Switched To Oxycontin From Oxycodone. I Do Not Like It At All

Oxycodone was 30 mg every 6 hours or prn. Oxycotin is one 20 mg every 8 hours. It stops working at 40 mg OR 20 mg at about 5 hours.I had a RouxN Y Gastric Bypass several years ago, and my metabolism is fast. Could it be that time released pill isnt working because of the compromised gastric system?I will always need pain meds due to severe double curve scoliosis. It is so hard to deal with the doctors, yet they whistle when they see my xrays. Why is pain medication here if not for cases like mine? Im mid 50's. Been on pain meds for about 6 years. Hydro first, but they are hard on gastric systems. Oxycodone doesn't hurt the gut at all...Any advice? Thanks..By the way, I'd LOVE to get off pain meds, but it'll never happen, too old for surgery...

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Hello, Ghostgirl! How are you feeling? I'm sorry about the problem that you're having.

And yes, it's likely that since this is a time released medication, it's just not getting a chance to release all of it, before being eliminated.

You might want to ask your doctor about trying a pain patch, such as Fentanyl, it's a very potent narcotic, but since it's a skin patch, it will avoid such an issue occurring.

This is a narcotic analgesic, so it has the potential to be habit forming and may cause side effects, such as nausea, dizziness, drowsiness, dry mouth and constipation.

Does anyone else have any suggestions that might help?

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Thanks! Ive been thinking of the options.Non really,not w/out pain control anyway.Ive never had fentanyl,even after surgery.My opiate level was so high,that they had a hard time controlling my pain after an emergency adhesion surgery..The Dr.Stood at my bedside and said"If I were taking all of what you are getting in that I.V? Id need CPR".That is the only thing that really scares me.Having something happen that is like...an emergency,and having no pain control at all...Is it really possible to ever get off opiates and have a truly satisfactory manner of pain control? Honestly?

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Yes, it is possible.

The tolerance that your body builds to opiates will also taper off, in time. So, if you're off of them for awhile, or on lower doses, then higher amounts or different ones will start to have an effect, again.

I'm sharing this from person experience, not just knowledge of how medications work and how our bodies react to them.

I was misdiagnosed and on pain management for about 7 years. I was taking high doses of Oxycodone, Morphine and muscle relaxants. I went off of them cold turkey and though it took about a year, small doses now work for me, again. After my surgery a couple of years ago, I did just fine with 5mg Oxycodone tablets.

Some doctors even recommend patients take breaks from their medications to try to help prevent their building such a high tolerance and running out of options.

Are there any other questions or concerns?

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Woah,so you just 'stopped" cold turkey? Isnt that kinda dangerous at high levels of opiate n the system? Im glad it worked..But,what if you had pain,that was never going to stop.Like Scoliosis.The spine gets worse as we age..A pain med would be paramount to the patient wanting to be on this planet,no? Maybe the medical system can come up woth a specialized sorta 'Tens Unit" that we could control...Good on you for stopping tho!!!

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While the withdrawals from high doses can be miserable, they generally aren't dangerous, if you were only taking the prescribed amounts. The time they get dangerous, is usually when someone has been taking much more than prescribed, so they've been abusing it.

The rebound pain and withdrawal symptoms were bad and I had a lot of sleepless nights, as well as hours soaking in the tub to ease the pain, but once the worse passed, things improved greatly.

And I do have a severe form of scoliosis, a double S curve, just like you. The last time I saw the specialist years ago, it was over 67 degrees. But, not everyone has pain with it. Mine tends to only hurt, if I sleep on a horrible bed or don't have a properly adjusted desk and chair.

The caveat, of course, is that they believe mine was caused by a childhood fall onto an unfinished cement floor as an infant of just a few months old, because I don't have the kyphosis that most people do, when they are born with it. Kyphosis is the cork screw curve that basically causes their spine to start collapsing in on itself and creates the pain and health issues. Mine strictly goes side to side.

So, I don't have the same issue to cause pain, as you do.

And my pain, at that time, did continue. Because we still didn't know what was really causing it. They'd blamed my spine the entire time, because of the scoliosis…. then, when it started centralizing to my stomach and my pancreatic enzymes were elevated, they thought it was pancreatitis and were treating me for that….

Which actually just ended up making things worse, because part of the treatment for that is to not let you eat and my issue was actually due to gastritis. It's kind of like where you entire stomach turns into a giant ulcer. Mine had been injured by being thrown into my seatbelt in a car wreck… everyone walked away, so no closer medical checking had been done and it was left to progressively get worse for years.

It wasn't until I moved across the country and ended up in the ER one night, after having an endoscopy done when I had congestive heart failure a month before, that it finally dawned on a doctor that it might be gastritis. When intubating me for the CHF, they'd noticed a little blood, which is why they did the endoscopy, but hadn't found an ulcer or anything definitive. Just red tissue irritation.

So, I was o quite a medical adventure for a very long time. Not something I want to repeat or wish on anyone.

How severe is your scoliosis? Have they ever told you the degree of curvature?

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Hi,Wow what an i=amazing story!!! yeah,the top curve is"65" and the bottom curve is '55' degrees.

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Now,my pain guy says he wants to try me on Morphine..Im just not wanting to go to Morphine..Seems like the absolute last straw to grasp at....What do you thin kof Morphine? Ive been on Cymbalta now ,a little over a month..Gained TWELVE pounds!!! I stopped it ,like this morning.Its a good med,truly! Seems to work,but the weight and slihtly higher bp? Naw,.not for me...

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I am not fond of Morphine, myself. Not because it's the last straw, because it isn't. It's actually milder than most of the others.

But, due to the fact that it can sometimes cause joint inflammation, in some people and when I was taking it, it actually made my issues worse. They even thought I was getting carpal tunnel, but it turned out to be joint inflammation that went away, when I stopped taking the Morphine.

Did he give you any other options?

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Hey Verwon..Now the doc says Methadone is t he answer.He wants me to start it next month..Im not into it at all...Fentanyl,eh? Ill do some research...Have you used it? Its absorbed thru the dermis?

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I was on Fentanyl once, years ago, but only for a very short period of time. It caused severe vomiting for me and I couldn't hold anything down.

However, the caveat is that I wasn't tolerant to narcotics, at the time. I'd rarely every taken anything stronger than Tylenol.

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Vernon - I was on 3 60 oxycotin and 2 15 oxycodone. Now my dr. wants to wean me down. Sure, I'm all for that. I don't want on these anyway. But the chronic pain is something else. In 6 months I am now on 1 30 oxycotin and 6 oxycodone. I'm in pain all day now. I think he's taking me down to fast. I've been on these for about 11 years. Can you enlighten me as to whether he's doing the right thing. Thanks for any advice you can give me.

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After 6 months, that's not too rapid of a taper. It's actually longer than some doctors are giving others.

When does he want you to taper, again?

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I will see him in September and I'm sure he will take the 30 oxycotin then add another 15 oxycodone. So that will leave me with 7 oxycodone daily and your advice is that is ok for the weaning process? I've been on these for about 10 years. I also asked him whether the pain that I am feeling is REALLY pain or is it my HEAD telling me I have pain. What a mess. But I'm a doctor junkie, it doesn't matter though, does it? Thank you in advance for your time. I appreciate it!

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You're welcome! Rebound effects are normal, when you're tapering down. They are annoying, but typical.

Please post back and keep me updated!

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In March, 2015, I started Kratom, an herb from Thailand. I must say, I was skeptical, but willing to try almost anything to get over that "not enough meds' anxiety. It is amazing! I cannot believe that the medical community isnt embracing this miracle herb more!!! I've completely lost my opioid 'Jonez', and yeah, I still need them,but only half as much, and Ive lost any anxiety about running out! Please, do yourselves a favor and research KRATOM. See if it might be your answer too!

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What is the "rebound effect"? I sound stupid but you lost me on that one. I found a clinic here (where I live instead of having to travel an hour and forty five minutes away) but they want to put me on suboxone. I was told that, that was a "poor mans heroin". Good Grief! I don't want to get addicted to something stronger than what I'm already trying to get off of! What are your thoughts on that? I really, really appreciate being able to chat with someone that knows these drugs and what they can and will do to you!

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Verwon - It's been awhile since I was here. My doctor has now weaned me down to 7 oxycodone a day. That's quite a leap from where I was. I have had a few days of dealing with w/d. Not bad but still there. I have been offered to go on suboxone but that's just another drug that is addictive. That's the last thing I want. Once I am off or almost of the oxy's, how am I to know if the shoulder pain that I will experience, is ACTUAL pain or just my brain telling me I need that drug? That's where I'm at this point in my life. I'm 64 and really don't want major surgery. I'm at a cross road and really need guidance. I'm certainly not getting it where I live. I can't find a doctor to take me as a patient and there really isn't anything I can do about it. If you have any answers, please let me know.

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I have discovered Kratom,an herb from Thailand.It is amazing for the pain and to help the cravings for meds...No surprise that the big pharms demonize it..Its amazing,it works,and it is cheap!!!!

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Yes, I'm in gonna be 56, started w/degenerative disc decease @ age 35 is. In last 20 yrs. I've restarted to 6-7 dead disc, my pain management doctor says they've crumbled like cookies, they had crushed nerves which led to a non teaching at, kidney, so they implanted an interstem to keep left kidney working I now need a double knee replacement I just don't know what to do anymore, any help

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I find it aggravating when patients or Dr's assume that withdrawal will only affect you if the drug is abused. I'm prescribed clonazepam 1mg 3 times a day for anxiety, and have been for 2 years. Today, my Dr suggested that I stop taking said medication with complete disregard to the inevitable risks that would follow. He said that since I've been taking it as prescribed I need not worry. I then responded; if I were acquiring the medication by illegal means, but still took the same amount and for the same amount of time...only then abruptly stopping would be dangerous? "Yes", he said... I then proceeded to educate my Dr... If one were to quit clonazepam (prescribed or not) without a proper taper, they can at least expect a seizure.. or several. The patient could even die, and these are only physical withdrawals. Let's not dismiss the possibility of having a seizure while driving and killing others as well as yourself. He still wasn't convinced and wanted me to cold turkey it. In the end he did give me refills, but it took a lot of convincing and proof that I pulled from the internet. He was actually unaware of these risks, if you can believe it. Anyway, I know the thread is about pain meds and what I wrote is not. However, there is relevance. Sure, while quitting pain meds (opiates) won't result in seizures and possibly death, it can make a person want to die. Thus increasing the chance of suicide, given the combined pain and withdrawal symptoms. Let's not forget the chance of a patient seeking street drugs either.

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So I recently switched to 10 mg of oxycontin at night to 10 mg oxycodone. I don’t care for extended release medication since I don’t always need the same level of pain control & I also don’t like the plastic pill. I have stomach issues already.
I am so happy I switched. Plus, I think the 5 mg oxycodone I was getting at rite aid was bad-a half a 10 mg works much much better than a 5. And that’s weird. But I am happy.

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Re: Ghostgirl (# 2)

I’ve come off opiates a few times over the years, only to have someone drive into me again so I start again. (I think I need to paint my car bright orange or something). For you, I don’t know if you want to if you’re in constant pain. The first time I had worked up to 30 mg oxycodone 3x a day. Or maybe 4 (it was 14 years ago) and I distinctly remember having fear that if something really traumatic happened I worried that they wouldn’t be able to control my pain (I am barely 90 lbs, so no judgment on other people’s doses-that was just my fear for me) so I weaned off of them over the course of a couple months. It wasn’t terrible and I don’t at all worry about doing it again. I don’t worry about withdrawals, I worry about losing what bit of functionality I have left. But pills vs patches... idk. My old pain doc switched me to Oxycontin at night a couple years ago & at first it helped a lot. I didn’t wake up in pain, I slept better, but I don’t like the lack of ability to lower my dose. When I was weaning off the 30s I could cut them in quarters, get lower dosed pills and cut them, etc. My idiot doctor told me that to wean off the 10 mg long acting they would have me take one every other day, then one every two days, etc. I almost laughed in her face. Withdrawals start to kick in about 10 hrs after my last dose wears off (it’s supposed to be more like 12 but my fast metabolism doesn’t allow that) so at every other night I would be spending a night and day in withdrawals. F that.
They also kept trying to push a patch on me when I am managing well on 10 mg Oxycontin and 5 mg oxycodone during the day.
It’s borderline crazy to try to take someone from my dose to a Fentanyl patch. Especially after they tried switching me to long acting during the day last year and I was so wasted I didn’t dare drive. It messed up my whole month. Now I found better pain management who doesn’t think I need oxy in my body all the time if I don’t need it all the time. I love him for that and it makes me cry when I think about how much better my quality of life is now that I have a provider who thinks about what works for me, not what the oxy rep told him. (I say that because the old pain doc tried to say the long acting is less addictive because it’s a steady flow rather than the up and down with instant release. That was an element in the fraud case against Purdue, that they settled. It was laughable because I don’t think anyone on pain meds for any length of time even feels that up and down. I didn’t feel anything from my meds. Just pain relief.)
Anyway, sorry about the rant. I came just to say, yes, people get off pain medication. I have a few times. But if your spine is bent and will stay bent, and it hurts, if you’re ok with that you could give up the meds. I just don’t have any advice at all about long-acting weaning, except that from everything I know, my old doctor’s plan was abusive and ridiculous.

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