I'm 19 and have suffered from chronic lowerback and neck pains for a couple of years now, my doctor keeps prescribing me NSAIDs. I've tried to explain to him that they aren't working; They do nothing for the pain. I do know that opioids work for my pain, but only for a limited time. Do I have to go to a chronic pain specialist to get this type of medication, if not, then how could I communicate this with my doctor? I'm tired of constantly being in pain, and its' getting in the way of daily activities. I really don't think that my age has anything to do with it... I know a 16 yr old who is prescribed Oxycontin for headaches, so why can't my doctor give me something similar when I was diagnosed with chronic pain?
Q: my doctor is not prescribing me anything for my chronic pain that works. please help.
Answers (3)
12/24/08 10:10am
bob1947
Try hydromorphone 2 mg 4times a day as needed . I was on them for 3 yrs. and they worked just fine.
12/12/08 10:06am
I am very sorry to hear that you have been suffering from chronic lower back and neck pain for years and at such a young age. I just want to point out to you that you need to be extremely careful in taking opiods for pain. My husband has been suffering from chronic pain - back and leg pain for 15 years. He has had 2 surgeries. The doctor was prescribing Tylenol 3 for years until my husband had stomach problems with it. He then went straight to oxycodone. He was initially taking 2-3 a day and went up to as high as 12 per day. He is now trying to reduce the number with the intent of totally getting off the drug.
Please be very very careful in taking opiods. They are very addictive. I will let the expert better handle this one, but I have done much research and apparently opiods will 'trick' your brain into thinking that you are having more pain and need more medication, wherein it is usually an addiction and you will get a tolerance for the amount you are taking and your body will crave more of the drug.
The doctor should have monitored this drug and switched it up from time to time to avoid the dependance. Your doctor should also be monitoring your blood on a perhaps 3 month basis to watch for kidney/liver damage. My husband's doctor did not of these things. He has been taking oxycodone for 5 years, with no breaks. The drug is not working to relieve his pain. We have recently found another doctor who will continue to prescibe oxycodone, with the goal to get off the drug.
He is seeing a rehab counsellor and may enter a detox centre to totally get off the drug and then see how his pain really is - if it is the drug or really his back.
He has also gone to a pain clinic for 3 weeks.
The side effects of this drug are horrible and are also withdrawal symptoms. My husband has horrible mood swings, irritability, anger, severe sweating, fatigue, confusion, memory loss and communication problems with everyone around him, among other things.
Please, please please think long and hard before starting on a narcotic.
I would suggest that you get a referral to an orthopedic surgeon to see what is going on in your body. Perhaps he/she will order an MRI and then will proceed with some sort of treatment plan. This may include non drug therapies, exercise, physiotherapy, accupuncture, etc.
Read and research as much as you can and get your parents help if that is feasible.
Please consider all other options before starting on oxycodone or any other narcotic. Your friend should also be careful about taking oxycodone for headaches.
Good luck and I hope you find some relief soon.
12/21/08 7:44am
Time to go to a different doctor or request to go to a doctor that specializes in pain management. My heart goes out to you. I know what it is to suffer with chronic pain and have doctor's think you are just med seeking, however, I do understand the difficulties they have disserning between the med seekers and the people who are truly in need of stronger medication so that they can have a productive life. I don't blame them for misjudging sometimes as it is probably nearly impossible to tell the difference. Doctor's have a very difficult and complex job so my best advice is to be understanding of their difficulty and switch so that you can get the help you need. :)
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I feel so badly for you and I think the message you got was from someone who has no idea what it like to be in "chronic pain". I t is everyones dream to be free of the opiats but that is the one thing that works. I have been on the same dose of ocycontin for 10 years at the same amount. Of course percocets and all those in that family will rot your stomach and all the rest. Get on some 12 hr. oxycontin or mscontin before you decide to do something awful because you feel so alone. Of course you can be in chronic pain at such a young age if you do in fact suffer from some affliction which could cause this. Try to get into a real "chronic pain clinic" and they will evaluate to correctly. Do not listen to "martyers" who are not truly in pain because trust me if they were really in pain constantly they could not be so cruel. good luck to you and I hope you find some relief. As for the previous message, get some empathy or be silent.