Harm Reduction The Pain Management Mega Thread Version 4

[macd610]

Hatrix - how old are you? What kind of shape are you in? Also, when did you back pain start and how long have you been at this job that requires heavy lifting?

Im only 21 and deal with chronic pain from benign joint hypermobility syndrome and some type of auto immune disease thats still undergoing testing to get the diagnosis. So the auto immune causes flare ups ontop of my everyday pain.
Anyhow, i started physical therapy two months ago and the therapist said that my back hurts, esp lower back because i had gotten very out of shape over the last year cuz i was in too much pain to exercise and scared id hurt myself further. He told me that i have extremely terrible posture and that my core is very weak. Since my core is weak, the back has to make up for the things the core should be taking care of.
So, perhaps try doing some light cardio and core work. And as for the posture, i know how hard it is to get correct posture when youve been slouching for sooo long. But he told me that all i have to do is every

Shady K,
Thanks for sharing pain management techniques that people can do on their own (with their MD's OK, of course).
For my condition (endometriosis) I haven't found anything that helps other than medication, unfortunately.
Still, it's good to see any posts here that may be of help to others in similar situations. I think I too easily forget that there are many different ways to manage pain besides pain medications.
Cat

 

[Doomed2pain]

Physio is really important I do mine 5 times a day to keep my limbs as mobile as possible. I'd advise any chronic pain patient to do physio exercise it helps a lot.

 

[chase_in_56ace]

Hour on the hour, sit in the correct posture, and holding abs tight, for thirty seconds.
My posture is slowly getting better and now it feels awkward and sometimes painful to slouch.
The exercises from phys therapy have definitely seemed to help some, and esp my back.
I apologize for the two part message, my phone only allowed me to type so much at once!

Thx so much for sharing! Can you go into a lil more detail on how much its helping you, as in real-life applications and situations? Im looking into the possibility of getting my next six weeks of antibiotic therapy at a very physically demanding PT Rehab vs a quiet, retirement-aged nursing home.

Im trying to weigh out the pros and cons. For one, the PT Rehab won't administer my IV Dilaudid or Ativan. As most of you know hydromorphone is pretty inefficient taken orally and Im not shooting pills again.

For those wondering I'm officially 2weeks into a life change which I hope leaves me 20lbs heavier without a trace of my old malnourished, drug - addicted body.

---:: Macd --- :: yes I am very blessed to have a GF that literally says to hell with hospital policy and sleeps in my bed with me EVERY night lmao! My parents are also totally relieved and are 100% behind me... and it shows in their visits 3x a week.

I genuinely love you all and pray that in the future your bodies and spirits prove resilient against the relentless burden that is chronic pain. Please pray for me...

Chase.

 

[Doomed2pain]

I'm so pissed I've been without meds for 3 days I was waiting for the paperwork from the specialist to get to my gp. It has been over a week but still no joy, I'm in so much pain and I'm pissed off that it is taking so long for a poxy report to arrive at my gp. It happens every single time. Does anyone else get messed around by drs this much? It is bloody ridiculous

 

[chase_in_56ace]

just an idea

I'm so pissed I've been without meds for 3 days I was waiting for the paperwork from the specialist to get to my gp. It has been over a week but still no joy, I'm in so much pain and I'm pissed off that it is taking so long for a poxy report to arrive at my gp. It happens every single time. Does anyone else get messed around by drs this much? It is bloody ridiculous

Just something to think about- receptionists are the ones that handle the faxing over of documents, staying behind busy docs to call in ot write up orders, etc. I've found the better relationship you have with your receptionist and the more she likes you, the faster things get done. Next time you have an appt., try complementing her on her hair or perfume or something lol. As silly as it sounds, it makes a huge difference.

Sorry to hear you're in pain, doomed

 

[Doomed2pain]

I don't go in to see my gp as I'm usually bed bound we just have phone appointments, but it is not my gp that is the problem it is the pain clinic that I got discharged from that is the problem and there is no way I can speed it up, things in the uk differ to the states greatly, you guys go to a pain clinic and get seen pretty fast where as here we have to go on waiting lists and wait months. Thanks for the advice though

 

[queenbee2]

Thx for the wishes, Tri. Queenbee: 7/10 when I first woke up and Im also at my best in the mornings I've been on Ativan 2mg/iv for 10 days now 3x a day and am really afraid of developing a benzo dependence, but unfortunately I'm pretty much there. The thing is it does WONDERS for my spasms, sleep issues, and anxiety in that order. The spasms being under control is really a miracle as all other muscle relaxers failed and this is the first time on Ativan. Maybe 1.5mg/iv instead of 2mg could still do the therapeutic trick as well as start a little mini taper?

On another note, I am looking at 6-12weeks in the hospital for my osteomyilitis. No more reckless Iv solutions for me. My antibiotic, IV rosephen has been changed since it very slightly elevated my liver enzymes. Next MRI to check for signs of progress in 3days, wish me luck!

Good luck today!!! I hope the MRI shows some progress! I'm glad to hear the Ativan is helping you. I totally understand that fear of dependence, but what's a person to do when they find something that truly helps? It's a trade-off, for sure.

6-12 weeks in the hospital? Oh my. What a thing to have to look forward to.

 

[queenbee2]

Physio is really important I do mine 5 times a day to keep my limbs as mobile as possible. I'd advise any chronic pain patient to do physio exercise it helps a lot.

I completely agree. My favorite type of exercise is Yoga and I also take walks down to the park a few times per week. We got a new puppy in January and she needs lots of exercise, so that has been a very positive motivation for me to move more.

 

[Doomed2pain]

I'm wheelchair bound when I can actually get out of bed so real exercise is impossible but my physio exercises have helped to keep my affected limbs as mobile as possible although now the crps has got worse my foot is slowly changing shape which I'm absolutely gutted about, I really don't want deformed limbs

 

[misscus]

I am new here , so bear with me, I tried to do a reply to a person who had chronic diarrhea, their post was from November 2012. My reply was hopefully to go to them directly but it did not. I also have chronic back and neck pain. My interest is in how to make a vicodin work better. And yes, there is no real answer. My doctor won't give me more and I'm not sure I want to take higher dose either. Anyhow, getting back to that person:
My reply to that person was: I had diarrhea daily, all day, every day for 52 years. I stopped eating all wheat products, white flour, gluten for 5 months now. Guess what? No more diarrhea. Within 5 days of stopping all that, I stopped having diarrhea. I have taken every med known to man to treat diarrhea. I read a book called Wheat Belly in an effort to lose weight, but the cardiologist who wrote the book also discussed the diarrhea diseases as being wheat food related as well. HEY, IT'S WORTH A TRY! I have freedom now to come and go, don't have to put on a diaper just to go grocery shopping etc etc.....
Wishing you the best!

 

[muppypud]

well I'm new to BL, but not new to unrelenting, constant, ever present (well you get the idea) pain. I suffer from fibromylgia and arthritis, and have been for a good 12 years now. Haven't had a pain free day in a good number of years....not a single day...except for the first time my rheumatologist gave me prednisone. I actually had a glorious week free of pain, sigh.....but even that was a few years ago.

I've been seeing the same GP and Rehum doctors for 12 years, and struggled to get pain meds when treatments didn't work. Right now I am on a ton of meds and my GP was prescribing the oxycodone and lyrica to help with the pain. I also have a ton of psych meds for depression (as a result of the pain and the career and life it cost me) he has me on a few meds, and between all of those I have almost been handling life at a pain level of 7.....long story short, my GP quit and the new doc they gave me in the office labeled me a "drug seeker" (written in my permanent folder of course).

Luckily my Rehumotologist was willing to give me scripts, but not oxy's. It's back to vicodine and lyrica. She is an angel, But even so, I have now been labeled a "drug seeker" which you all know is the death knell for those of us in chronic pain.
I spent the last couple of months with barely of meds, and the pain has been terrible. My shrink had to prescribe me additional anti-anxiety meds on top of the klonipin, zoloft, and adderal.

I am now trying to get that bitches comments out of my records. Hell she hadn't even met me yet, and the first thing she says when she walks in the door is "I will not be giving you any narcotics for your habit' she didn't examine me at all. Didn't read any of my records, nor the 15 test results from mri's xrays, ect from 2008 only (been ill since 99) when i asked her if she didn't have the responsibility to adequetly reduce my pain levels and i was told " i won't do anything to get audited by the feds to jeoordise her licence! Oh and, after all that entire 10 minutes she diagnosed me as being bi-polar!
I've talked to two lawyers and have been told i may have a case, but they wouldn't be interested in taking it. I can prove injury...but i guess there isn't enough money in it for them. All I want is a referal to another gp, and to have that witches comments expunged from my records.

Sorry to unload so much on ya'll, but it explains where I am coming from....So over the years I have been supplementing with medical cannabis, but still I can't get mr. pain to go away. As a result, I have been looking for "unconventional meds" and found that mushrooms helped with my migrains and kept my levels down for a week after dosing. Problem is they are tricky to cultivate, and I built up an evil tolerance and needed mass quantities to get any results at all.
now I have started experimenting with RC's. I know that may be a bit dangerous, but A) I am a old girl, and have been "self medicating" for almost 40 years.

Since NOTHING short of morphine takes my pain away, I have started focusing on ways to live with the pain, and I learned that diversion was my best friend. I can sometimes get in the zone and try and ignore the pain. I became a graphic artist because when I am creating I can actually "forget" I am in pain....
I honestly would end my life if I could. My "quality of life" is in the negative numbers...but I have a 20 year old autistic son that without me to take care of him would end up in an institution somewhere, and well that would be terrible....

Over the years, I have found that those of us in pain, can help each other learn new ways to deal with it all......
Muppy

 

[macd610]

well I'm new to BL, but not new to unrelenting, constant, ever present (well you get the idea) pain. I suffer from fibromylgia and arthritis, and have been for a good 12 years now. Haven't had a pain free day in a good number of years....not a single day...except for the first time my rheumatologist gave me prednisone. I actually had a glorious week free of pain, sigh.....but even that was a few years ago.

I've been seeing the same GP and Rehum doctors for 12 years, and struggled to get pain meds when treatments didn't work. Right now I am on a ton of meds and my GP was prescribing the oxycodone and lyrica to help with the pain. I also have a ton of psych meds for depression (as a result of the pain and the career and life it cost me) he has me on a few meds, and between all of those I have almost been handling life at a pain level of 7.....long story short, my GP quit and the new doc they gave me in the office labeled me a "drug seeker" (written in my permanent folder of course).

Luckily my Rehumotologist was willing to give me scripts, but not oxy's. It's back to vicodine and lyrica. She is an angel, But even so, I have now been labeled a "drug seeker" which you all know is the death knell for those of us in chronic pain.
I spent the last couple of months with barely of meds, and the pain has been terrible. My shrink had to prescribe me additional anti-anxiety meds on top of the klonipin, zoloft, and adderal.

I am now trying to get that bitches comments out of my records. Hell she hadn't even met me yet, and the first thing she says when she walks in the door is "I will not be giving you any narcotics for your habit' she didn't examine me at all. Didn't read any of my records, nor the 15 test results from mri's xrays, ect from 2008 only (been ill since 99) when i asked her if she didn't have the responsibility to adequetly reduce my pain levels and i was told " i won't do anything to get audited by the feds to jeoordise her licence! Oh and, after all that entire 10 minutes she diagnosed me as being bi-polar!
I've talked to two lawyers and have been told i may have a case, but they wouldn't be interested in taking it. I can prove injury...but i guess there isn't enough money in it for them. All I want is a referal to another gp, and to have that witches comments expunged from my records.

Sorry to unload so much on ya'll, but it explains where I am coming from....So over the years I have been supplementing with medical cannabis, but still I can't get mr. pain to go away. As a result, I have been looking for "unconventional meds" and found that mushrooms helped with my migrains and kept my levels down for a week after dosing. Problem is they are tricky to cultivate, and I built up an evil tolerance and needed mass quantities to get any results at all.
now I have started experimenting with RC's. I know that may be a bit dangerous, but A) I am a old girl, and have been "self medicating" for almost 40 years.

Since NOTHING short of morphine takes my pain away, I have started focusing on ways to live with the pain, and I learned that diversion was my best friend. I can sometimes get in the zone and try and ignore the pain. I became a graphic artist because when I am creating I can actually "forget" I am in pain....
I honestly would end my life if I could. My "quality of life" is in the negative numbers...but I have a 20 year old autistic son that without me to take care of him would end up in an institution somewhere, and well that would be terrible....

Over the years, I have found that those of us in pain, can help each other learn new ways to deal with it all......
Muppy

Welcome, Muppy! It's great to have you here, you're definitely in the right place. Just wanted to say that I am sure you'll get lots of replies...just be patient, and please don't feel you're being ignored in the meantime.
When up for it, I know my friend Doomed2pain can relate to you ( in regards to the severity of your pain).
I cannot imagine being labeled a drug seeker on top of all of the other problems that come with chronic pain management.

Like I said, I'm sure the replies will be coming in shortly. Just hang in there in the meantime.
Again, welcome to BL!
Cat

 

[Livinginthealps]

I'm so pissed I've been without meds for 3 days I was waiting for the paperwork from the specialist to get to my gp. It has been over a week but still no joy, I'm in so much pain and I'm pissed off that it is taking so long for a poxy report to arrive at my gp. It happens every single time. Does anyone else get messed around by drs this much? It is bloody ridiculous

I feel your pain brotha. I was just in your mess a few days ago but, for other reasons. I went a few days medicine free which was not fun. But, I made it out alright with little withdrawal symptoms which actually was interesting. My GP suddenly had to move 800+ miles away for a new job with very little notice. For the short time I had this doctor, I for once felt I was being treated with care. The doctor despite me being young understood my condition and was working to figure out which medications help me the best. He promised that I would be taken care of when he left by another doctor in the practice. Well as soon as he left my next refill they decided to leave me a voicemail saying the new doctor want's to ween me off as i am too young for medication. Well excuse me I didn't know pain had an age... Good news is I got it figured out and a new practice was able to take me in as a patient. They even got me in within 3 days.
Hope everyone has a good and pain free day!

 

[muppypud]

Well as soon as he left my next refill they decided to leave me a voicemail saying the new doctor want's to ween me off as i am too young for medication. Well excuse me I didn't know pain had an age...

That's a load of crap Living! And it makes me terribly mad. I use to get these terrible migraines starting at around age 9 or 10...several times I ended up in the ER for a shot of demerol because they were so bad. I can remember my mother telling me that I couldn't possibly hurt so much at such a young age. This was back in the 60's and I would have hoped that people would have learned better by now.
I hope your new doc helps you out, and stick to your guns about getting relief for your pain! I have seen several studies that show that even infants and new borns feel pain so be assertive about your care. You deserve as much pain relief as the next guy!

Thanks for the welcome Cat. It's appreciated.

And how is everyone else doing today? Hope that nasty, dirty, bloody, Mr. Pain leaves ya'll alone.
Muppy

 

[Doomed2pain]

Muppy you need to delete some messages so i can reply

 

[muppypud]

oh ok...i only have a few...I'll give you my email..it will be easier...I have the feeling you and I will be talking a lot {soft hug}

 

[Doomed2pain]

Yeah send me your email Hun got loads to talk about

 

[GreenieOxy4Me]

I am new to the site and was looking for some help. I recently had major back surgery. I've been on morphine IR 75 MGs Every four hours and MS Contin 60 mg every eight hours. My doctor switched me to 8 mg of the dilaudid every four hours and 75 mg MS Contin. I was wondering what the best ROA for the dilaudid would be, as my tolerance has become extremely high. I'm looking for the best way to take care of my chronic pain as well as achieve the euphoric feeling that I sometimes crave. How much should I take and in which method would be the best way to do it? Thanks for any and all suggestions!

 

[hatrix]

hatrix--how old are you?
My next question is....other than the physical work that you do at your job, are you able to do any other exercise?

My chronic pain comes from various surgeries I've had and while I am on medication regimen, I also try to do other things to reduce my pain--heat on the painful areas, I do yoga three times a week and also walk my dog every day. I believe my pain would be worse if I didn't do these things to make myself stronger.

If you have insurance, you may want to start by talking to your doctor about having x-rays or and MRI done to see if there IS something going on there.

And it's true that sometimes stress and anxiety can make existing pain worse. I certainly have experienced that.

Good luck to you and I hope that you can get some relief.

Sure I'm able to exercise, but I don't exercise regularly anymore like I used to years ago. I'm 20 btw. I used to, back when I was in high school and had more of a social life, do P90X with some friends everyday and weight lifting too.

Hatrix - how old are you? What kind of shape are you in? Also, when did you back pain start and how long have you been at this job that requires heavy lifting?

Im only 21 and deal with chronic pain from benign joint hypermobility syndrome and some type of auto immune disease thats still undergoing testing to get the diagnosis. So the auto immune causes flare ups ontop of my everyday pain.
Anyhow, i started physical therapy two months ago and the therapist said that my back hurts, esp lower back because i had gotten very out of shape over the last year cuz i was in too much pain to exercise and scared id hurt myself further. He told me that i have extremely terrible posture and that my core is very weak. Since my core is weak, the back has to make up for the things the core should be taking care of.
So, perhaps try doing some light cardio and core work. And as for the posture, i know how hard it is to get correct posture when youve been slouching for sooo long. But he told me that all i have to do is every

Age stated above, as far as shape.... Well I'm not considered overweight by any charts or anything but I have a little bit of a stomach. I'm like 5'10" and weigh 160lbs. I don't consider myself in that great of shape, I'd prefer not to have all this stomach fat, but no one would really call me fat fat. Everytime I tell someone I'm a little chubby or fat they tell me yea right, but I definitely have more fat than I should, but still not very fat lol.

As far as when this back pain started..... Hmm. Good question. Maybe a couple years ago is when I noticed how bad it could be sometimes. While working another job where I was in a stock room.

I hear you on the cardio exercise. I used to do Ab ripper X everyday because it was a great cardio workout. I HATE running and honestly it can make my back hurt lol. Yea my posture is bad and I'm sure me being out of shape a little isn't helping with my back pain.

I'd also love to get some scans and shit done at the doctor but I don't think my insurance would cover enough to warrant getting it done. Too much out of pocket as I'm on my parents insurance plan. Fine doctors visits, meds and shit. But I'm not sure on anything more involved.

 

[michael]

I am new to the site and was looking for some help. I recently had major back surgery. I've been on morphine IR 75 MGs Every four hours and MS Contin 60 mg every eight hours. My doctor switched me to 8 mg of the dilaudid every four hours and 75 mg MS Contin. I was wondering what the best ROA for the dilaudid would be, as my tolerance has become extremely high. I'm looking for the best way to take care of my chronic pain as well as achieve the euphoric feeling that I sometimes crave. How much should I take and in which method would be the best way to do it? Thanks for any and all suggestions!

the best ROA is to eat it. if you care about treating your chronic pain give up the idea of getting high from your meds. period.