Pain Management

Hi, I am a male sufferer of chronic pain in Colorado. Ive been dealing with pain issues for years now and have been prescribed several different, sometimes potent pain medications within this timeframe.
What sorts of medications have fellow pain sufferer's in Colorado been prescribed? What works best for you? And a specific question, what do you think of the switch by many pharmacies from the pharm company Mallinckrodt to Ethex, particularly with 15mg Oxycodone HcL?
Thanks, hope the discussion goes well!

I have had problems with the Ethex brand. It give me a headaches, I was told by my Dr that it could be several different things. 1. could be the Iodine or some of the fillers. I have had Mallinckrodt, I have had no problems with this manufacture. The medicines I have been on have not given me one bit of a problem. I have been on all types of pain medicines. i have tried the new ones like, Tramadol. Unfortunately the only medicine that work for me have been Lora tabs and the others like Oxycodone and Oxycontin. These work great. Gives me a great quality of life. On the other hand I have noticed that Dr's really don't care about a patients pain. Its always Motrin. Just what I need, a new liver.. right?

I'm trying to find a dr that writes here. I just moved here .

You have to understand the Dr's position when it comes to pain management...
First, while there are legitimate cases of "chronic pain", most patients are addicts who Dr shop...This is why many Dr's often prescribe Motrin first...
Second, Oxycodone, Hydrocodone (Vicodin), and Oxycontin are ALL highly addictive opiates...You may as well be shooting heroin, as the side effects are exactly the same...Drowsiness, physical illness when your body doesn't have the meds, etc...And worse on your liver than any class of drugs...
Third, the alternative to these pills is Fentanol or Morphine patches...While they are great for pain, they're quite easy to mis-use and extremely addictive...Their purpose is more for end-stage terminal illnesses, and keeping the patient comfortable when there's simply nothing the medical field can do...

What natural remedies have you tried?...

I totally agree with Huss unfortunatley I'm one of those who have several serious back problems from an injury at war in Iraq. I need to find a dr in the area that is a little more compassionate due to my tolerance. I've tried everything not even lortab works

Cajun wrote:

I totally agree with Huss unfortunatley I'm one of those who have several serious back problems from an injury at war in Iraq. I need to find a dr in the area that is a little more compassionate due to my tolerance. I've tried everything not even lortab works

Then, my advice would be to ween yourself off of whatever meds you're on and decrease your built up tolerance level...No Dr will arbitrarily increase dosages based on tolerance alone, as this supports addiction...
I know several people who suffer from excruciating pain due to various ailments, and every one of them will tell you that this is one realm where the medical field has a very long way to go...
I would start looking into dietary changes you could make to rid your body of toxins as this will help with your increased tolerance...I would also grit my teeth and suffer now and then just to ensure that you aren't getting overloaded with mixed brain signals...Sometimes, the pain meds can trick your body into believing you're in pain by screwing with the brains natural neuro-pathways...Anytime you alter the chemical function of your brain, it doesn't necessarily forget it when you've stopped the meds...Think of a burn patient whose just come off of morphine...They're not in any "real" physical pain, but their senses have been numbed by the drug to the point the brain confuses the signals it's sending, and they get misinterpreted as "pain"...
Kind of stupid really, but it occurs quite frequently...

If all else fails, smoke a joint...Get your permit, as it's readily available for medicinal purposes in some states and see if it works...
Whatever you decide, make sure you're well informed...