Opioids Disabled Vet Help - Hydromorphone (2mg) - Insufflate?

[hotmoonsauce]

Hi there,I've been on Oxycodone (increasing strengths) for almost 5 years now. Currently I am taking Oxycodone 15mg (6x daily) and Oxycotin 40mg (2x daily), which I started about 5 months ago. I don't see myself coming off of the medication anytime soon (if ever) as I was blown off a cliff in Afghanistan several years back. (I am the very definition of FUBAR.)

My doctor also prescribed me 2mg Hydromorphone. They are white with a "2" on one side and a "M" on the other. I have taken them the last couple days (orally) but they don't seem to do a thing. After reading up a bit it appears that swallowing Hydromorphone is kind of pointless. I've never snorted, plugged, and definitely have never injected any type of drug.

My question is, do you think I should try snorting these? I have no idea how to go about doing it other than crush it up and breath it in. If there isn't any other way of doing this, I'm just going to toss them out then and ask the doctor for either something different or increasing what I'm currently on already. I just didn't want to completely waste them if possible.

Thank you for reading.

 

[Felonious Monk]

That's the best way to get an effect out of them without IV. If you don't like doing that I'd say just ask your doctor for something else. You're starting to get into uncomfortable territory though, there are stronger things than oxycodone but may not absorb properly orally and become more tenuous to receive forever.

Have you considered using medical cannabis? You don't mention what state you're in but more and more veterans are using cannabis to treat pain, PTSD, etc. There are veteran-support organizations for this exact purpose (and I've even heard of some people continuing to work with the VA despite adding cannabinoid therapies)

 

[hotmoonsauce]

Thank you for responding to me. When you say "uncomfortable territory" are you referring to the fact of taken medicine differently than prescribed? I agree with you if that is the case and maybe that path isn't the route I should take.

I've never considered cannabis. Actually I've never even smoked a cigarette in my entire life (surprising so considering how many did in the military). I live in Texas, I'm not sure if that kind of therapy can be offered here. I'll bring it up with my doctor though.

Again I appreciate your time and thank you for responding to me.

 

[Keif' Richards]

hotmoonsauce, welcome to Bluelight brother and a sincere thanks for the service. I don't necessarily agree with everything our government does, but I have endless respect for those who are willing to risk their lives for what they believe in.

I'm not sure exactly how educated you are in regards to drug use. I'll preface that, a lot of us here are actually addicts, but some are patients as well. My point is, don't be put off by the fact that addicts are giving you advice. Opioids tend to inevitably blur the line at least somewhat. The information I want about Hydromorphone is essentially going to be what you're after as well. Anyhoo.

It's a common reaction that "Oral Hydromorphone did nothing". It's not out of the ordinary. Hydromorphone has a completely different character when taken by other routes like insufflation or injection. It's in general, subjectively more enjoyable; a more recreational, powerful experience. After all, Hydromorphone's bioavailability is right around 30% for oral administration, while insufflation is around 55%-60% for insufflation depending on who you ask and what literature you read. This essentially means that Hydromorphone is nearly twice as potent when taken by this route.

I'll cut to the chase and not bore you guy. I'm going to send you a private message so we can chat if you'd like, but all can be explained. Insufflation is not a difficult process, but I can see how it might be nice to have someone describe the nuances of the process so you at least know what to expect.

The danger though, lies in the fact that you have a limited supply of Opioids. If you raise your tolerance by essentially doubling the strength of your drugs, you will eventually have to face that later on. Opioids are a give and take relationship. I'm sorry that your basically forced into the "lifestyle". I chose it like a fool.

 

[kleinerkiffer]

Snorting can come with some nasty side effects, because you breath in the fillers and binders, this can result in clogged alveoles
Plugging isn't perfectly safe either, but imo safer than snorting, check out this thread http://www.bluelight.org/vb/threads/206901-Official-Rectal-Admin-Plugging-Thread

 

[Nicholai]

2mg oral hydromorphone did absolutely nothing, even when I had no tolerance to speak of, so I'm really not surprised. Compared to an equal dose of oxy, it's really pretty useless, imo.

When you have legitimate pain that needs long-term treatment, there is definitely a danger in consuming your pills by any other route than 'as directed.' I know it sounds lame, but it really is a slippery slope.

You can easily get addicted to an alternate ROA by itself. It could be that you love the effects that you get from snorting hydro, and so that's what you do, with those or other pills.

Don't toss them out, you may need to surrender them at the doctors office to get a different script.

Just follow the doctors orders. You don't want to get caught 'abusing' your medication. You have a lot to lose if you get caught and it goes on your medical records! Trust me, I know. I have chronic pain as well as addiction issues, and now it's documented, so no more meds for me!

 

[hotmoonsauce]

Thank you all for the kind words and responses.

Nicholai, you said you were caught and its documented... how did you exactly get caught though? Besides simply telling your doctor I'm not sure how else they could find out. But to your other point about abusing my medication, I'm not sure I want to do that. I understand what you are getting at and your advice is well received. I imagine I'll try it once at least but with the hopeful intent to not make this a habit. Famous last words, right?

Keif, are you saying if I chose to sniff/plug I will always have to go that route then? Because taken them orally then will have zero impact. Do you think it would be feasible for someone to only do it.. once in awhile? I know that sounds a bit like I'm talking recreationally but sometimes I feel like that is how I get through the day. Yes the pain relief is apparent with these medications but the "feeling good" is what seems to actually work, it kind of has that.. masking effect. I read that Hydromorphone is Dilaudid. They gave that to me when I was in the hospital for 5 months. That stuff was amazing. Not just for knocking out the pain but also its ability to get past the fact I was messed up. I figure via IV you are getting all of it, probably why it felt so nice then, I was just surprised I got nothing from it at all when I swallowed them. If I can get by taking a smaller dose of Hydromorphone over the 6 times a day Oxy, I feel like that would be better for me in the long run.. wouldn't it?

 

[Felonious Monk]

Thank you for responding to me. When you say "uncomfortable territory" are you referring to the fact of taken medicine differently than prescribed? I agree with you if that is the case and maybe that path isn't the route I should take.

I've never considered cannabis. Actually I've never even smoked a cigarette in my entire life (surprising so considering how many did in the military). I live in Texas, I'm not sure if that kind of therapy can be offered here. I'll bring it up with my doctor though.

No problem, that's what BL is for.

By uncomfortable territory I was referring to what Keif mentioned, "If you raise your tolerance by essentially doubling the strength of your drugs, you will eventually have to face that later on."

Basically, you'll be lying to your doctor about your use/tolerance, which makes things more difficult. Also difficult to figure what exact dose you're taking. Also you'll be running out of new options as you raise your tolerance. Last issue is that you're at the mercy of pill formulation--people using OxyContin nasally had to face this issue when they were reformulated. Not likely to happen to Dilaudid but higher-dose or ER meds would be more likely to be affected.

If you're in Texas not much hope for cannabis yet. I'm in California so the VA is willing to work within state law.

 

[hotmoonsauce]

I get what you are saying now Felonious. Makes sense and is something to be mindful of going forward.

I have other questions but I understand if you don't have time to answer any of these. Not wanting to become a pest...

• Lately after taking my medication I will occasionally get a wave of fatigue. It's almost to the point of having a difficult time staying awake. It's random when it happens. I assume its the medication but why the change?

• Is my current dosage considered, a lot? I know that is a subjective question but I guess compared to your experiences how does it rate? (15mg codone 6x daily, 40mg Cotin 2x daily)

• Almost a year ago I tried to come off these medications in the hope of "resetting" so I wouldn't have to take a higher dose. I felt like I was going to die after the first day. Are there ways of dealing with that? I read that Lyrica can help (I have ALOT of that drug) but I'm not sure what kind of dosing one would take or if it would even help. The biggest hurdle for me was the tingling in my arms. I wanted to cut them off it got so bad. I finally gave up and haven't tried since.

Thanks for reading!
Btw... do you guys get "The server is too busy at the moment." often? Or is that just me?

 

[Felonious Monk]

Could be you're taking too much for your current tolerance (Why you're getting tired). Your dose isn't unreasonable but it would put me to sleep and I use opiates every day.

You're dependent. You have chronic pain so this is to be expected. This is just withdrawal. If you were able to use more adjunct medications (like Lyrica) or therapies (like acupuncture of PT) your opiates would go farther mg for mg and your w/d would be less severe.

We're having some heavy traffic from search engine bots, seems to be less today but out of our control.