Quote:
Originally Posted by MissTT
After 10 years of taking the Oxycontin 'OC' tablets I have been devastated by this new formulation with the 'OP' on the tablet. Initially I thought i had received a 'bad batch' of medicine because i went into withdrawels while taking them as prescribed. I often noticed them floating in the toilet, so I thought perhaps they were not working due to not being digested. I had a similar problem with a generic oxycodone ER a few years ago (it was shaped like a football).
But then i also began having some significant systemic health problems, namely an unexplained urethritis that did not respond to antibiotics, and a bowel colitis that also did not respond to antibiotics. It was as if my entire system was responding to some toxin. I became horribly sick and stayed that way most of the year. The only thing that seemed to heal my new health problems was to stop taking the oxy. 'OP' tabs for a period of time. Fortunately I was able to take some old Oxycontins that i had diligently saved up over the 10 years of taking them, which allowed me these brief breaks.
After a few weeks of not taking the 'op's my symptoms would decrease and I would get better. The urethritis would heal (constant feeling of urgency to urinate and then a feeling of urinating razor blades when i would go) and so would the colitis: i would stop seeing a toilet full of blood and mucous at each bowel movement, etc.
I feel pretty hopeless because my "stash" of old oxycontins is quickly running out and morphine and methadone don't work for my chronic pain. I tried Opana, but it was not very effective for pain control and had many side effects. I was hoping and praying that Purdue would correct this horrible mistake with the new oxy pill, but it doesn't seem that is going to happen. I did contact Purdue initially, and have filled out numerous forms for them documenting my experience with the new oxy. I may have had even more bad effects from it because I take quite a large dose compared to most people.
Does anyone know if there is any hope for a better oxycontin pill any time soon, or if there are other people having significant negative responses to this new formulation. At my last doctors appointment he ended up prescribing Exalgo for me, but I have taken Dilaudid before, and I expect many side effects.
I would appreciate any insights or information anyone can share with me.
|
I know exactly what you are talking about here. I was doing great for years on OC. these new op have been increasingly making me sick. I have been lethargic and have had abdominal pain and bloody stools. I have also experienced the gel like substance these monsters turn into. Its like a combo of rubber cement and super sticky super glue. I mean, it if you touch it, it will stick to your hands and turn into stringy, super sticky strands of gel that you cant wash off. YOu literally have to peel and rub it off with something dry.
It really is something you have to experience firsthand to understand where we are coming from. After experiencing it, you will realize that it simply can not be good for our systems to have this stuff in it. And its not like our bodies are breaking this stuff down into something non harmful. Our digestive systems are mostly water. Stick one of these pills in water for a few hours, and it still turns into one of these gel blobs. It is sad that the small percentage of ppl who abuse these meds are making our lives miserable.
Us chronic pain patients are the ONLY ones being harmed by these reformulations and cracking down on supply. God forbid when the day comes when we cant get our IR meds anymore. Like this poster, nothign else works for my pain like oxycodone. FEntanyl works well, but the patches are a problem within themselves. I could bet that purdue did not do proper human testing into how these new ingredients effect our bodies longterm. I am on a very high dose compared to the average patient, and therefore have been cramming more of this crap into my system for the past two years.
The ONLY way we could ever get anyone to listen is simply to band our voices together. Altogether, there are nearly 100million ppl in the US suffering from chronic pain. A large percentage of us are on pain meds. Even if a few million of us get together, which isnt really asking alot, who could afford to ignore us? My only hope now is that the FDA allows generic versions of the original oc formula to be made come aprl 2013, although i think im farting in the wind with that hope.