband Well.

[Guest guest]

Hi Coral,

A belated welcome to you and your husband if he is looking in. I see you

have already had plenty of help and advice so I have nothing really to add

except that I hope he can find something that will help him before having to go

for the pump. Keep us informed about how things are going for him.

Good luck,