Going to pain doc tomorrow
 

Yay? I'm just wondering what I need to ask for to deal with the breakthrough pain. I'm worried about going through more med trials. Maybe somebody here can offer a suggestion of a really good drug that will work for me. Here is what I've dealt with already (during this or in the past).

Currently taking:
Oxcarbazepine, Wellbutrin, Zoloft, Levothyroxine, B12 combo w ALA and some other stuff, Magnesium, medical marijuana, mirapex

What hasn't worked:
Gabapentin (made me too stupid),
Tramadol (horrible reaction that involved puking),
Vicodin (either doesn't work or if I take enough for it to work it does my stomach hurts even w food),
Percocet (I got addicted in hospital off half what I was told to take, took 6 weeks to ramp down and stop, but man that was a good high)
Advil (I can take it on a case by case basis, but not continuously or my stomach will hurt)
Despiramine (took it at night, woke up all sweaty and feeling horrible at a really low dose, had to stop it)

I have to work, I already have a harder time concentrating on work. I can't be all spaced out all the time. The pot works to help me deal with most things, but I can't use it at work, and it only helps so much. I need something for breakthrough pain and also when I'm at work. So I'm guessing maybe two things. I also have a generic only rx plan, at least until Nov when it renews. I can't afford anything out of pocket right now, at least for a few months from now.

I'm kind of afraid to take more opiates considering what happened with the percocet. I need something that works, doesn't make me "high" (I could have one that does that as long as I have another option for work, I can be as high as a kite the other 16 hrs in the day as long as I'm good for work), doesn't upset my stomach, and something non-addictive.

So what are my options?

ordinarily you don't get high unless you are taking more than you need. Have you tried Morphine? Methadone?

I've had morphine twice, both times in the hospital via IV. The first time was when I was induced to have my daughter, I felt like I was going to puke until I actually fell asleep. The second time was when I was burned, I don't remember what happened then, it helped obviously as I was in extreme pain.

I have not had methadone. I read it's a synthetic and my brother mentioned he has a hard time with synthetics, so I don't know how it'll affect me. I have thought about it, maybe try it on a day I don't have to do anything and see how I feel. It'll either work or it won't.

And yeah, the percocet did get me high off a low dose. I read about an enzyme CYP2D6, that I might have a hard time with some opiates because of this enzyme. This might be what caused me to get addicted off the lower dose and feel the euphoria from it. I still need to understand this part of it and talk to the doctor about it.

I have a couple hours until I go if anybody has any suggestions.

If you worry about addiction, I would really stay away from methadone.

I have seen people trying to kick that habit, and it's plain horror. It's easier to kick off heroïne...

I would really only consider it as a last resort IMHO.

Yeah, so much fun trying to find something to help me that won't make me addicted, will actually work, and not make me totally sick!

Well, she wants to do an MRI to make sure I don't have MS. She was really surprised it hadn't been done yet. She got me a prescrip for Lidocain and Capsacian creams. Gave me info on a stimulator implant. I'd love to hear from any of you who have one of those. She went over med options, but I think I want to look into the stimulator first.

We have a forum for the SCS implants. There have been some
posters there using this implant for PN pain.

http://neurotalk.psychcentral.com/forum118.html

For a bit of fun you can also make your own capsaicin cream, and experiment with the strength that works best for you:

For example:

2 Tablespoons Habanero Powder
2 Cups Olive Oil
¼ cup Beeswax

You'd heat this up to melt the wax, let it cool, and put it in a jar. A little sting when applying is normal, but it shouldn't burn, so you may need to experiment with the ingredients.
This would make a high strength cream with only natural ingredients. For even more fun, grow your own peppers. :cool:

(Warning: always wear gloves when handling the powder or peppers.)

I use Cayenne pepper I get in large size containers to keep rodents out of the flower pots and plantings. I sprinkle some on the soil, and they get a snoot full once and never come back!

I can't stand the pepper creams on my skin however, so I don't use them.

Oh sure, it doesn't work for everyone. Could this - in your case - be linked to not digesting nightshades easily?

I should have added that in case of skin reaction, the cream should be disused immediately. I only mentioned it because Chaos doc. recommended them.