I copied this from a newsletter I receive called "Dominie's Newsletter" dated November 1, 2006 written for people with Fibromyalgia, CFS, &/or M.E. Well this article could pretain to anyone in severe pain. I not only have RSD, but also Fibromyalgia & Sjogren's Syndrome. I have read concern from members here & from other websites in the past about how we, who take powerful pain medications for severe pain &/or how some of us are scared to take powerful pain medications for fear of addiction or what other people will/would think of us, including our own Doctors. Well Dominie was sent this from another reader of her website/newsletter, who was not named or I would give that person complete credit for what she wrote, on this specific subject. The drug that she is talking about is Oxycontin. But this could pretain to any opiate/narcotic that anyone of us may take for RSD pain.

"People don't become addicted to oxycontin in three days. It just does not happen that fast. Talk to any medical specialist (doctor, nurse, pharmacist) and they will tell you. Yes, after two weeks if you stop cold turkey, you will have withdrawal symptoms. You should NEVER stop a medication like that cold turkey, but that does not mean the medicine is addictive. You should not stop heart medication cold turkey, you should not stop diabetes meds cold turkey, you should not stop steroids cold turkey because you will have side effects if you do. Some can be dangeorus. But you don't hear anyone say they are addicted to heart medicine! Withdrawal symptoms means your body has become accustomed to having the drug in your system, but that is NOT addiction.

You should take great care with ANY medicine and should know the facts, potential side effects, potential problems with other medicines, etc. We must take responsibility for what we put in our bodies. But we should not shy away from pain medicine if it will help us function, particularly if the pain is severe and nothing else helps. Side effects from stopping a medication can be avoided altogether or greatly reduced if you do so according to directions and oxycontin is one you do not stop cold turkey w/o side effects.

As for oxycontin being an abused street drug, yes it is one of many drugs used by junkies. NOT because it is highly addictive but because it is a time-released pill and when you crush it, you get the entire dose at one time. This gets a person very high. It is also extremely dangerous, particularly with the higher dose tablets. The tablets most people are given for pain are the lower dose ones. You only get the higher dose ones when you have something like cancer and only after you work your way up to the higher amounts. When taken properly for pain control, oxycontin is no more addictive than any other pain medicine (i.e. the % are very low). The only reason oxycontin is sought out by street junkies more than some others is the slow-release aspect giving them a bigger high. When taken as directed for pain control, a person doesn't even get a mild buzz from it once your body adapts to the side effects.

If taken properly, pain medicine can be extremely beneficial. Of course if there is a natural remedy that works I would take that before I would take a prescription drug. But sometimes you need prescription medicines. The main thing people need to do is research. Don't put something in your body until you have read, read, read and know all there is to know about it. Some people think just because a doctor writes a prescription, it must be safe and that is a very dangerous mindset. Just as it is dangerous to assume that just because something is sold over the counter, it must be safe. Even water, taken in excess, can kill. Too much water in a short period of time will throw off your electrolytes and cause your brain to swell and you can die.

It frustrates us when the medical community poo-pahs natural remedies, esp. when we know they work. But there are people in the natural healing arena that can be just as close-minded by only accepting natural remedies and refusing to even consider prescription meds. For me, I take natural remedies 99% of the time, but there is that 1% I take that isn't.

I don't think anyone should take opiates lightly, but I also don't think they should be scared out of taking them because there are people that use them on the street to get high. There are people who use pseudoephedrine to make crystal meth, but that doesn't mean people with a runny nose shouldn't take a decongestant. There are people who sniff glue to get high, but that doesn't mean we shouldn't be allowed to use glue. It's all in using it for its intended purpose correctly.

It is hard enough to have a disease people make fun of and disbelieve. We shouldn't also have to deal with the stigma of being a "drug addict" when we take pain medicine. People who take insulin for diabetes aren't bad-mouthed. People who take heart medicine or anti-seizures meds aren't made to feel bad for it. Why do so many sit in judgment of those who must take pain medicine?

If you find yourself taking more medicine than prescribed, if you find yourself doing whatever it takes to get more and more drugs (stealing your doctor's prescription pad, buying them illegally over the internet, stealing them from people's medicine cabinets, seeing more than one doctor to get more meds), then you have a problem and should seek help. But if you are taking the medicine as prescribed to control severe pain you cannot control with anything else, then don't let others make you feel guilty for doing so. And don't let others scare you into avoiding them."

I hope this was/is helpful to atleast one person out there. If you would be interested in her website you can find it here:

http://www.fms-help.com/

DebbyV€

This was a great posting.

I am guilty of accepting a prescription from the doctor and assuming it is perfectly safe because a "doctor" wrote it. but now as of late I do immediately go home and get on the computer and read about the med as well as talk about it with my pharmacist. I find he has a complete history of all my meds.

I currently take oxycontin and vicodin as a booster for severe pain from the RSD and the neuropathy. But I am always concerned that I will probably have to go to rehab to get off these drugs. I have been on them for over a year. Hopefully though I can get weened off instead.

Thank you again for posting this very informative information. Chin Up!!

Mark

I don't find myself concerned with having to go to rehab to get off the meds at all. If that's what I have to do, it's what I have to do. At least I know,my family knows, and my doctors all know that the REASON I am dependent on them is because of chronic long term pain and not because of the desire to "get high" on them

On on the 75 (mcg/hr???) fentanyl patch plus take percocet every 8 hrs on top of that for my pain...and it doesn't phase me one bit. I don't LOOK stoned, I don't FEEL stoned...if I were to get pulled over while driving, the cop wouldn't even think about testing me for drugs cuz my eyes arent' glassy or anything. This is a person who doesn't even DRINK ALCOHOL, let alone anything else....so you know my pain is REAL cuz it's "going to the right place" in my brain. And that's a huge difference between those of us with real pain, and those who take it to get high. when you take it for pain, the area o the brain responsible for pain NEEDS IT and uses it. When you take it for recreation that area of the brain DOESN'T need it, so it's purpose is DIFFERENT...and that's why when someone has pain and is on narcotic pain meds, they feel a lot different than someone who ISN'T in pain when they take them.

There is NOTHIGN to be ashamed of, nothign to worry about, when it comes to taking narcotic pain medicatio. You can either suffer day in and day out ofr several YEARS in pain because of the "fear" that it will take "a month or two" to get off the medication....or you can have those several years at least COMFORTABLE, and endure those couple/few months it will take to wean off the meds.

Besides, if you go to a pain mgt doc, they won't PUNISH you...they'll wean you off the meds slowly. They won't tortue you...

Hugs
LisaM

Lisa & Mark,
I too am not concerned for how or even when I go off my pain meds. I am on MS Contin every 8 hrs with Oxycodone for break thru meds & also a smaller dose of more MS Contin if needed. The only people who make any stupid sounds or speak negatively are when I go to the window at the pharmacy I use & the helpers say something rude because of the doses I take. I ignore them cause they are usually quite young & are just plain ignorant. *LOL* They do need educated as to how NOT to react to any meds/dose people take though.

My doctor is a PM Doc & if/when the time comes for me to go off Opiates, well he will wean me slowly. Like Lisa I have never felt 'high' from taking them & I am on a rather high dose of MS Contin at this time. The only thing he wants me to try to wean off at this time, is either Neurontin or Lyrica. I have a tougher time with BTP during the hot months. Now that it is cooling off here in Northern California I am hoping I can reduce one or the other. I haven't had BTP too much lately. I would rather go off Lyrica. I gained 20 lbs in 6 weeks from the start of taking it. Thankfully I have stopped the rapid weight gain. Also Lyrica has made me so sleepy that I can fall asleep at the drop of a hat. My PM Doc has put me on Provigil to help me stay awake during the day. I don't take it every day though. If I didn't fall asleep so easily I would seriously consider trying to go back to work. I worked for over 6 months with MEGA pain & little to no pain contorl at all before going off work for foot surgery & then not being able to ever go back to work. But then every time I think, maybe I could try it, I end up with pain from H--L.

Well Look there???!!! *LOL* I went & went off with blabber fingers *LOL*

Anyway I guess I said what I wanted to say & then some HUH???? *ROFL*

Take care all,
DebbyV

Bumping this up because I thought that the newer members probably hadn't read this and I thought it was good!

Kinda old but good info

This was a good idea,glad you did it. Sue

Thank you also Ness! Debby, can you have with drawls from coming off Lyrica? Neurontin?? If so, I didn't know that!! TIA Love, Desi

Mark, I started years ago reading up on the side effects of meds. Besides getting on line, Reader's digest has a book that names them all and even goes into more detail about the side effects. Mine is an old copy about 5 years old but I still use that thing often.

I watched Bill's meds and he was on one that really did a job on him. The Drs. put him on it 3 times and he'd have such bad side effects. I sometimes wonder why they hand out so many old meds instead of trying some of the new ones. Although they too have side effects. I couldn't take Oxycontin nor use the moraphine patch nor a lot of them.

I have been on Methadone for over 4 years and my dosage is low enough that I don't see any side effects.

I agree though, no one should worry about getting hooked on meds if they are in the pain RSD people go through. Just mainly worry about the side effects. There's too many out there to stay on one you can't handle.

As far as natural remedies. I've had Drs. to write down names of them so I know some do believe in them and as someone else said, Debby I believe, a lot of Naturalist don't believe in prescription meds that to me is just as bad. I have seen people go off of heart meds and cancer meds and other things they really need because they think all natural is better. Not in all cases I don't think.

Ada