Herion

[Niteowl07]

So idk if this is the right section or not but I'm having back surgery on june 1 and been using heroin for awhile now but only been sniffing them and maybe do a half g every 2 days, usually its 5/6 bags or so and I'm splitting them also.. I want to quit and start detox but idk if that's a good idea with me having back surgery or not. Or should I start to detox now and like switch over to using oxy? Any one know? I dont want the doctor to not prescribe me pain meds for the surgery or say something

 

[deficiT]

@Niteowl07 That's a difficult question. I imagine they would have to give you pain medicine for back surgery regardless. But I wouldn't want to say anything to jeopardize that personally.


I'm really not sure, just tread carefully though. Might be best to start cutting back on it now, but maybe someone else will have a better answer. Cause I wouldn't want to be miserable and withdrawing in your position either.

 

[falsifiedhypothesi]

The doctor isn't necessarily going to know about your heroin use, but it might fuck with the anesthetic during surgery. You should probably start weening down right now and get to as low of a dose as possible by June.

 

[Jabberwocky]

The doctor isn't necessarily going to know about your heroin use, but it might fuck with the anesthetic during surgery. You should probably start weening down right now and get to as low of a dose as possible by June.

The doctor will give him a drug test before anesthesia, if OP test positive the surgery will be canceled. Mine was for cocaine

 

[falsifiedhypothesi]

My bad, I didn't know they drug tested before surgery.

 

[I_Hate_This_Place]

The doctor will give him a drug test before anesthesia, if OP test positive the surgery will be canceled. Mine was for cocaine

My bad, I didn't know they drug tested before surgery.

I've had multiple surgeries without being drug tested but they where a decent number of years ago. It makes sense that they would test for liability reasons. I'm curious as to other peoples experience with this?

Now that I think on it more my most recent surgery I wasn't tested but that likely was due to the fact that it was a dental procedure done at a specialty clinic rather than a hospital. Though from what I've been told I will need another procedure & said procedure will need to be done in a hospital setting. As such I'm interested in more information as to how prevalent &/or universal this practice is. Regardless; it is best in my experience to get your tolerances as low as possible before having surgery to increase the efficacy of the analgesia you are seeking post procedure. I personally find it very rare that the analgesics provided by the prescribing physician to be adequate for pain control. So in my particular case I stockpile my own post procedure analgesics. Everyone is different but from my personal experiences I recommend having as low a tolerance as possible.

I'm not familiar with back surgery specifically. I'm not sure the length of time you expect to be in pain after the procedure or if perhaps the procedure is to relieve pain in the first place. Depending on the length of time one expects pain to last post procedure I would generally recommend considering that factor & whether or not you expect to receive an adequate amount of analgesia from whatever post procedure analgesics you are prescribed to last for the period of time indicated. Also factoring in whether or not the quantity & quality of the analgesics provided are adequate for your pain relief needs. That general recommendation can change if one is having a procedure to alleviate pre-existing pain & do not wish to complicate the picture with other analgesics. Everyone has individual circumstances & must adjust there planning & actions accordingly.

As for the anesthesia issue itself that is another matter. As @falsifiedhypothesi stated being tolerant to the medications being used can impact the anesthetizing process itself. That's something you will want to take into consideration. I don't know if you consume benzos or other medications that are used in anesthesia? If so keep in mind that what medications are being used & if you have a tolerance to them as well. In my case I've personally always found it very beneficial to discuss what anesthetics are being used & how you respond to them. As the other poster stated if you are being drug tested then it wouldn't really matter if you try to hide your drug use. If you are concerned with them questioning your reasons for say tolerance, aversion or preference one can simply say that one has prior experience with being anesthetized & have found that for example anesthetic A works better than anesthetic B with less side effects. Though it's your right to ask questions & in my opinion you definitely should do so. Personally I have a tolerance to opioids as well as benzodiazepines & have had issues with being conscious during a procedure in the past. As a result as I stated I always talk to the anesthesiologist prior to the procedure & make sure to discuss this & any other issues I may have with them. In my case I've found Propofol to generally be one of my preferred anesthetic agents of choice. Again this varies inter-personally based on what medication works best for you but if you have any past experience with anesthetics it's something to consider.

My apologies that I don't have any more current & specific information regarding the practices implemented around the procedure itself (testing, etc.). Sadly enough I don't have the information required to elucidate further regarding what practices are in place that would have an effect on whether or not you're prescribed medication post procedure. Honestly that's something I would be terrified about myself. However; as I stated I would assume in my particular circumstances that the post procedure analgesics I would be prescribed would be severely inadequate. As a result I would plan on having my own analgesics as well as an accompanying post procedure pain treatment plan in place that I myself had designed & done my best to be fully prepared for. Hopefully I've provided some useful input regarding your situation even if I was unable to be as specific as I would like to have been. Best of luck with your procedure.

 

[OpiateKiller]

I never was drug tested before any surgery, however I would be honest about it. It's honestly not that big of a deal being an opiate, they likely will have you on a fentanyl IV anyways. I would just do less than normal going into the surgery and not sweat it honestly.

 

[Niteowl07]

Cool thanks for the advice from everyone.. I'll post back the details

 

[Deru]

For general anesthesia, a lot of doctors will drug test nowadays, especially with the opioid epidemic and how many people are actually addicted to them now.

I actually woke up in the middle of my TTE because the anesthesiologist didn't compensate for my addiction and known drug use, and I woke up in the middle of it with the camera down my throat.

It was actually an anesthesiologist tech, and the anesthesiologist was trying to multitask two patients - he was fired, although I have no clue if it was specifically because of what happened with me or a culmination of errors or what the case was.

Anyways, if you're going to be put under anesthesia, it really is in your best interest to be honest. If the surgery requires pain management after, the doctor won't make you suffer in agonizing pain because you used heroin.

You may get opioids for a shorter period of time, but it will be used in conjunction with other pain medications, which honestly work better than opioids alone depending on the pain.

 

[CfZrx]

Hi Niteowl,
I would try to get on a suboxone program, but stay at a low dose, like 2mg/day. Yes, that is exactly what I would do. Unless there was a methadone clinic nearby, and then I would do that instead. That would take care of your pain on its own,lol

 

[Keif' Richards]

You can begin a rapid taper immediately or tell your anesthesiologist

 

[ghostandthedarknes]

I'd go in there clean because they're probably gonna do a blood screen. so what if your sick. you'll wake up full of pain meds. i wouldn't volunteer any information to the doctor you don't have to. jmho