Dilaudid As A Oxycodone Replacement? (Page 3)
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Hi. I suffered a L1/L2 complete SCI injury some 4 years ago. After 6-7 weeks when the spinal shock wore off I noticed I had a burning pain in my lower groin area even though I can't really feel much below my hips, we thought maybe it was a UTI but all showed negative. It was diagnosed as chronic nerve pain and it never goes away, I get acute nerve pains in my legs on top of this chronic pain.

I have been taking 10mg Oxycodone four to five times per day and methadone 10mg once a day for the chronic pain + 800mg Gabapentin three times a day for the burning in my legs. The only way I have been able to keep my doses so low over the years is by being very hard on myself as to when to take the pain meds but as hard as I have tried I'm now going up to around 60mg total Oxycodone per day and 15mg Methadone.

I have a very good pain Dr and we always wanted to do a pain med rotation before levels of any one drug got too high so we have changed the Oxycodone over to 2mg Dilaudid tablets. I have been told to try anything from 2-4mg at a time, four times per day to replace my Oxycodone.

I have only just started to try the Dilaudid like 1day ago but even at 4mg it doesn't seem to work on my chronic nerve pain as well as my Oxycodone does, all it seems to do is make me sleepy and I can't have that. I work a professional demanding job where I can't be feeling out of it or tired. I was wondering if anyone here that has tried both maybe let me know if Dilaudid is normally a replacement for Oxycodone?

Should I be giving Dilaudid a few more days before throwing it off my list of pain meds? Or should it have worked straight away if it was going to work at all for me?

If it doesn't work I'll have to return to Oxycodone and hopefully find something that we can replace it with that won't have terrible side effects and also let me work normally. I guess we could increase the methodone to make the oxycodone last longer, I find the methadone great like that but that is not a real solution to replacing the Oxycodone so we can give my body a rest from that kind of opiode and hopefully reset the switch so after a short period on the replacement drug I can return to a lower dose of Oxycodone.

I would be greatfull for any advice.

Cheers.

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I have sickle cell anemia and you just sung my song, I've been whining for years about this mess. And when i had to do some jail time for suspended license, then i learned how close to death they will let you get. Dead. I was basically, and no jail doc knew what they were doing. I went from 2 80mg Ocs 2x day, 3 30mg roxys(oxyco dones) every 4-6 hours & 4mg iv dialadid every hour for 7 day in house hospital stay to off brand mortrin once daily. I can never go thru that again. I wish people just learn that
all pain ain't visual and all people don't have to have the same pain treatment. some one can take 10000,mg some just 1. Pain don't care

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is wondering if you still have scrotum pain? what was your diagnostic? I was just diagnosed after 10 months varicoceless....this is f***ing horriblei only get 20mins after I wake up for me...before the pain starts messing with me let know I might able to help u I got experiences and stories for days lol ... Hope ur better now... let me know anyway...take care

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Wow!!! My hats off to u. 7years ago Ieft work and arrived at the hospital to have a laminectomy at L3/4. Thank goodness I work at a doctors office and referred patients out for these spinal surgeries few times a month and knew what the healing process was and how quick i should be back at my desk. Well, I have never made it back to my desk. After never missing a day at work since I was 15, I was disabled. Four days after leaving hospital, I wasn't even up and about. Then when I couldn't walk 4 weeks later, my husband had enough- I went to ER and was admittd back in and test showed I had a staph infection from the OR and it had been feasting on my nerves. Spread and was wrapped and intertwined around my nerves inside my spinal column to my brain. To make a looooooong story after a three month hospital stay and almost a year in bed at my home, I walked. But, the nerve damage has been unbelievable!!!!!!! The surgeon pledged to stick with me keep me "comfortable" for as long as I needed him. I had been tAking 4 oxycontin 80 mg, 8 oxycodone 5mg, 100 mcg fentanyl patch along with Xanax n A list of other s*** a day for six years. I kept referring to my pain as nerve pain from the damage. It is constant, i have a new doc now and I was switched to dilaudid, but I wear that fentanyl patch non stop. Only thing that will keep pain under control. My jackass surgeon put me on the strong s*** first instead of working me up to it, never told me about rotAting the narcotics to avoid anything. But maybe that's why the switch. I'll have to ask my new dr next visit. I am dependent upon narcotics to start my day. I feel guilty for being addicted but don't believe I could live with the pain 24/7. I guess I want you to know that only raising oxycodone 10-20 mgs AND methadone only 5mgs after 4 years, Absolutely NO reason to be hard on yourself.

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Stay off of Opana. it's deadly! I wouldn't mix dilaudid with oxy. Tell them that it's not working and you need to up the dosage on the Dilaudid. DO NOT USE OPANA. IT IS THE MOST OVERDOSED PAINKILLER ON THE PLANET AND IT'S NEW SO PEOPLE THINK IT'S AWESOME BUT MIX IT WITH A DROP OF ALCOHOL AND YOU COULD DIE.

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True! I not only agree with most all you had to say, but I do understand. I have a silent disease "Secondary Progressive Multiple Sclerosis" among several other illness', back surgeries, ect. PAIN 24/7 disabled & opiod tolerant for ten years now. No One understands unless they too have worn my shoes, not Doctors & even caused my divorce. If ya don't Have a cast, brace or in a wheelchair then everyone has no clue. If you're like me & stay home, away from friends when you're the sickest cause I don't want pity or to addworry or stress to others lives I care about. Then I am judged by others as using disability & I have no health problems. Which I understand & don't care really, but it's my Doctor's staff who treat me rude, cruel & abusive if the MS causes my memory to fail me or my speach is slurred or I can't see very well or just anything that may cause them to be patient or take more time with me. That pisses me off!! Who are they to treat me or anyone so rude?! I'd be happy to be health & thankful to have their job in this economy! & I can't explain the stress of being treated like a drug addict or not prescribe medication I need to control my pain so I may have the best quality of life possible. South Carolina are the cruelest state about schedule II medications. The only state where a pt must wait 2 to 4 hours the moring your meds are due!! Unreal!! I will take my last dosage tonight, then I must waitl until 9am to give my RX's to the pharmacy & then wait another 15 mins to an hour to have them filled before I have my first dose of the day!! It is hard on me & many others here. My lower back & left hip is so stiff & painful that I can barely walk every morning, so once per month I must go thru hours of PAIN times 10. It's rediculous!! Anyways, I will stop complaining, cause I am very thankful for my life & forums like this where I can vent to others who understand ;-) Good Luck, Best Wishes & Take Care to all!! Peace

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Guys the increased problem in Florida is legitimate pain patients being profiled and price gouged by pharmacies as well as pain docs too scared to treat patients because of pressure from law enforcement and dea
..i agree with the monitoring program and am happy they are cleaning up the lill mills and drug dealers that have made it difficult for patients who truly need the meds and dont abuse them access. I am a member of a Florida support group and unless all of us legitimate pain patients ban together and fight back, these meds won't be available AT ALL!! please look at and sign the petition (link below)...let me know if you are interested in joining our cause...our cause is fighting for YOUR RIGHTS!

Florida Pharmacies: Stop Florida pharmacies from denying pain patients vital medicines

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I completely agree junkies make it had to get meds for people who really need it if only there was no such thing as addiction

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I KNO HOW YOU FEEL THE NURSES TREAT YOU LIKE YOUR A JUNKIE ,RITE DOWN TO THE PHARMACY,IF ONE OF THEM HAD TO LIVE IN CRONIC PAIN FOR A DAY,I STILL WOULD NOT
WISH IT ON THEM EVER,KEEP THE FAITH

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I feel for you friend, and all the others that are in similar situations, myself included.
We all must be strong and realize that we are the ones that have been "chosen" to carry this torch.
like it or not we are our own support group and we must keep reaching out to each other to help one anther to keep each other going when the going is tough and we are feeling that we cannot keep it up any longer.
Just try to look on the bright side and think that someday there will be a medication that will allow you to wake up and have a semi-normal day.
There will be a medication that will allow you to find that you can enjoy that walk outside, playing ball with your children, walking on the beach with your wife, the things we only dream of now.
But because of our struggles and our fighting spirit and our resilience, the people that can make that medication a reality, are working tirelessly to do so, because of your drive to push on every day.
Thank you and good luck.
I wish you a happy a prosperous future.

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I had a similar surgery and then had steroid injections that later i found out wasted both of my hips. So by my 40th birthday i have had one complete hip replacement and am waiting for the second to stop the burning and bone on bone in my hips.
What i found that worked for me was to take the long acting Dilaudid (brand name Exalgo) it's a 24 hr drug, one pill in the am and your good for 24 hrs, then take your oxy for any breakthrough that you may have, but this seems to be strong enough that you can really limit your breakthrough pain meds down to minimum.
The dose pill is a 8 mg, my Dr started me out on two every AM for one week to see how i tolerated that, then if that was tolerated fine i was to stay with that, if not i could add up to one pill but not to exceed three pills in 24 hrs.
I hope that helps, maybe talk to your Dr and see if you can give this a try. It is a spendy drug and insurance will cover it but most of the time will require a prior authorization.
Feel free to e-mail me if you have any other questions, i have tried so many different things, i feel i have a wealth of information to anyone who needs some help in this trying time of getting yourself some proper help in pain management.
I am disabled because of my injuries and so if there is anyone out there that could use my help to navigate through the medical field to get the help they need but don't know how to get there, please get ahold of me.
I spent years doing this by myself and i understand the frustration, anyway i hope this helps you and anyone that is reading this. Good luck my friend.
Miles

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I have had similar back issues for over a decade...Was getting injections multiple times a year and the sciatic pain was so bad, it would wake me multiple times a night...My pain doctor decided to try a seizure medicine on me to see if it helped...apparently, a side effect was lessening of sciatica...My sciatic pain is virtually non-existent now...The medicine is zonagram....used for seizures...works miracles for sciatica....

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Have you ever taken the OP's? They are pretty much the same as the Oxycontin's but not able to bump(sniff). It is an extended release, gel form. Here in Maryland you cant get Oc's anymore, just the OP's. They work pretty well and will last for hours since it gives you some every couple of hours. Recently I have been hearing about Opana and have been told it is about 2-3 times stronger than oxycodone. Does anyone have experience with them and can compare them to percocets? (ex. 30mg of opana=60 mgs of oxycodone.) That is not correct, i am just trying to specify my question. I normally take perc 30s,so how many mgs of opana would i need to match 30mgs of perc? I have seen a lot of good forums on this page and I would appreciate any help or information,thank you everyone!

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I have hypermobility type Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome, which causes me to be in constant, moderate to severe pain. I also have an undiagnosed neuropathy of some sort. I took Cymbalta for about a year with really no luck... Plus it was the worst thing ever to detox from! I have also tried MS Contin (which eliminated the pain, but made me sleep 18 hours a day), Oxycodone, Oxycontin, several benzodiazepines, and several types of muscle relaxers (currently on Zanaflex... works great.) The pain relief from oxycodone only seemed to last about an hour, then faded rapidly, while the oxycontin just did not seem to do very much good. At slightly more effective higher doses it made me throw up. I recently switched to dilaudid for breakthrough pain, which seems to help a lot better than the oxy, but it dies seem to have more side effects, except the yakking. So far I'm satisfied with it.

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Dr. Chuns new number is 941-361-1123

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I've seen Dr. Chun at Sarasota Pain Associates on the boarder of Bradenton/Sarasota. He's great and cares about his patients. He's right next door to Lakewood Ranch Hospital. His number is 941-429-5588.

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You are so true I found this out this week when i went to get my pain meds and they told me the cheapest was 500 t0 1200 because none of the real drug store had them such as cvs and walmart walgreen etc what the hell I cant afford that but because so many can pay for them and sell them at a profit Im left to suffer...

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I have bulging lumbar disks and gangrene on my shin for 18 months. My leg wound was recently infected and treated with daily rubbing of an acid wash. I just switched from oxycodone 15 mg. every four hours to 30 mg. every four hours. The doctor offered me dilaudid but I did not know the dose to ask for so I stayed with Oxycodone. I wanted dilaudid because it is made from opium, a plant. Oxycodone is man made pharmaseudical . It fools your brain and has no opiate in it. I can see the dilaudid making you drowsy but it still should lower your pain. You need a higher dose for the pain but after a week, if the dilaudid still makes you drowsy then it will always make you drowsy. I too wanted to switch to give my body a break from the oxy.Plus nature made opium; man made oxy I can drive safely on the oxy 99% of the time. It dulls the pain, it does not eliminate it. I'm like a horse so I need larger doses than most folks plus even controlled pain keeps me alert. Good luck.

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I am having the same exact problem, on the same meds! I'm not glad you are having these problems, but it's nice to know I'm not alone. My doc now doesn't know what to do with me and pretty much just dropped me and is referring me to someone else. I'm very hurt and upset by this. I was having alot of side effects from Dilaudid and it was't working that great anyway, so I wanted to try something else. I figured that there were lots of meds out there to try but my doc couldn't understand why I am still in pain and I felt as if he just threw his hands up. I put so much trust and faith into him for the past 3 years and I feel like he just gave up on me. It makes me lose some hope about being able to get better when this doc, who is the top doc in my area, doesn't know what to do with me. It's very discouraging for me when something doesn't work, which has happened alot (with procedures, surgery, meds) and I think it's depressing to be in pain ALL THE TIME. But to have a pain doctor not understand your pain - that's a set back. It makes me feel like I have some rare freak thing going on that's never going to get better and I'm going to be stuck like this forever. As it is, I already worry about that. I can't do the things I want to do or even spend much time with family and friends. I can't go on vacation or even walk thru the mall. My whole life is on hold and has been for the last couple of years. I don't know what the next step is, if there even is one. I hope there is something someone can do to help me. But at least I don't feel like a total freak because the dilaudid didn't work well on me. I was also given this after oxycodone didn't have much effectiveness anymore. I find that cymbalta helps alot. When I'm not on it, I have pains that come back all over the place. But it doesn't cover everything and if I wasn't on pain meds, I would not be able to get thru the day or sometimes I'm sure I wouldn't even be able to get out of bed. It's very scary to be in this position where people don't know what to do with you or no meds are working to help you feel better. It's not only scary but frustrating and depressing too! I feel for all the people who have written on this page and I can't believe there are this many people going thru the same thing.

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Thanks and
Merry christmas everyone

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After spinal fractures some 17 years ago I was put on morphine.I have been on MS Contin 200mgs, 8mg Dilaudid, 80mg Oxycontin as well as a stint on methadone. In my opinion, avoid methadone at all costs. It is what is used for heroin users when they withdraw. The stigma associated to it is abominable. Some countries will deny entry to persons registered to have taken it. (For whatever reason, legal or otherwise) It takes 6 months to come out of your system, you may also lose teeth, yes teeth. Oxycodone is ok but only lasts 4/6 hours, even the SR tablets. MS Contin are much stronger and last up to 10 hours,though working a job that requires attentativeness is not possible on them. Dilaudid are very fast acting and much more powerful than the Oxycodone, though wont knock you about like MS Contin. The Dilaudid are deceiving as they say 2,4 or 8 mg.This is not the same as it is HYDROMORPHONE, as doctors can tell you a very powerful morphine. Oxycodone are easier to come down off as they are codeine not morphine or the stronger hydromorphone. I have found the Diaudid to be the best to stop taking as the withdrawal is shorter in time, 4/7 days. But also the fastest at effecting sharp instant pain. MS Contin is addiction in a nutshell and makes sleep a big part of your life. Oxycodone is a waste of time as your dose goes up 10 fold in days, after a week you need 10x as much to do the same thing, even then it lasts maybe 90 minutes by then. Good for low end pain or pain that is not there all the time. It is codeine, thus the lesser of two evils.I hope this helps someone,if so then I havent wasted my time. Again, do not go onto METHADONE, it is for drug addicts to substitute heroin, you WILL be stigmatized.

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