Pain Medication Shame (Page 7)

First of all, I hate taking pain meds but I was almost completely bedridden for 2 yrs. They gave me my life back and I'll be grateful for the rest of my life. My insurance company dropped me right before I was gonna have surgery to get some relief. So I had no choice but to go with the pain meds. I've been on oxycodone 30/150 per month (5 a day) and MS Contin 200mg 2 times daily since 2009. Had breaks when I could. My point is, nobody knows what my daily life is like. I feel ashamed every month getting refills. Maybe it's in my head but the staff at the pharmacy gives me that "pill seeker" look. I guess all that matters is my doctor trusts me and he knows my complete history. I know I'm not taking them for fun. I'd much rather be normal. Can anyone relate to what I'm saying?

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Yes! People, even doctors, that haven’t had the pain don’t understand! You can’t look at a person and see their pain especially if it’s chronic. People will say I look good....but they can’t see my pain! No fun living with pain all the time.

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Hi sweetie well let’s start with I have been in a wheelchair for 4 years I have rods in my spine and spinal stenosis, bulging discs, Osteoporosis, I could go on and on but the reason they are looking at you like that is because! You are getting way to high a dose for your problems! I only get 20mg of oxycodone 3 times a day! And I’m way way worse than you I was bed ridden for 4 years in traction at a long term care facility and I’m only 46! So I’m outraged that they are giving you what you say you are? And then you complain they look at you like a druggy? Honestly you should be cut down to 5mg of Morphine 3 times a day if you have no rods , screws, pins ? Anything like that in your spine then you can be on that amount but you are on way to much narcotics and I’m showing my doctor this message and asking how you can get this amount when I cannot even walk and I only get what I do?? You need to go to rehab because it sounds like you really don’t need them anymore your body has just adjusted to them and making you think you need them to survive! You need to be put on suboxone! I would look at you like a druggy too!!! When people who are in wheelchairs and can’t walk cannot even get what you are getting!!? Not right!

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Re: Sherish (# 122)
First of all I will start by saying that I am sorry for all of your issues. However, I do not know to whom you are replying because it is not listed. I know that there are issues with providers prescribing different amounts of pain medication for different levels of pain. One thing you must understand is that pain affects people in different ways and most people are not going to disclose their complete health record on why they have been prescribed like they are. I will only address your recommendation that this patient be prescribed suboxone. From people, I have understood that substituting suboxone for whatever pain medication one is on is just substituting one dependence for another dependence. If one does not want to stop their dependence then they will not stop. I know this from speaking to many other dependent and/or addicted people and my tobacco addiction. (I stopped smoking back on July 1, 2000). Until I made my mind up to stop I could not stop anything. FOR ME there was no stopping for the wife or kids. I had to stop for myself. Suboxone does not work for all. Try titrating down first. It is a slow process but it can work if the person has made a commitment to stop.

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Re: Sherish (# 122)

Hey there, First off you're addressing a post that's almost 2 years old, and prior to the MEDD guidelines, so I'm sure that the dosage has been reduced by now. But what really triggered my response is a few things that you wrote, saying that your pain is worse than his,and he should be cut back to 5mg of morphine x3. Are you an MD or just a psychic? I'd have to say the latter because even a doctor can't say how much pain a person is in, even with the tools they have, like MRI results, CT results, nobody can predict the level of pain a person experiences. So you have to be a psychic to be able to say that. What really got me was that you said that you're bringing this post to your doctor to ask him why this person is on this amount of meds and I'm not because I'm in a wheelchair? And you think he needs to be on Suboxone cause he doesn't need that much anymore? You Have to be a psychic then, yep, cause as far as I know, no one is able to make statements like that unless they're angry that he's getting more relief than you, or they have a crystal ball that can see what pain level another person is experiencing..
If you're neither an MD or a Psychic.. Don't be so quick to judge another when you know nothing about their condition, it's tacky...

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Re: w John (# 108)

Hey John, do you still want the name of the PM group in Sarasota? Let me know if you do. I'm seriously thinking about going back there
Jack

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Re: Jack175 (# 125)
Yes. Thank you. They will not let me reply with a simple “yes”.

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Re: w John (# 126)

Ok, it's Called "Sarasota Pain Relief Centers - South Sarasota
Look for the one @ 3945 Clark Rd. Sarasota 34233. With this info you'll be able to go to the website and start the process. When do you plan on making contact, as I will wait to see how it goes with you.. Good Luck..
Jack

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Re: Focked (# 115)

Can you make it to Sarasota? There's a pain mgt clinic that offers top notch pain mgt, especially with the pump systems, I'm a former patient, so I have an insight.. Maybe John w, you, and myself could coordinate a visit there and help each other out..

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Re: Jack175 (# 128)
I am currently out of State but I am going to relocate back to the Sarasota area, hopefully soon. I have lived in the Sarasota area twice now and I want to go back.

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By way of update, I am still amazed that a certain regulatory agency, (that does not even know my name), yet somehow knows more about my medical and pharmaceutical needs than I do!

Having had a rewarding career with the energy sector, I have been forced to retired based the gobbledygook of said monarchy. Simply stated, ME CLIENTELE WILL NOT WAIT ON ME WHILE I WAIT ON MY MEDICATION!!!

For the consideration of the viewing audience, domestic farmers have undergone economic hardships due to Trumps tariffs. To offset the losses, they've been awarded monetary compensation. I wonder if our government will offer compensation for those of us displaced through misplaced judgments regarding the medication that sustains us?

At this point I dumped lots of rhetoric on this site. I sincerely hope it lands before the eyes of someone that has the power to MAKE TANGIBLE CHANGES TO THE AUTOCRATS AND DESPOTS that are messing with our livelihoods!

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I submit my verbiage with the hopes that someone in the viewing audience may find inspiration, or a least a little humor!
Just as big Al Einstein attempted a few decades ago, I too am seeking the allusive "theory for everything."
Having given the subject consideration, The most current group of folks to be trampled upon, taken advantage of, blatantly discriminated against, is the AGED AND THE INFIRMED!
Our former president Obama once referred to aged citizens as "not worth the health care investment." As I approach the big "70", I fear that our government will categorize me as simply another aged brick in the wall, all while making it harder to obtain the pharmacology that sustains me!

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Re: John Kramer (# 131)
Keep in mind that back in the 80’s the Democrat Governor Richard Lamm said that older people “have a duty to die”. It stirred up quite a brouhaha. Now that he is 84 he has yet to fulfill his “duty”. He was only 49 when he made his “duty to die” statement. Wonder what he thinks now. Chronic pain patients need to be treated with dignity and respect. I moved to take care of my father who would have died THREE times before he did if I was not there to insist that the “Doctors should be Doctors and let God be God”. I got them to do whatever they needed to do to make his life livable. He lived until he was 94. The weird thing is he had 100% health insurance and every Doctor’s Bill was paid in full—and they still did not want to treat him. I wish I could make all Physician’s be empathetic and treat everyone like they should be treated. Unfortunately, this is not a reality. Even when ALL medical bills are paid 100%.

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I absolutely get that. God help you if you ever have to go to the ER for a problem related to pain. I’ve had serious back issues and surgeries. When I woke up one day unable to move my neck and extreme pain in my right arm and went to the ER. Had to go 2x bc the X-ray showed nothing, they said “I don’t know what you want us to do!” Like I was just looking for drugs. Turned out it was a herniated disc with spinal cord compression. Needed urgent surgery. I hate being treated like a POS by those who are supposed to be there to help

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Re: Karen (# 121)

Hey Karen, they say you look good because you "present" well. This is something most people don't understand. When you go to see your doctor and you're dressed well, clean clothes, make up is perfect, clean shaven, ever hair in place and well you get the picture!
When you "present" like this the doctor has a hard time understanding the high levels of pain you're saying you're in... I know this sounds a little ridiculous, but I'm related to doctors by blood and marriage and this is how they're taught to observe the patient by they way you "present" yourself to them in their office.
If you're saying you're seriously suffering you shouldn't look your best. That's the way they think, but not all doctors are like that. Just most of them!
So you should look the part if you're in severe pain.
Your doctor doesn't personally know you and only sees you for a few minutes. Those few minutes is where they're observing everything about you including how you "present" yourself to them. So if you look like a million bucks a doctor is going to have a hard time believing you're in severe pain no matter what scans or tests may say!

This is just something to think about before your doctor vist...

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Re: Verwon (# 1)

I used to be harassed by my pharmacist, I left the place, I have a very nice pm pa, she is very kind,she looks at my mri s and know that I really have bad pain in my lower back, she hasn't threatened to lower my meds, hope I have her for awhile

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Hello,

It’s almost like I was reading my post because I get treated the same exact way at my pharmacy. I’m 45 and had to have 4 major surgeries on my spine due to a nerve sheath tumor. Ended up with a spinal fusion from L2-S1 that failed.

I’ve been on a bunch of narcotics ever since then. I get serious anxiety whenever the lady behind the counter says “one moment” and I see her talking to the pharmacist. One time I was handed a brochure and was told about rehab. Just like you said, I would love to never have to refill a script again and be normal.

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Re: Curious80 (# 20)

Hey curious80 it's been a couple years since I heard from you on this site. We used to have some good conversations and some back n forth. Just wondering how your doing and if you still check out this site every now and then. I hope everything's going well for you. Was wondering if you had anything new going on, n seeing if your meds are still working for ya. Let me know hope to hear back from ya stay well

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I was in a wreck 10 yrs ago, damaged my spine and after months of pt (made it worse so they stopped), every treatment every Dr recommended, the only thing that is effective enough for me to function and work are narcotics. I got spinal injections twice, first time seemed to help but the second time was awful and instantly worse. They said oh you just have to give it time to work. Never got better. The bone in my back is cracked and disintegrating. 2012 I was in pm getting 120 x 30mg oxycodone a month. They shut down and the way I was treated by another supposedly great pain Dr made me give up and deal with it on my own. I'm at the point I can't handle it anymore. I can't afford $25-40 a pill (when I can even find it), the pm clinic I got into is an absolute joke.

The first Dr I saw was very nice but only put me on 7.5 mg hydrocodone, which really does nothing unless I take several at a time. The next visit they sent me to the Dr everyone hates, he cut me to 5 mg. I'm not going back, it's not worth it especially with how he acts. I'd give almost anything to not be in pain or need anything. I've tried going without. I went 4 months and I wanted to die. I couldn't do anything but lay in bed. I will lose my job if that happens now. Idk what to do. I've been scammed out of hundreds of dollars, I'm not sure yet. I know nobody here is going to prescribe anything that will work, not even Xtampza (sp?).

I just can't live like this I'm so tired of being in so much pain I can't do anything. I've tried so many NSAIDs (forced to by Dr's) that just make me sick and don't do anything. I'm so lost and I'm really scared. I even tried suboxone for a few months (and the pm Dr yelled at me for that) because it can have some pain relief effects, but I couldn't afford $400 a month for something that barely works. I know nobody will share if they Do have a Dr who will actually write anything and I understand. I can't tell if any of the online places actually send you what they claim. I found one that had been around a few years, and probably lost $120 in BTC to them too. If they and the other one I tried don't do anything but take my money then I'm out about $900 total I'll never get back and I don't have hundreds more to waste.

My ex has my son, gets half my check so if I lose my job and can't pay I'll be arrested. I'm at the end of my rope here and idk what to do. I found this site through another one that says they sell, but I'm scared they're all scams and I don't have any more money to try and see now. I'm not a druggie I just want to be out of constant, mind numbing pain so I can function. I'm done with Dr's, getting treated like a druggie and told things like I can't possibly be in that much pain cause I'm too young is too much. I never went to the Dr or took ANYTHING unless I was super sick and had no choice. I never took pain pills or smoked anything never even tried any street drugs. But that doesn't matter to anyone either.

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I understand your point. I have taken hydrocodone 7.5 x 120 per month for a skiing accident and a back issue. One of the pharmacists where I get my refills (only when the Pharmacy says it is okay) tries to challenge my treatment program every time he is on duty. this has pretty much subsided after I asked him has he ever looked at my treatment plan? Has he ever examined me? (Of course he hasn't--he is not a Doctor only a Pharmacist. He may have a Doctor of Pharmacy degree but he is not a medical Doctor.) I asked him if he has ever even spoken to me to ask what my problems were. Of course he hasn't. I have been offered stronger pain medication but refused it. I understand your shame in getting refills but BEFORE I even attempt a refill I call the Pharmacy and ask if it is okay (time wise) to refill my prescription and when they can have it ready. This seemed to make the rogue Pharmacist lighten up a bit.

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Re: Catryna (# 4)

if you know of some medical marijuana that would do that you'd be a millionaire works great for anxiety depression appetite General all-around Good Feeling for mood but like I said if you really found something that does anything for pain I'll jump on that bandwagon

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