Just prescribed Tramadol

[FossilJen]

New here and could really use some information. I was recently, (finally), diagnosed with degenerative osteoarthritis in my neck and lower spine and the last vertebrae has shifted 3mm backwards, causing hip pain. My Dr prescribed Tramadol because I've never had it before and every pain pill I've ever had makes me throw up. She also prescribed seven, 5mg valium for anxiety a month, 500 mg robaxin every 8 hours and 15mg meloxicam, 1 a day. We've discussed antidepressants and how every single one I've ever been on has the exact opposite of the intended effect so she understands why I will never take another one. Now I find that Tramadol IS a SNRI, so happy I haven't taken any! I've been told it's the opioid making me sick, but I smoked opium a couple times in my wilder years and it certainly didn't make me throw up or feel so weirdly disconnected and knock me out. Do any of you know of ANYTHING that doesn't have the horrible side effects or mess with my serotonin? I smoke cannabis, and most days it a couple aspirin and the meloxicam I'm good to go. Then I have days like today, when I can't move at all without crying. Any suggestions, opinions or personal experiences would be very welcome and helpful. Thanks!

 

[Slow_Mobius]

What other pain meds have you tried? If it's other opioids making you sick, that goes away after building a little tolerance and it might mean your dose was just a little too high.

Definitely don't take tramadol if youre sensitive to SNRIs. As far as opioid pain relievers that don't have those effects, pretty much everything else besides tapentadol won't have the dirty SNRI effects.

I highly recommend quality (prob not something you would get from a headshot) kratom. It's very effective for alot of people, but you may or may not have more issues with nausea.

Only 7 valium for a month? That sounds like an odd number, no pun intended

If you're doctor prescribed you the tramadol knowing that you get horrible side effects from SNRIs, you might want to look for a new one. Either she didn't know that tramadol is an SNRI which means she doesn't know anything about the drugs shes prescribing, or she knowingly gave you an SNRI anyways for who knows what reason.

Meloxicam is usually the ideal NSAID for osteoarthritis, so keep taking it if it works for you! It sounds like you only need something to take on as needed basis which will be difficult. Doctors are more inclined to prescribe narcotic pain relievers on a tightly-managed, everyday dosing regiment, and they rarely prescribe narcotics on as needed basis for long term treatment (and it actually isn't indicated for that kind of treatment). The reason for this, of course, is that it's easier to determine whether someone is casually abusing their meds if they're on a tightly managed regiment, but if someone takes narcotics as needed, there's really no way for the doctor to know if your abusing or selling your meds. Stupid stuff if you ask me!

 

[CfZrx]

sounds like some shitty meds. i'm sure you won't throw up if the dose of a normal opioid is small enough like 2.5 mg oxycodone or something like that. Ask your doc about cutting your pills in half. oh, i see SloMobius recommends Meloxicam or whatever its called. Maybe thats good?

 

[FossilJen]

It is an odd number of valium, but it was actually prescribed when I started having really bad panic attacks, for about a week a month, I'm also peri Menopausal and those are just one of the joys of that process. Funny thing about it is the days I take it, I only take half of one, only 2.5 mg and it's the most "normal" I have felt since before puberty and I think I get more muscle relaxation from that tiny bit than I do from the robaxin. Flexeril gives me restless legs, which just negates the good effects. The only problem I have with meloxicam is I get really bad headaches if I take it more than 3 or 4 days in a row. I've been on percocet, percodan, vicodin, Tylenol 3 as far as opiods for various dental procedures or injuries and every one of them except for the Tylenol 3 makes me sick, even half a pill, I'm praying to the porcelain gods. Tylenol 3 might as well be regular Tylenol. I've been dealing with all of this with nothing but aspirin and cannabis for about 7 years now. I usually do ok, but today is killing my spirit. I won't take valium and robaxin on the same day and I made the wrong choice today. Robaxin isn't stopping the spasms, massage helped, while it was happening, but it's right back where it was before the massage and it's only been an hour. I'm seriously considering taking half of an old percodan leftover from a tooth extraction 2 years ago. Consequences be damned. I think the reason she's so willing to do an "as needed" script is because I do still have narcotics leftover 2 years after getting them. Especially since I only had 10 in the first place. She suggested Tramadol because she said she has the same issues with pain meds, but this one works for her without the side effects.

 

[Slow_Mobius]

You might really benefit from kratom. Definitely give that a shot. It's very different from pharmaceutical opioids, but it can he a very effective analgesic. If Tylenol 3s dont cause the same problem, I wonder if your just really sensitive to opioids. Maybe try 1/4 of the tablet? If not maybe you just tolerate real opiates like codeine and morphine better. Either way, I would highly recommend kratom.

I'm the same with the muscle relaxers. Valium is way better than most other drugs I've taken for muscle relaxation. I'm currently prescribed clonazepam which works alright for me but not as well as valium did. Kava might be a much better alternative for anxiety. I think it's anxiolytic effects are about on par with a low dose of valium, but it's not addictive and is actually more effective when it's taken more often! It also doesn't interfere with memory and cognition like valium and other benzodiazepine. It's can be tricky to prepare though, and there are alot of really bad vendors. Kava and kratom are both legal, herbal supplements in the US and most other places.

I still don't think it was right for your doctor to prescribe the tramadol without at least counseling you that it's an SNRI that would carry a significant risk for the same side effects you got from antidepressants.

 

[FossilJen]

I'm going to talk to her about it. The funny thing about the valium, I found out my grandmother was on 5 mg a day for over 20 years and never had any type of issues, never had to up her dose, and she was a really awesome grandmother! Far more nurturing than my own mother. When her dr retired, she got a new, young Dr who absolutely freaked out over the valium. He immediately stopped it. No withdrawal, and by that time, her kids were raised, her grandkids were raised. After she had an aortic aneurysm burst, he prescribed Prozac because she was depressed about not going straight home from the hospital. She had horrible, terrifying hallucinations and rather than stop the Prozac, he chemically restrained her until the entire family forced him to stop. If depression is caused by serotonin issues and chronic anxiety is from GABA issues, I can't understand why drs are so afraid of using drugs that work, if used properly. At 2.5 mg, I have, literally zero side effects. But I find that I don't have to consciously relax my muscles, I don't find my shoulders pulling in, hunching me up. I don't find myself holding my breath because I hurt so much. I don't understand why drs are more than willing to prescribe one type of "addiction risk", but not another. It just baffles me.

 

[FossilJen]

And best of all, at even that low a dose, zero panic attacks for 24 hours. I don't just get up in the morning and automatically take it like I do with the meloxicam and beta blocker for my BP, I only take it if I have more than one panic attack in a day. Doesn't happen every day, so I don't want to take it every day. That's how addictions happen and I refuse to let some pill control me any more than I'll let any person. ?

 

[Slow_Mobius]

Glad to hear that it's been very helpful for you. Doctors will always start with drugs that aren't scheduled and that don't carry the addiction risks. That may have been why your grandmother's doctor switched her. Unfortunately, a lot of general practitioners are kind of robotic in that they often spew whatever they were force-fed in medical school and whatever little reading they do on their own time. I've been really lucky in that my last two doctors were really smart guys that have a passion for medicine, and my current doc is a pharmacology fanatic. Unfortunately, myself and many others have also been subject to people that are there to collect their paycheck. I think those people are more likely to avoid prescribing controlled substances as much as possible

 

[FossilJen]

I actually switched to a family nurse practitioner and she's the one who finally did the necessary xrays and was willing to work with me on the anxiety. I've found that pain and anxiety feed each other and if I can keep the anxiety under control, I can deal with the pain easier. Regular drs, even osteopaths wouldn't take me seriously, even though I tell them up front I don't like pharmaceuticals in any form. I have to be pretty desperate to actually take them.

 

[Slow_Mobius]

It sounds like you found someone with more compassion which is good. I think nurse practitioners can have some variability in the extent of their pharmacological knowledge, so maybe she just didn't know tramadol was an SNRI

I'm sorry to hear about your problems with other doc's. How severe is your osteoarthritis? I'm very surprised that they wouldn't work with your anxiety. I personally don't have anxiety problems, but Ive been asked more than once by doctors if I need anxiety treatment along with pain management (I also have osteoarthritis, although mine isn't severe). Pain, anxiety, and insomnia tend to go hand in hand with each other, and worsening one seems to also worsen the others.

 

[FossilJen]

She said the lower spine is the worst, mostly because the last vertebrae before the sacrum has shifted 3mm backwards and so the side of it is pinching inside my hip bone. It feels like it's shifted more and that's exactly where the spasms are. When I got up this morning, if my car was running, I'd have gone to the ER. I still would go, if my car was running, but I have nobody to ask for a ride, it's 45 miles away and snowing