Fentanyl Patches Not Taken Properly (Top voted first)

my husband started getting his stuff from drs then went to 2 or 3 drs and paid outta picket then they foumd out and cut him off he started buying on the street...fentanyl patches and cutting them into strips and putting them in his mouth to get his high..this is the course of about 10yrs now...i have finnlly had enough of being lied to and being broke so i said i will have to leave..he is on his 5th day of nothing and sill is puking and cant hold food or drink down....i hope to god he can do this..he has been my partner for 13 years and been through alot with eachother hoe this isnt the end

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On average, how much would you say he was usually taking at once?

Learn more drug addiction details here.

If he was taking a lot regularly, then it may actually be something that he can't do on his own, the withdrawals could put him in life threatening danger.

The best thing he could do would be to get medical assistance to break the addiction cycle safely.

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Verwon a ?. I keep hearing how strong the patch is, yet when I asked several pharmacists, they told me it was NOT true. I hate the patch, I was totally under control on instant release morphine tablets, and had a life. I was forced to take the patch, I told the fnp it hurt my arm, the pain was not even close to being under control. I also saw where u said a doc, for no reason could just cut your painmedicine away. I can assure you when the patient ends up in the hospital, or yet dead frm withdrwals, no problem finding an attorney for malpratice. According to hospice and the Oregon medical board, the doc has a legal responsibility to help, or find a place to help. No doctor is going to lose there license, the one exception, is if the patient is abusing it in someway. Even then he, the doc needs to find help. To tell patients, they are out of luck, when they have done nothing wrong, only scares and misleads people, r u a doc, attorney? I hve been wondering what your qualifications are. Do u have any problem letting people know? Maybe you have before, and I missed it. Thankyou

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along with oxys roxies opana whatevr he could get he would take about 200mg of perocet at one time like 6 blue roxys at once

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I was recently prescribed 75mcg/72hrs fentanyl patch and I've been on 5/325mg percocet for break through pain. Although my Dr didn't renew my percocet script when I went for my monthly renewal. I woke up in tremendous pain today, and changed my patch (it was time), however the pain didn't go away. I waited about 6hrs and the pain, if anything, was getting worse. So I took my freshly used patch and chewed it. It just hit me and I can feel my pain subsiding quickly however I've heard how dangerous misusing the patch is, so I'm also a little worried. I'm not experiencing side effects like depressed breathing, dizziness or nodding off...etc...but I would like to know: how long should I be watching to make sure nothing bad happens? I also suffer from insomnia so I'd like to go to sleep soon but I also want to wake up

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To Timster from a post on 7/11/2015: I had botched duodenal surgery in June & July 2015 which left me with an open wound 4 inches long by 2 inches wide. BTY, The Ulcer was a direct result of a prescribed NSAID & NOT Pain Medications, Oxycodone & Dilaudid. The surgeon kept stating after a month in the hospital which also is at fault too, stated I would be better & the wound would clear & close completely every 6 weeks which went on for well over 5 months. Between my PCP & the surgeon there was no communication about my pain meds Oxycodone 10/325 & Dilaudid 4mg, both taken 1 4x per day. I had been seeing this PCP for over 8 yrs & never had a problem until 12/2015.When red flags went up with the pharmacy, the head Pharmacist knew & agreed I was NOT playing doctors & pharmacies for a high. I had to use a walker at the time because my condition was horribly bad & still is!! This Dr. prescribed me Hydrocodone 7.5mg & 50mcg of Fentanyl Patch. After about 2 weeks into taking the medication as prescribed, I needed more pain relief so he prescribed 100mcg Fentanyl Patch. It helped but I was still under medicated & tried telling him the horrible side effects of the Patch but he would NOT listen & said I have 2 degrees & I know what you need so quit asking for more pain medicine. All I wanted was for him to take me off the Fentanyl Patch & replace it with something else. To no avail, nothing happened until I started having hallucinations, diarrhea & just about every bad side effect & landed in the ER. NOT REALIZING I HAD NOT TAKEN OFF 3 OLDER PATCHES. The 4th patch was the only new one. That is how bad the patch was affecting me too!! They kept me there overnight for observation & found I was low on fluids & potassium. Then I received a certified letter from him releasing me & stating I was a patient who had Fibromyalgia & was a drug seeking individual more than once & so I was released with only 2 months worth of medication so back to finding a new PCP & Pain Mngt. Specialist. That in not working so well because every Pain Mngt Dr wants my records from my previous PCP & CT Scans & Radiology Reports too. I have had so many CT scans I should be a walking CT Scanner!!! I tried detoxing off the Fentanyl Patch but it is not possible due to the horrible withdrawals & severe pain I still have with an open wound which only healed over enough to break the thin layer of skin open every time I shower & scabs back over again & again. So for someone who told the absolute truth, did NOT abuse the medications I get punished for the lack of so many specialists, doctors, hospitals, nurses & the list goes on. What happened to the CODE OF ETHICS with so many people whom failed me? I had 2 wound Vacs mal-function on me when only 3 ppl in the 1st hospital did NOT knew how to operate them so I was a Guinea Pig while they stuffed real thick & scratchy like car foam into the open wound without anything to numb the area & the 2nd one filled up with pus so bad the stand in surgeon grabbed anything she could not sterilized to soak up the pus. I had 4 ports in my neck on constant anti-fungal, antibiotics, & blood drawn so many times I had to have a blood transfusion, not to mention well over 19 veins were blown & I never had a problem with getting blood drawn previous to this all happening. On 6/23/17, the statute of limitations runs out so no way of suing for mal-practice. Cannot afford a lawyer & no lawyer will even touch my case even after I was not at home but in a Nursing Home for 3 weeks & receiving bills I could not pay & the hospital sent a letter 48 hours after I left the hospital stating there was no wrong doing on their part!!! 1st I should be dead, 2nd, I would not have had a 2nd surgery if the Physical Therapist did NOT pick me up off the floor with my feet dangling while I was originally STANDING ON MY OWN, which tore out all the internal stitches along with a nurse who adamantly pushed her way into looking at my wound when it was not necessary & she had no gloves & dirty hands & yes I got an infection which also precipitated the 2nd surgery. So now I get to suffer day in & day out with so much pain I do not know what it is like not to feel constant debilitating pain. I would soon rather be dead because no Dr, Specialist, you name it will not touch me to correct the open wound & make things right!!! I have no quality of life anymore.... So for all those who judge us for pain management, I wish they could walk a year in our shoes & then come back & say we are ABUSING THE SYSTEM & PAIN MEDICATIONS!!!!

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Re: smjam (# 5)

If you aren't getting enough relief from your patch you need to ask your doc for a higher dose. BUT -know that this med takes 12 - 24 hours to reach the right dose, then should be pretty consistent if you change on time. I change patches every 48 hours as they won't work 72 hours for me. The manufacturers web site says some people need 48 hour dosing. By chewing your patch you lower the pain but then you will run out of medication before you can fill the prescription and you'll be in miserable pain then. Don't you have something else you can take for days the pain is worse? If you really need extra help for a particular reason, cut a strip off the patch and put it against the inside of your cheek, don't chew. Then when the pain starts to ease, move the strip to between underwear and skin where the clothing will help it hold while you get the rest of the medication.

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If anyone is putting patches in their mouth, they have a death wish. He SHOULD be cut off. If he's buying stuff on the street, his life will be very short. READ THE PACKAGE INSERT! Docs who cut pain relief users off have a special place in hell because they are focusing on their own liability, not their responsibility to their patients. Unless the user is going to spend the time necessary to learn completely about opiates, they should not be taking them. They should otherwise be considered an accidental suicide risk.

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This is extremely dangerous and he could lose his life by trying to get off cold Turkey. It’s not advised to stop this drug without the help of a doctor. He needs to be taken to an ER.

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Re: Reality (# 6)

Thus reply is on you having four pain patches on your body. How the hell did you not know you had that many patches on your body? That right there is a red flag for someone who is abusing the pain meds. I don’t wear mine on my arm because I don’t want people asking me about my patches so I wear them on my hips. I write the day of the week they need to be changed. As I put one patch on I remove the old patch in twenty years I’ve never had more than one patch on at a time. I find it difficult to believe you can’t find a lawyer or a pain management dr. Patches are only give by pain mgt dr to patients who don’t benefit from oral medications because like my self taking a pill every 4-6 hours doesn’t control pain. Your description of sight effects is very bizarre of the area the patch is used in. If you are not healing right something else is going on. Diabetics who aren’t controlled don’t heal properly. It took me several years of working together with my doctors to get them to understand and control where my pain was. I’ve been on fentanyl for twenty years and I’ve had several back surgeries. I’ve not been left with pain from those but after I was found to have my tail bone with arthritis that it would be impossible to shave off all the bone spurs sticking out. I been through numerous injections. Keep looking for a lawyer and pain doctor because something in your story is not right.

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Well, about all I can say is that if you want him dead, let him put as many patches on as he can...he will be dead within a few hours.

Fentanyl is about 100 to 200 times more potent than morphine...all it takes is a few hundred micrograms and he will die because he will not be able to breath.

I love life too much even with intractable pain. I'm glad the docs cut him off. This is definitely not a matter of more is better...more is death.

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