Doctors Willing To Prescribe Heavy Pain Medication In Colorado (Page 258)
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I have a serious problem. My dr. had two patients start dr. shopping and has decided it is too big of a pain in his butt to continue prescribing, even though I have gotten MRIs and Xrays to prove my problems. I have over a half a dozen herniated discs in my low back, along with degenerative disc disease, spinal stenosis, scoliosis and arthritis in my facet joints. I am currently on5 30mg oxycodone a day for breakthrough and 60mg of methadone for my long lasting meds. I REALLY need a doctor in the Denver, CO area who will not judge me because of my age, thinking I'm just some drug seeker as I TRULY need my meds to function. I am even being placed on disability until I can get my back healed because if something doesn't change I will be in big time pain for the rest of my life. If ANYONE knows of a good doctor that prescribes strong meds willingly in the Denver area please let me know. I am in desperate need of help as I am going to be SCREWED if I cannot find a good doctor. SOMEONE please help me with a doctor!!!!!

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JaneyGirl, you are so right about how pain meds work for some and not for others. Personally I have been on dulaidid for close to 10 yrs. and oxy before this for 3 yrs and all the loratabs and those group of meds. I had three disc removed and fused with screws and rods along with a hernia repair all in 1994, and have nerve pain in both legs to my feet. Any way the dilaudid works great if on a dose that acually keeps the pain away. though do have back pain that the meds wont take completly away but makes living as normal as possible. I take 2 8mg tabs every 4 hours thats 12 in a 24 hour time frame, two yrs. ago I was taking 3 8mgs every 4 hrs. The way my dr. explained it you must take every 4 hrs or you have to break through the pain all over. The last for 4 hours and peak in the pain relief in 2 hrs. But I think that the oxycodones 30,s you would need to take atleast 2 if not three to equal 1 8mg diludid I dont know if this helped any one but I put it out there any way. You need not take offense of what some misinformed person says, as every one has a differant tolance to pain and what kinds of meds work for them. Hang around

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Wow! Been with this group a long time and after that post will participate no longer! I don't need to get smacked in the face when trying to help! Take care Mac and Tammy! U guys r great!

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Thanks,,, you sound down to earth. I have tried to register, set up a profile, did both so that I may connect to people who are like my self.
How to we connect on this forum?
I will wait to hear back.
Jeff

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Hey Janey Girl
Any one who can type as long and as ACCURATE as you did either is in no pain or have taken so much that you can share. lol. Go friend.

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It truly has to do with the individual! It also I've found also has to do with the type of pain u r having! I've been on dilaludid before for my back pain and it didn't seem to help but the oxy did! Yet when I had an acute injury the dilaludid did much better! It's odd how the body works! I had oral work done and they used tramadol for my breakthrough/acute med and it worked great! So long story short, I think it's an individual thing! Just b careful when they convert u from oxy to dilaludid, they don't equal mg to mg! Have them check their conversion chart on this one! Any other ideas guys?

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This question has probably been asked before but I need to ask. May I have opinions on what works better, oxycodone or dilaudid? Dosage of oxycodone I'm on right now is 5mg 2 4xday for breakthrough. I just wanted to see if anyone had experiences with these and could give their opinion on which might help better. Thanks guys!

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Let's c if I can help make this. A clear as mud! When u start with a typical pain management doc, they will ask u what u have been taking, how often and if it helped! Do not expect for them to keep u on the same meds, typically the meds u have been taking r meant for short term use and not for chronic pain! Don't expect also to b comfortable for awhile! It's does take time to adjust your dosage, there isn't a magic wand to wipe it all away! U won't b in extreme pain but u won't b where u will end up! B patient! Most Dr's will put u on a long acting drug such as Morphine Sulfate, Opana or a patch' especially the patches take time to get to therapeutic range! The doc will also order for u a short acting medication, something similar as u have been taking, likel lortab, Percocet or oxycodone! Oxycodone is Percocet without Tylenol and can range in dosage from 5 to 30 mg's typically! They will call these meds your "breakthrough" meds! When starting on a long term medication most folks don't feel like they r helping and u will find yourself taking more breakthrough medication at first especially with patches, because it does take time for your long acting drug to get to therapeutic levels! It usually is within 3 to 30 days! U will find at first that may need to take all of your breakthrough meds! The doc's have a conversion chart, he will ask u what u have been taking, how often and how it has worked! Be honest with the doc! Not being honest will do nothing but keep u from being comfortable! Believe me, many, many patient's have been taking more than what they have been ordered or u wouldn't b seeing this doc! The doc then will use the conversion chart, most have it in their heads but they take what u have been taking and convert the short acting meds that u have been taking to a long acting drug! As above, u will need time for u to adjust to the new drug! Most folks complain That the long acting drug isn't working, believe me, it is but u don't feel that feeling of relief immediately like u get from a short acting drug! U probably will need your short acting drug close to the max u r allowed at first and then as the long acting drug starts to get to therapeutic levels, u will notice u won't need your short acting drugs as often! If u don't start to b able to decrease the short acting drug, don't b alarmed! This simply means that they need to increase your long acting drug! Don't expect them to increase your dose immediately, they will need at least a week before they can get an idea if u r at therapeutic range! The main idea is that your long acting drug should keep u comfortable about 75% of the time! Please! B honest! Let them know what u have been truly taking! Having to increase your meds doesnt make u a drug addict! It simply means u need your meds adjusted or a different drug altogether! So now we have u on an ER- extended relief drug which typically lasts between 12-24 hours! Your doc will probably order your long acting drug more often than the 12-24 hours and this is done to maintain your therapeutic level! U also have your breakthrough drug also! Your breakthrough drugs r used according to how u r feeling! One day u may need one or two, the next day none or some days u will need all need the full dose! It all depends on your body! U may do too much one day or the weather can change! Only u can tell what u need! If u find yourself needing all your meds they simply will increase your main med increased! It may take a few months for u to get stabilized! Being honest and taking the meds as ordered will get u to where u need to b faster! Believe me! These docs are pain management docs have seen it all! Don't b worried that they will judge u because u need more! They can easily see through someone who just wants meds! Seeing a pain management doc is to help u live your life! If your idea of "living" is taking your meds, lay on the couch, pop a beer and watch tv, then no Amt of drugs will help! If taking your meds allows u to go out and grocery shop, watch your kids play or playing with them, basically that u can do most anything u want without pain or at least still b able to do what u want but at a level of pain u can live with, then u r accomplishing what u want! So your goal should b to have your long term meds keep u comfortable 75% and your short term meds should cover u 25% of the time! Don't expect that u will b pain free! I live daily with a level of 4 and it's ok! I can function and b comfortable at that level! Only u can tell what level is ok for u! Additionally, don't expect to wake up one day and b totally pain free! Starting a program and getting it to work takes time, becoming pain free is sneaky! One day u will get up and still hurt, then all the sudden u notice u can get out of the car and it didn't hurt, then out of nowhere u r doing things u couldn't have imagined doing two weeks prior and BOOM all the sudden u have a life again! There is a huge difference between being treated with chronic pain and being a drug addict! Chronic pain is no different than being treated for any other chronic illness! There r going to b docs that will question u and being biased! I find being honest with these guys is by far the best approach! U don't have to apologize for chronic pain! Approaching folks in an honest and "professional" manner I find works the best! I feel ER visits are difficult! Here r docs that c drug seekers on a daily basis! U will always meet docs and staff that will judge u, u can't get away with not seeing one! I find telling them immediately that u r on a contract, telling them what u r on and asking them to send notes on the visit to your pain doc is by far the best approach! If what u r being seen for includes u needing pain meds, the staff need to know that make sure they medicate u appropriately! U may need a different drug or an increased dose to get u comfortable! I find telling medical staff immediately and approaching your pain issues just like u would any other chronic medical issue is by far the best! With the tightening of the monitoring of narcotics u have seen changes in who will write for narcotics, pharmacies that either don't carry long acting drugs or won't fill the script for the full amt or they demand to talk to the doc directly before they fill the script! Apparently from what I've read and correct me please if I am wrong but supposedly Colorado is second only to Florida in usage of oxycodone! This has been what started this tightening of scripts being written! The ER's and pain management programs or doc's that treat chronic pain have all tightened up the ability of writing for narcotics! It's made it impossible to find a pain management doc without jumping through so many hoops that it's impossible to get treatment! Doc's have been shut down, pharmacies will only fill a percentage of the script and ER's won't write for pain medication! Pharmacies have access to every medication u have been taking, doc's can pull that info up also, so if u have gone to other doc's it's recorded and u r questioned! I'm a perfect example of how difficult it is now due to legislation! I have had chronic pain issues since 1992! In that time I've had my program as far as what I've taken, twice! With all the rumors and actual closing of doc's offices, my doc decided he would no longer take chronic pain patients! He gave u 2 months to find another doc, so I was given a list of docs that did take pain patients! Having run a pain management program I didn't think twice about this! I had my list, I'd b ok and started calling! For days I called everyone on the list only to find that either u had to have an MRI or cat scan within the last year or that u had to have a referral from another doc but not including my precious doc but the surgeon who did my surgery who at this point had retired or that they only took patients that needed interventional treatment, no one wanted a patient who had been stable for years! So I got a referral to one doc, I go to his office and he tells me that even he wouldn't take me because I didn't need interventional treatment' I was told that I had to b referred to a different doc and again given the list of doc's signed up as "Dr's against pain" and a two week script to cover me until I found yet another doc! I had to laugh because this doc actually told me "why would he treat me for fifty bucks when during the same amount a time he could do a treatment and make 2 grand?" so I start calling again! Scheduled yet another appointment! I couldn't get in during that amount of time, so my cardiogist who I had my monthly visit with writes for me yet another script! Due to my other medical issues I also was seen in the ER 2 times! So I go to the NEW pain management doc! This guy needed a referral, which was nothing but the previous doc! Not either one of these doc's have any history on me, none of my mri's, cat scans or my emg's! No history what so ever! This guy takes $300 in cash only! Doesn't examine me, has absolutely no history what so ever, he reviews my print out of scripts I've gotten, he writes me my scripts, drops my breakthrough dosage by half, tells me the next appointment he was going to IV me and sends me on my merry way! Now I'm pissed off, upset and as I was in the medical profession decide thisa guy wasn't for me! Here I was, right back where I started! I called and called every doc in the area, as well as called hospital's "help lines" to find appropriate treatment! I won't go into detail but I've had back issues, had a cardiac arrest due to a medical mistake, so broken ribs as well as burns on my back and a totally numb left leg due to the back surgery, leaving with constant piriformis spasms and pain down the back of the left leg! I ended up in the ER, with the promise from the call a nurse line that if I was seen in their ER that they would get me hooked up with their pain management program! Sounded good to me! Now it been two or three months at this point! Going in and out of withdrawal several times! The Dr that I had been with for year's got a call from the ER I was sent to called him! He agreed to keep me covered until I found an appropriate doc! The pharmacy I always used did not have enough meds to cover my script but would be able to cover it within the 72 hour window u have! I forgot that I did not get my full prescription and didn't pick up the rest! I called my doc when I was close to being out, I called for an appointment as he wouldn't write for narcotics without seeing u! I go to my appointment, we discuss the issues with prescribing and filling narcotics, neither one of us noticing that it had only been about two weeks since my last prescription! I go to the pharmacy, not the one that I typically go to as they were out of my meds! The pharmacy looks at my profile and boom they call my doc! In looking at my profile I looked like the biggest drug seeker u could imagine! It didn't matter that prior to the last 3 months or so that I never picked up early, I didn't have lots of ER visits, never got meds from different doc's and had been treated consistently for four years! Well they didn't take that into consideration at all! They called my doc and told him that I had 5 different doc's write me scripts and that I had gotten a month's worth 2 weeks prior and neither my doc or myself remembering that I hadn't picked up the rest of my script! Well, right then and there I was "fired" from my doc! There I was, no where to go! Days later I called my usual pharmacy and they reminded me that I hadn't filled the rest of my script they called my doc and he took me back and filled the rest of my script but not without going through days of withdrawal! Thats when I roamed the Internet and found not this thread but a different threat that Tammy had written on and it was a pure gift from heaven! I went to CPR, it's been six months and I've never felt better! I had the most complete physical that I've ever had! The first month was a little iffy as far as pain but after that month as they changed my meds around I've never felt better! Now the legislators say that they probably were a little zealous over their crackdown on narcotics! A little? Although I am now comfortable, I still remain with this thread because if I, a medical professional who ran a pain management program has had these types of issues, I wonder what people who don't know anything about the system and how it works do? I can see and feel the pain these guys r king through! I thank God for Mac and Tammy for being brave enough to ask for help! Although I was cruising the net in desperation and it was only by luck I found this thread! Which brings me to a thought I've had! Exactly why is it an issue to give doc's or programs names and phone numbers? Is there a privacy issue or something? Those of us who have been around since Mac wrote his first thread have seen I've given out names and numbers of all kinds of practitioners? Very often I see "scroll through this thread, u will find it"' the last thing u want when u r in extreme pain to want to search for something that was pages upon pages to find this info! If the thread was as long as it is now, I would have given up and say crying! I wouldn't think sharing info that is right in the yellow pages or on the net! If it was one of our names I could see the reasoning but I can't see the issue with us giving names! It's just like saying I really like the new burgers at Micky D's? It's an opinion that's all! Like me, u also may not like or feel comfortable with someone u have seen and want to c someone else! I don't know about u guys but I don't want to "settle" with a doc that doesn't care anything about me other than the 300 bucks he's getting to scribble his name! I want good treatment! I want options! It's my body and I don't want my liver shot because no one told me that too much Tylenol could kill me! They don't have to b My best friend but they do need to care about me and my treatment! So if anyone has an answer to why we can't post doc's names, I'd love to hear it! Lastly, as a "gentle" reminder, this group isn't about what doc will give u the most meds! We aren't folks to direct u where to get drugs or a bunch of drug addicts looking for our next fix! We r a group that has chronic pain and can help with understanding issues associated with living with chronic pain, where to get help and support for one another in their journey to get well! I thank Mac for starting this thread, u will never know how many folks u have helped by being brave and asking! Nope! We aren't a porn sight, a place to b embarassed about belong to! We help with telling our stories, experience and support for each other! I'm sorry this is so long but I was reading through recent posts and through understanding treatment for our issues was needed! I sure hope this helped! I know I was miserable for too long and being in the profession, shocked at how much things have changed and the lack of good direction for all of us! All of u take care!

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Well if he did a long acting and a breakthru then he might help me. But I would only want to go if he's in network because I'm already spending the money for CPR and don't want to have to spend more..... Jeff, I would like to talk personally through email about your doctor. Will you contact the administrators of this site to talk to them about getting my email and me getting yours so we can talk?

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No I mean just one instant release med with a long acting one is what he was saying. Just not 2 instant release meds but only pill mills do that.

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Jeff, u sound like a very compassionate man and that is greatly appreciated. I would love to talk to u and ur doctor. Ur right to be very weary of people trying to hit u up just for the pain pills and that just sucks so bad. I've had my ex sister in law take 5 of my 100mg morphine pills when I left my bedroom and she was acting like she was asleep, so I know about people like that.

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But that's the thing. I need a long acting and a breakthru together. So at the same time....

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Mac he was saying that the doc wouldn't write you for both at the same time. Just probably one or the other. If I am wrong please correct me.

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Unfortunately the dose that my back pain requires as long as it lasts is always going to require a long acting med and a break through med. So if he wouldn't even write lortabs and percocet for 6 different back conditions then I don't think he would work for me personally. Currently I am on the duragesic patch for long acting and oxycodone for breathru. Which it doesn't sound like something he would be willing to go to, but maybe I'm wrong.

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Hey
I'm Jeffrey.
I was a lineman and came down the pole from 25 to 28 feet up. If you are like me and you TRY to live with chronic pain, I might be able to help. Contact me and I will give you my doctors name and number.
He is not a pill mill. That is what got my attention from your post. He requires MRI.s,,,, Xrays, nerosurgens reports if you have them.
This guy is straight up. He is companionate and he listens. What I like about him is that he ask all the right questions. LIKE WHAT WORKS. If your a man are you having ed problems. Which as you know means your current level is to high.
Now he will prescribe pain meds. But he is not going to prescribe you Loratabs plus Percocet's. He is a very GOOD Dr. If you are a honest to GOD chronic pain suffer he's great. Like I said he listens
.Contact me if your interested. I got his name by talking to this wonderful behind me line at Target when I could not pick up the 1-gallon of milk with out a look of pain on my face. She has since become a good friend. {edited for privacy} I only help legit chronic pain men and women. Addicts need not contact me. I am just passing it forward. Jeff

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Medical Marijuana just isn't for me but thank u so much for the idea. I don't like the feeling of not being able to control the feeling of my head not being there, lol.

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deflebear I honestly have NO idea what your doctor will do... I do not know her. All I can say is just be honest with her and ask. It can't hurt to ask. But I honestly don't know, I don't even know her name or anything. And even if I did I still wouldn't know because I haven't ever seen her. I'm sorry I can't really help except to say go for it.

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I use MM as well.

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Have you tried medical marijuana? I know it can help with more moderate cronic pain from disk issues. My boyfriend is currently prescribed MM for his disk/sciatica issues.

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Hi Mac686, I haven't been on here for awhile. I just wanted ur personal opinion on something. Like we've discussed before bcuz of my diseases and conditions I've been on the same dosage of morphine sulfate er 100mg 3xday and oxycodone 5mg 2 4xday for breakthrough, for over 2yrs now. My muscle disease has come back to life and is raging. I just wanted to know that in ur opinion, if I asked my Dr to keep the morphine at the same dose and ask to change the oxycodone from 5mg to 10mg, if u think that that might be too big of a jump in her mind?

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Can u please tell me your doctors info?

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