Checking in and checking out

Question

Hello all,
Checking in after not posting for a while.
Have been off the Oxy for almost 3 months now and set a date for the left shoulder Rotator Cuff surgery 9/11.
The right that has had 4 RC repairs has been confirmed retorn and is as bad as the left and will have to be redone
next year.
Having said that the pain has been real and this cold turkey ride off of the OX has been interesting to say the least.
I have received a lot of great advice on here and could not have done it without this site and the help of my great wife!!!!!
Once I got her involved rather than hiding it from her I had a 24 x 7 partner through the process.

For those of you just starting down this path check out some of my previous posts to se that is has been rough but it can be done.
Me personally did it without any doctor intervention, without any sub or other prescription meds although I did use just the L-Tyro/B-6 part of the Thomas recipie.

I have requested non Opiate pain meds post surgery and my new Ortho was tickled to death to hear someone request that.

So I will be checking out here in the next day or so to focus on getting things done at work and home in preparation for the down time.

I did get a bit of a lecture from the Ortho yesterday in that he said even though I am a very young/fit 50 year old man
that I need to stop pushing myself so hard which those of you who know my story would agree.
He just said that having 4 repairs on the right, a fifth coming on the right, a new one on the left 9/11 that I should seriously consider QUALITY OF LIFE rather than how much I can cram into everyday at this point.
Meaning enjoy life but stop living in pain everyday, stop the cycle of pill taking, stay active but stop pushing so hard
at least until I let my body have a chance to FULLY heal up from what it is about to go through.
He said that part of my depressed feelings may be W/D but it may very well be from the daily pain and the continual
sense of urgency to get every minute out of a severly damaged body.
Great great doctor---better tham my PCP or anyone I have spoken to.

So I guess I will finally ease into my mid life years and find other things to enjoy for a while rather than punishing myself in the weight room 6 days a week, playing golf 3-4 times a week, coaching baseball from January until July
(will still assist but passing the reigns).

It will be an adjustment but bottom line is the pain led to the meds, the meds leds to an addiction, the acceptance of the addiction, the w/d an subsequent battle to stay off is just an unecessary added complication and a much much more formadable foe than anything I have come across in my 50 years.

So if you are starting CT, do it and stick with it, it can be done.
If you are banged up or hurt get it fixed, the meds just mask the real problem and after a while they become more of an issue than the original injury or problem.

God Bless

dominosarah · Answer

How well i understand that!!!  LOL

sportnut · Answer

Yes I was lectured a little about that yesterday.
The mind is still saying go, go but the body is screaming "hey give me a little break here". lol
I'm ready.

dominosarah · Answer

Sounds like you have a good plan and Doctor.  Take care of yourself now.  We dont heal like 20 yr olds anymore!!               sara

candothis247 · Answer

hey sportnut --- congratulations on staying off the oxys. good to hear from you. how nice that you get such support from your wife, that's awesome. im on day 53, it definitely gets easier. exercise helps alot..... im not totally motivated to do it regularily, but working on it. good luck on that surgery......

sportnut · Answer

Excercise definately helps, I've had to chill out on the weights abit but still do the cardio and the body get's a natural rush from it, better than when I used to nip off a piece of an Oxy before a workout, it is admittedly harder to get started but once you get going the body responds in a good way.

jimbo326 · Answer

amen  my doctors kept pushing the pain killers in me knowing i would probaly get hooked but they dont tell you that part or how bad your going to feel. when you try to stop.i feel like **** need to try to exercise some to day.

sportnut · Answer

See below;

I have requested non Opiate pain meds post surgery and my new Ortho was tickled to death to hear someone request that. 

He is the team Ortho for a NHL Hockey team that gets screened on a regular basis and is a pain management specialist as the players deal with pain everyday, and he told me that there were many many alternatives to the opiates so all is good in that regard I just wish more doc's were of that mindset.