Duragesic Patch ???

[radioboy74]

My father suffers from Chronic back pain and has been suggested to use the duragesic patch, what if anyone does anyboy know about this.

Also on my own, I suffer from testicular pain (it's not cancer, we know that) any suggestions on what I can take that won't put me overboard.  If you want to know how intense the pain is, imagine having a tooth ache down there.

[alchemist]

I was put on a duragesic patch briefly (4 months) when my doc stopped using oxycontin due to all the hype.  The 25 ug patch gave me no relief at all, the 50 ug helped but allowed alot of breakthrough pain, other than that it was like any other pain med.  The only difference that I could tell was the patch may take several cycles (each cycle being 3 days) of patch replacement before one reaches steady state dosing.  So you may be in pain a week until the fentenyl in the patch reaches it full potential

[Francoise]

What about withdrawal from the oxy while you were titrating the patch?? No symptoms? No depression?

Francois

[confused.grl]

I also used the patch for a short time th thing that i noticed was that it is supposed to last for 72 hours, but i was lucky if i got 48 hours good pain control, and the patch tends to fall off.

[radioboy74]

I have a pill with the id 78 on one side and Wyeth on the other, can someone please tell me what this pill is.  I've been told it was one thing but am not sure, and do not want to take it until I can back it up, hence the reason I'm not saying the name in the room either.  Your help is appreciated.

[1fortheroad]

i would do a search on pill identification.  there are lots of sites that can probably tell you what it is, but i don't know the names of them.  

it doesn't sound like something you should be taking if you don't even know what it is.  are you looking to get high?  usually you ask about what a medication will do for you...sometimes i wonder what you are doing on a recovery board in the first place.  are you at all interested in getting clean?

i'm sorry if this sounds harsh, but i really wonder about your posts.

[skipper]

radioboy:
i fear that you feel i am unnecessarily on your case. i've been an addict for 35 years + (more if you count smoking jane). i tend to call things as the intuition in my heart and guts sees them. are you sure you are telling everything that's going on? if i'm wrong, i apoligise, but....

if you have pills that you don't know what are, you have 3 choices:
1) flush em down the toilet. i do this with oxy at times--it's
really a rush, in a reverse sort of way!
2) go to the library and get the PDR (physician's desk feference). you may have to ask for it as they usually like to limit acess for obvious reasions. you can also buy one for less than $100.00. it comes with a cd you can load on your computer. don't waste your time on any nurse's drug books- they have practically no usuable info for anyone (addicts and othe curious types).
3) ask a pharmacist that you trust. (they are there to help you).

best in luck with whatever your up to!
keep an angel on your shoulder
kip

[vikequeen]

I am probably the worst addict out there, but I would never take just any pill especially not knowing what is is and certainly I would never accept that just  what someone tells me as the truth. you need to flush that pill, chances are one will not do anything anway. Also why are you afraid to tell what you think it is?

[mrmichael67]

I was on a patch, 100 ug/hr, for a couple of months.  They only work for 48 hours, if that.  That means that pain control only lasts for 48 hours.  You won't go into withdrawal during the last 24 hours.  They are good for someone who doesn't have a lot of breakthrough pain.  Also, they take around 8-12 hours to kick in after application.  Short acting opioids are needed for coverage during this period.  I do question your sincerity, though.

Francoise,

I did not experience withdrawal when I was switched from oxy to the patch.  As long as the dose is right, there should be no problem.  I did experience withdrawal when I was switched from the patch to the oxy, though.  Fentanyl is very strong and is an excellent pain med.  I did experience some shallow breathing when I was first put on the patch.  It quickly went away.  The patch also gave me excellent sleep at night.  It has somewhat of a sedating effect to it.  More so than oxy or anything else I have been on.  I also had a hard time keeping the patch stuck to me.  I got around this by using a Tegaderm clear bandage over it.  You can get them at any drugstore.  They are called Nexcare Tegaderm transarent dressing made by 3M.  They come in different sizes.  The size I used was 4in. x 4 3/4in..  You put the duragesic patch on, then put the tegaderm over it.  It sticks very nicely and does last for the entire 3 days.  Actually, Janssen Pharmaceuticals gives the same transparent dressings out for free.  You have to contact the company and tell them that you can't keep them stuck.

[1fortheroad]

i have been thinking about your posts some more, and i don't want you to feel like i am giving you a hard time without warrant.  you just sound like someone who maybe isn't into this narcotic thing too deeply yet...it sounds like you are experimenting.  and please, take what i am saying seriously...you do not want to get into this **** too deeply - it can ruin your entire life.  just read the posts here and see what people go thru.  it kind of irritates me that you jump into the middle of a thread where someone is crying out for help, who's obviously in total pain and ask about a certain drug and whether it will give you a buzz.  i for one do not want to give a person information on a med if their intention is to get high from it....sorry, that just isn't what i come here for.  i hope you get the experimenting thing out of your system and don't find yourself hooked (like me) - believe me...i am not happy.

[alchemist]

They did give me several roxicodone for breakthrough pain and I was basically "living" off of these, I don't recall having WD at that point, but lots of pain, it just didn't work for me.  I repeatily called the new doc in the pratice that change my meds from oxy 20's to the patch.  She wouldn't budge, just kept telling me to wait longer for the patch to start working (this lasted months).  I kept leaving messages for my regular doc about the situation by she intercepted them, and refused to change anything.  I started to think she thought I was "faking" it, looking for more meds, which was far from the truth.  I was able to specifically see a different doc in the practice who put me on ms contin and viola' problem solved.  I blame the people who made oxycontin (which I believe was a life safer as far as pain relief goes) a "dirty" word and for making all the doc's at my pain clinic stop giving scrips for oxycontin.

[RaspSwirl]

Radioboy, all your questions about pills and medication identification can be found online.  However, I hope that you are not just coming here to identify medications.  But, if you are usure about what something is, I think if anything, it's better that you know what you're taking before taking it.  Especially if you might be allergic to an ingredient in it.  If you're going to take them anyway, it's better to be safe and know what it is.  There's a website that I've found helpful, you can look up names of medications, and also there is a section where you can type in the numbers and/or letters on the pill itself.  Please note though, that I am not encouraging you to find pills and identify them, I'm posting this because you should at least know what you're taking.  I'm especially concerned because it seems that the pill you have with 78/Wyth on it, is the morning after pill.  
  The website is:
http://www.rxlist.com
There is a section at the top entitled "Advanced search."  You will find a few different ways to indentify what you have.  It's probably a better idea to do it that way, instead of posting here asking what it is that you found.

Again, I'm not encouraging you to take pills or drugs or whatnot.  I'm just trying to help you not take something dangerous to yourself, more dangerous than what you're looking for, anyway.  Good luck,

[J.B. to Brian and Vicky]

For those of us who don't want to spend $100.00 for a PDR to look up medications, I suggest visiting a used book store.  I have three PDR's that are pretty current(1998-2000) and they were $12.50 apiece.  Then, of course, you can always visit a library for free and get all the info you want.

Radioboy, I once found some odd looking pills in one of my daughter's bedroom and got pretty upset.  They were in a plastic box similar to what jewelry is packaged in.  All kinds of nasty thoughs of dread came to mind!  After an hour of checking and a call to my pharmacist, I found out they were simply generic Tylenol. The point is that it's better to be safe than sorry. This may sound a bit "holier than thou", but I would never take any med not prescribed to me.  There were times in the past when I didn't have this attitude and got in lots of trouble!

J.B.

[sinful]

hi i am new here but have posted before,i'v too been on the duragesic patch and found that it very very strong.i felt the relief right away.BUT the only problem was that it was too strong for me, be careful with this, i weighed only 95 pounds and this patch nearly killed me.when i was sleeping, my legs were jerking, i think that meant that this was too strong for me, i lied about my weight with the doctors and pharmiscist bc they would look at me and ask "how much do you weigh"? i always said 110 or 115.anyways i had the worst withdrawals withthis patch. so please be carefull!! i even used to put 2 or 3 patches at a time so i felt numb.this is crazy!! just be careful!! ok so write back please

[alchemist]

Wow 2 or 3 patches at a time! your lucky that you didn't OD, fentanyl has a strong depressant effect on breathing and has caused death to trained anesthesialogist who have abused it.  It forms a depot under the skin and continues to enter the body for many hours even after the patch is removed.  What size/dose patch were you using?

[sinful]

thanks for responding!, yes iwas on 100mg each patch!!! so iwas on 200mg at once!!i almost died this was scary so i guess this is why my body still craves for this stuff and i hate this , i will probably crave this for the rest of my life and this is teribble!! write me soon please!! thanks

[alchemist]

Dont' worry, the craving should pass with time, but I think your body never actually forgets and will easily pick up where you left off if you ever used them (or any opiate) again.  Did a doc put you on the 100 ug patch or did you get them from someone? the 100 ug patch is the strongest dose out there and is reserved for people who are very tolorant to their pain meds and are in extreme pain.  You were very lucky indeed, what symptoms did you have?  shallow breathing?

[MaryLiz]

I take Lorcet 10/650's for chronic back pain and fibrromyalgia and have taken more than needed in the past since they also solve the problem of my chronic fatigue (at least for a short while). I have now cut down to an alottment of 70/month by my doctor and usually have no trouble following it after the initial withdrawal from 6/day, but now I am just trying to cover the pain.
I have less than my monthly alottment left due to a flare-up in the beginning of the month (actually thought I could do some gardening) and am trying to stretch 8 pills over 2 weeks. I know this won't cover the pain and am considering using the Fentonyl sp? patch, 50 ug that is in the drawer to cover. I know the dosage is too strong having tried it once before at this strength and it made me very nauseous and feeling bad.
My question, finally is this:
"Can I somehow cut the patch in half and tape up the end to prevent leakage and try it hoping it will be less strong"? I would really appreciate any help with this. My husband says that cutting it will just  cause it to leak out and I will get even more of a dosage.
I have decided not to go back to the doctor to get her to agree to help me over this period, because I don't think she will and I also don't want to know that I can get more easily having abused them in the past.

[rowanshyne]

NO!  Don't cut the patch!  Ack!  Bad idea.  Very bad.  It is the medication contained in a gel-like base.  It will most likely get all over and there's no telling how much of a dose you'll get because your hand will start to absorb as soon as the goo hits it.

Why don't you think the Doc would understand?  I'm not disagreeing with you, just wonder.

Wren

[MaryLiz]

Yea, I basically knew this but just looking for some other angle that might not make that box in my drawer totally useless especially after the cost and with the need right now.
As for going back to the doctor, I tried that once before Christmas because I was doing a lot of traveling which causes flareups for me, and although she gave me 10 "extra' lorcets, said that I should probably find another doctor because she wasn't comfortable prescribing all this pain medication. She is a very good internist and has helped with other problems, basically caring for my long-term needs, and i don't want another conflict. We live in a small coastal community with very limited medical resources and I have already switched from one doctor who was very liberal with the pain meds but not very helpful with the anemia and fatigue problems.
Thanks for your help.

[Frenchee]

Hey there. I was on the patch for about 6 months. First 75mg and then 100.... I did not feel the "help" till I took it out... I did not realize how strong this was till a friend talked to me about it. I was also taking vicodin and soma... (and not small amounts). Anyway, I took the patch off and it was tough for a couple of days. I did experience w/d i.e. shaking, not sleeping....typical w/d from narcotis. Today, I am clean but I do crave the highs...... That was the past, I need to look into the future.... Keep posting. It keeps me strong.  : )

[MANCE]

It would be my personal opinion that unless you are "on your way out" you should not take the "duragesic patch".  I have just been through 2 years of hell with my husband, who after a car accident, that caused him to have "neck surgery", "hernia surgeries", was put on duragesic, because pill forms of pain medication, upset his gastrointenstinal problems.  For 2 years, he literally disintegrated in front of me, going from a healthy 198lb man to a small, feeble 135lbs!  First it killed his appetite, and taste for food.  Since he couldn't eat without an appetite, the medicine continued to eat the fat cells in his body.  When they were all gone, it ate his musculatory system.  Last it worked on his vital organs, and his mind.
     At first, taking 75mg patch once every 72 hours was enough, but all too quickly, it was not enough, he needed more and more.  He went through misery every 3 days of the cycle of this drug, getting only a partial relief from it 12, out of 72 hours, the rest was misery, in this dreadful up and down cycle.  With this adddiction, of medicine all too easily prescribed by his dr's, came depression, at one point he tried, to kill himself, with other drugs the dr's presrcibed for him.
     First of all, the minute you take this drug, you are out of control.  You do not have a choice as to whether you "want or need" to take this drug, on a day to day basis, because it is already in your system, and if you don't take it when necessary, the agony you may feel can be worse then the reason you took a pain reliever in the first place.
     My husband, is still ALIVE, by the way, only 43 years old, he just went through hell 10 times, in the last 4 weeks.  He wanted to get off the drug for months, but the agony he felt without it was too much for him.  After trying to "cold turkey" it himself, and almost dying, I got him "willingly" to admit he couldn't quit on his own and had him admitted to a 2 week medical detox program.  In a hospital where he could have no visitors in that 2 weeks.  At that point, i must say i was somewhat relieved i wouldn't have to see him go through that agony....but the anxiety I felt in that first week almost killed me, cause I knew he was very sick.  I did'nt realize when they told me he would be out in 2 weeks drug free, that in that 2 weeks, they would string him out on methadone.  Afetr 7 days in there we talked to him and he sounded like Superman.  In the next 7 days, they wean them down on methadone, but suggest, a possible "LIfetime maintenance program" of methadone, and how they have clinics all over the world.  I could not believe, nor could he, that they "expected" him to be a methadone junkie now.  More experienced addicts up there told him it would be HELL, to get off methadone.  Everywhere i looked on the internet, it looked hopeless for him to straighten up.  He had his last dose of methadone, the day before he came home.  My hopes were high that all would be fine, it would be mild, the withdrawal from methadone.  I have never seen anyone suffer more, and hope i never will again.  He had severe anxiety attacks the first day to the point i had to straddle on top of him and squeeze him.  I gave him hot towels wraps, and massages, but he just kept getting worse.  Then i thought of an anxiety medicine I take "ativan", and called his dr. and asked him to prescribe some for him which he did.  I kept him pretty sedated, those first couple days.  He had terrible insomnia, and he said his mind was racing so hard he thought he would go out of his mind.  I gave him lots of vitamins, and lots of fluids, he took alot of hot baths, after 4 weeks of hell for him, and the same for all who loves him,  I have GOOD NEWS.  He has done it, he is now off everything.  He now has his taste buds back and is eating like he hasn't, since he started painkillers--duragesic, in particular.  I hope I have horrified any of you who have not already been presented with this horrific drug, but may some day.  Take a tylenol.  And to those of you who encourage "methadone" as a lifetime maintenance program---SHAME ON YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!
    

[sinful]

hi iwent through the same exact thing as your husband did with this patch! but the only difference is, is that i a was only 19 years old female.it was awful!!!!!!!!! i was in a car accident and broke my back, but i am walking and running fine,but i would wear two 100's patches at a time!! i nearly died! and i didn't see it!! my twin sister and family saw it, they were devastated! on how i changed, with my looks with my wieght loss i was down to 85pounds!! and iwas 130!!it was kiiling me and i agree with you bc this will KILL you!i was walking around DEAD, and couldn't see it.i finally saw a neuropychatrist who put me on wellbutrin and serzone together which worked wonders for me!! i came back to myself again, eventually, with terrible, life threatning withdrawals with that god damn patch!! they should not have it on the market unless you are going to die, bc with me,death was comming.i hope everything is good for your husband please no drugs like vicoden or any narcotic at all!! like you said just take a tylenol or an advil, helps a liitle but it won't kill or make you depressed.and this advice goes to anyone here.

[groovygirl]

i couldn't resist one more post.  "shame on you"???????

this isn't a place to be judgemental.  everyone has their own experiences, and i feel sorry for your husband and all you've both been thru.  HOWEVER, i personally know some folks who have literally been "saved" by methadone...who now can work and maintain their jobs, can be responsible parents, etc.  i condone ANYTHING that works for an individual and keeps them off illegal, life-threatening drugs. please visit atwatchdog.org - it's a methadone recovery and information board.  read about how methadone has been a real life-saver for the hundreds of people who visit that forum.  then, take a deep breath, slowly exhale and rid yourself of all the judgements you have built up inside yourself.  we are all different...thank god.  we all need to follow our own path.  tell your husband good luck and good job.

[angst]

often the duragesic patch is not used until you are given a fatal prognosis.  i worked oncology for 8+ years.  we used duragesic patches (fentanyl) only if the patient could not swallow, due to side effects of radiation or chemo, or if the patient was comatose and dying.  We had the attitude that no cancer patient should suffer.  Most of ours did not.  that is why I was surprised to hear you guys talking about duragesic patches.  addicts like myself cut them open to get at the fentanyl.  cooking and straining can do wonders for gel.  hell, here i am talking about shooting again.  
i've got to go.

[twinkey54]

i am new to this site---i arrived here when looking for info on the fentonyl patch.  i just started using the patch about 2 weeks ago as a switch from time released morphine sulphate.  i had been taking 30 mg. morphine once a day and it was my experience that i could either spend my morning doing nothing but waiting to take my pill at around 2 pm so i could have a pain free evening OR---i could take my pill when i woke up in the am, have a decent first half of the day, and then spend the late afternoon and evening fighting the urge to take a second pill to eliminate what my doctor called 'breakthrough pain'.  i don't call losing half a day to pain simply 'breakthrough pain' so like some of the rest of those i read i started giving in to my urge to self medicate and i toke two pills a day instead of one and was running out early and having to stretch my last few meds to try to avoid telling the doctor what i had done.  anyway i finally bit the bullit and told my doctor what i was doing and that is when he prescribed the patch to try to give me a more even drug release.  i have an understanding doctor but even so i have also sensed that feeling of paranoia from doctors about narcotics in the past and it is hard to tell how an individual doctor will respond if you are totally honest with them about how you are using your narcotics.  i can see why they must be watchful but it would be so much easier for us all if we could just be open and discuss what works for us as individuals because from what i have read it seems like we all respond somewhat uniquely to variopus types and dosages of narcotics and we should be treated uniquely.   what i am asking personally is if i should even go down this road---i am only using the 25mg patch and so far it is the best pain relief i have had!  i have inoperable spinal stenosis and i have been spending my time in a home/hospital bed doing creative handicrafts like making jewelry which i sell on consignment---but nothing of a very physical nature.  since i started the patch i have done some cooking and housework and i think i could even garden come spring!!   BUT-- i am a recovered alcoholic for 10 years and i am afraid of where the narcotic thing could go--how long till i need more for the same results?  when will it be too late to turn back or when is the right time to stop?  also, i am 53 with a 23 yr old son and i love babies--i don't have grandchildren yet but i want to be able to hold my grandchildren without the fear of poisoning them from one of these patches!!   so---any opinions from anyone about these questions i am having??  i really would appreciate your input  --sorry i wrote a small novel!  i am twinkey54