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Suggest Treatment For Chronic Back Pain
Question: I'm 65 years of age and have been a chronic back pain suffer since 2005. I don't smoke, don't drink and I'm in 100% pain everyday. I'm up always every morning crying with pain. My wife of 40 years keeps saying there must be someone who can help me with my pain. I've seen 3 pain management doctors in the last 6 months and all don't want to treat me with pain meds which 6 months ago I was taking 10 oxycodone 30mg per day which oxycodone is the only pain med that works for me but no one will sub script it to me any longer. I want to live my live the rest of my life not in pain. Everyday I want to end my life because of the pain I'm living in. I need help badly. When I was on my pain meds I never mis used them. I used them only the way they was subscribe to me.
Brief Answer:
several options
Detailed Answer:
ok, it isn't clear why they released you. Certainly going to dr. 5, 6, 7 would be the first option.
If they say, geez she is on a heck of a lot of oxycodone (guidelines say that 30 mg per day is not a lot. 30 to 100 total per day is concerning and over 100 is quite a concern and probably should be addressed or changed).
Other medicines and modalities are out there to try. Since a back stimulator is one of the last options one would presume that someone with it would have already tried muscle relaxers, anti-inflammatorories, nerve pill such as neurontin, physical therapy, massage, chiropracty. but these are some options. nerve ablation is really a last option but one that might be used when other options have been tried.
finally, going onto an equivalent dose of a drug that is usually reserved for addicts (suboxone or methadone) will work.
several options
Detailed Answer:
ok, it isn't clear why they released you. Certainly going to dr. 5, 6, 7 would be the first option.
If they say, geez she is on a heck of a lot of oxycodone (guidelines say that 30 mg per day is not a lot. 30 to 100 total per day is concerning and over 100 is quite a concern and probably should be addressed or changed).
Other medicines and modalities are out there to try. Since a back stimulator is one of the last options one would presume that someone with it would have already tried muscle relaxers, anti-inflammatorories, nerve pill such as neurontin, physical therapy, massage, chiropracty. but these are some options. nerve ablation is really a last option but one that might be used when other options have been tried.
finally, going onto an equivalent dose of a drug that is usually reserved for addicts (suboxone or methadone) will work.
Above answer was peer-reviewed by :
Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar
Dr. Wachsman, Did you get my 10 page reply on my history with back pain since 2005 from a accident? All of your advice and your options have all been tried except Chiropracty. My 2nd Pain Management Doctor had me taking all at the same time 360 per month Oxycodone 30mg (12 per day) 60 per month OxyContin 80mg and Fetanol 75mg patches every 3 days. My 3rd Pain Doctor dropped me to taking just 360 Oxycodone 30mg per month and taking nothing else. His name was Dr. Rand and he was busted by the DEA just 3 days before my monthly appointment with him to renew my monthly prescription of Oxycodone. I couldn't get another appointment with no Pain Management Doctors in town because I was a patient of Dr. Rands. Our local channel 4 news got me an appointment with a new Pain Doctor but it was for 2 months away. I ended up going into with dawns within 2 days and ended up at the methadone clinic which was the most disgrading days of my life!!! I had to be there at 6am and be with people who lived on the streets and smelled and there were two who were having sex in front of about 50 persons. I finally had my first appointment with my new Pain Dr. And he started me with 300 per month of Oxycodone 30mg.
Doctor, if you didn't receive my 10 pages of my pain history and all my pain meds and all meds that I was taking and these current pain meds that I'm now taking which are Gabapentin 300mg 12 per day, duloxetine 20mg 2 in the morning, baclofen 10mg 4 times per day, Ketamine 20mg 6 times per day, (I even had Ketamine put into my body by IV drip from 9am until 5pm). Periocet 10-325mg one tablet every 4 hours. My 4th Pain Dr. Fire me as his patient when I told him I thought I was his 1st patient as too putting pins into my ear
Doctor, if you didn't receive my 10 pages of my pain history and all my pain meds and all meds that I was taking and these current pain meds that I'm now taking which are Gabapentin 300mg 12 per day, duloxetine 20mg 2 in the morning, baclofen 10mg 4 times per day, Ketamine 20mg 6 times per day, (I even had Ketamine put into my body by IV drip from 9am until 5pm). Periocet 10-325mg one tablet every 4 hours. My 4th Pain Dr. Fire me as his patient when I told him I thought I was his 1st patient as too putting pins into my ear
Brief Answer:
what level is too much?
Detailed Answer:
I've never seen someone get 300 mg a day who did not have serious drug addiction issues. Indeed over 100 mg a day is associated with a 10 fold increased DEATH rate compared to the more usual 30 mg or less a day dosing.
No, nobody is going to dose someone with potentially a fatal dose of narcotics. Methadone is an interesting situation. In the addiction context, it is relatively safe and has few deaths. In the context of pain doctors it has generally been the most risky drug for people dying from overdose.
One could go with the addiction center and get pain relief but if one were to want a dose of narcotics that would often be fatal, that is the only safe context for receiving that much and it is doubtful sources other than addiction or hospice centers can be found that would give > 150 mg equivalent of oxycodone.
what level is too much?
Detailed Answer:
I've never seen someone get 300 mg a day who did not have serious drug addiction issues. Indeed over 100 mg a day is associated with a 10 fold increased DEATH rate compared to the more usual 30 mg or less a day dosing.
No, nobody is going to dose someone with potentially a fatal dose of narcotics. Methadone is an interesting situation. In the addiction context, it is relatively safe and has few deaths. In the context of pain doctors it has generally been the most risky drug for people dying from overdose.
One could go with the addiction center and get pain relief but if one were to want a dose of narcotics that would often be fatal, that is the only safe context for receiving that much and it is doubtful sources other than addiction or hospice centers can be found that would give > 150 mg equivalent of oxycodone.
Above answer was peer-reviewed by :
Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar
Yes Doctor Wachamam you were right that I had a serious drug addiction issues. But it was Doctors that made me depend on narcotics to deal with my pain. Never in my 65 years have I ever brought a drug off the streets. Before my accident I would not take a aspirin for a headache! On your pain scale of 1-10 with the Oxycodone I lived my life at level 5. Still in pain but I could function. I had a life with my grand children. Now without my Oxycodone I'm bedridden most of the time and I try and stay away from my grand daughters when I'm crying with pain. They are to young to understand what I'm Dealing with.
Again thanks for your time.
Frank garlick.
Again thanks for your time.
Frank garlick.
Brief Answer:
well heck, that makes it easy.
Detailed Answer:
They say acknowledging it is the first step... well, it's a lot easier to get enough narcotics to help back pain in the context of addiction that through pain management. Sorry, but we both know this is true. Methadone in the context of addiction treatment is given at high levels to people who might misuse it and might take a lot of other things AND YET it's about 90% safer than methadone through pain clinics and has a low mortality rate.
Furthermore, suboxone, while it does not have the same strength as methadone, is probably safer, has effects on pain and likely lowers tolerance to narcotics (bad if you stop it and start using 300 mg like before using it; good if you find that you get a better response to 50 mg a day than on 300 mg before the suboxone).
Acknowledging at least the possiblity of addiction opens up a lot of situations for pain control that are acheivable.
Best of luck and it's been a pleasure chatting with you.
well heck, that makes it easy.
Detailed Answer:
They say acknowledging it is the first step... well, it's a lot easier to get enough narcotics to help back pain in the context of addiction that through pain management. Sorry, but we both know this is true. Methadone in the context of addiction treatment is given at high levels to people who might misuse it and might take a lot of other things AND YET it's about 90% safer than methadone through pain clinics and has a low mortality rate.
Furthermore, suboxone, while it does not have the same strength as methadone, is probably safer, has effects on pain and likely lowers tolerance to narcotics (bad if you stop it and start using 300 mg like before using it; good if you find that you get a better response to 50 mg a day than on 300 mg before the suboxone).
Acknowledging at least the possiblity of addiction opens up a lot of situations for pain control that are acheivable.
Best of luck and it's been a pleasure chatting with you.
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Above answer was peer-reviewed by :
Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar
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