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Member
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Join Date: Aug 2006
Location: Jackson, TN
Posts: 242
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Member
Join Date: Aug 2006
Location: Jackson, TN
Posts: 242
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Daniella said:
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I pay out of pocket for meds
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If your pain is a BIG problem and cost is huge factor then you may want to try Methadone. It's dirt cheap and an excellent pain reliever. It is a narcotic but this should not be a problem. If your doc is worth his salt in pain management he can start you out low and titrate it slowly to give you maximum pain relief and also permit you to be able to function normally. Be sure your doctor starts low so you don't feel any kind of "high" or zonked out feelings. Give the med a fair chance to work and allow your body to adapt to it...a minimum of 2 to 4 weeks. Addiction is rare in patients with true moderate to severe pain - roughly 1 percent but some argue as high as 3 percent - which means 97% to 99% never become addicted. Damn good odds I'd say. And, don't confuse addiction with dependency/tolerance...there is a huge difference. See:
http://www.painfoundation.org/page.a.../Addiction.htm
I should think your main interest is to get control over your pain and I understand where your coming from. For 16 years I suffered horrific pain: 7 to 9.5+ on the Mankowski Pain Scale. All the docs including the Neuros were RXing Neurontin and the other anti convulsants plus various other pain meds and none helped me. Finally my PCP who is a Internist tried me on the Duragesic Patch (another narcotic pain med) and this worked! The only reason I'm not recommending that to you is the cost - it's outta sight...even the generic substitute. Anyway, the Duragesic Patches reduced my pain levels down to a 2 to 4 on the pain scales thus allowing me to lead a relatively normal life and this was 6 years ago and I am still doing just fine. And I strongly believe you could be doing the same.
IMHO, the secret to good pain management is to find a med that works and then keep it in your blood stream 24/7/365. My pain is CONSTANT...never easing off. I don't have varying degrees of pain or what's referred to as 'breakthrough' pain ... mine is continuous, severe, and unyielding. But my pain med completely changed all of that and thereby my life.
Good luck Daniella and keep us informed.
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