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Avatar universal

Why anti-pain meds?

This is something I just don't understand. So many people here, and on another BB for a debilitatingly painful disease, are afraid of pain meds.

Both Chiari and this other disease I have(Ankylosing spondylitis) are painful, life-altering conditions. My back, hands, feet, and knees were affected so bad with arthritis, that I really didn't have an option; I had to go to pain Mgmt and I had to take narcotics. I was aprehensive, but not a martyr.  

Chiari is painful. Chiari is made worse by stress. Pain stresses our bodies in terrible ways.  Research shows that patients recover from any injury and surgery more quickly if their pain is under control. Pain signals get chemicals and hormones pumping that stress our bodies. Recovery is faster without this stress, or less of it.  Pain has also been shown to cause irreversible brain damage. The brain-fog caused by living in uncontrolled pain is actually damaging your brain, destroying brain cells.

Prescription narcotics, when used for management of pain, have a VERY low addiction rate. Yes, your body will become dependent on narcotics if used long-term, but addiction is a different thing. Dependence just requires a taper off of meds when pain levels decrease. I myself, have tapered up and down as pain has increased and decreased. In my 2 years of needing narcotics, I've successfully tapered off them twice ; unfortunately just to have a flare-up of arthritis after a few weeks.

Addiction runs in my family. I have a very obsessive OCD-type personality, but I am not an addict. I have 2 siblings addicted to illegal drugs, a grandparent who was an alcoholic, and addiction runs further back.

I have 4 children. I have a life. I could not function without pain medication. I am not a very nice person when I'm in terrible pain either. I knew I needed stronger pain control when I hurt do badly that it was affecting my relationships with my Hubby and kids. I was always snapping at them, was ultra impatient, and just not a nce person.

If you are in lots of pain, if psychological methods like meditation are not working, please don't be afraid to try pain medication. I hate the stigma attached to pain meds that prevents so many people who need it, from taking it. Suffering is not going to win us gold stars. Suffering just makes life harder than it needs to be. Suffering stresses our bodies, making things worse. I'd really like to urge all who do not have adequate pain control to self-advocate for a better quality of life. Living in uncontrolled pain is not necessary.

I'll step off my soapbox now. Thank you all for reading this.

-Jenn
12 Responses
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1144229 tn?1293437082
denverluv..........

very well put....
When taking a prescribed dose of narcotic pain medication there is no ( good feeling) simply relief.
     I hate the stigma that goes along with the medication.
  However suffering everyday all day is pure torture in my opinion,using the medication only when you need the medicine is the key, if you have to go over this amount you Docter should help seek out other medicine that may help your pain better.....
Helpful - 0
1159737 tn?1286517257
I think everyone here is right - and also that doctors themselves are so worried about their license that they under-prescribe them, or are not sympathetic.

Being a former pill addict I can say there is a difference, and it is a fine line. I was one of those people that said "I willnever again take a pain pill no matter what! I will soldier through the pain" But in all reality, I was suffering in a way no one should, and it was of my own doing. Before when I took pills, I took them strictly to get high, and was taking more and more every day, taking them whenever I needed a boost. Now, I take them as prescribed, and some people say "yeah right" but whatever.  I also know now that I don't want to go down that path again, and I know how not to. And, too, I also know that if I do take them the wrong way, I will never again be able to get pain relief again, because my family won't trust me, and my doctors will see that I am not respnsible with them, which will lead me right back into suffering, and I am not willing to do that to myself.  Like others have said, I have a life. I don't want to be this witchy mom and wife laying around all day not doing anything because I am in pain. (not implying anyone else does this- it's what I do when I am not taking anything)

There i s just too much stigma,too much over-prescribing to make money, which leads to death and families being torn apart, which ruins it for people who need it, and are handleing it. I think it is very unfair for anyone, and doctors, to automatically assume everyone will become an addict, or is one because they take them everyday. My own mother and husband, who went through my addiction, have both said they can tell the difference in how I was then to how I am now. Back then I was a mess, sleeping all the time, or so high I was slurring my speech and acting like an idiot. My mom said the other day she didn't even know I was still even on pills, because it didn't seem like it. That's how it's supposed to be. With pain pills, at first you do get a little loopy, but that quickly wears off, and after that you just get relief. The problem lies in when people still want that loopy feeling, and continue to take more and more.

I also think that because it is so easy to cross that line, there should be better support for people who inadvertantly become addicted, instead of shame and a rightous attitude.
Anyway, that's my two cents, and I feel like pain pills aren't ONLY for cancer and AIDS patients, or people just going through surgery, as so many people want to think. These pills do good for a reason - they take away pain, they do their job. People should not have to suffer. Like I said, taken the right way, you don;t even get that loopy feeling, and it is no different than taking a tylenol, except your pain is gone.
Helpful - 0
1179332 tn?1297478990
Very likely could have!!!

A few years before I got dx...one day I just walked right into a door frame and almost broke my nose. It was quite the family joke for awhile...

What I realized is that it was actually my vertigo and depth perception problems, I was always bumping into doorways and even into other people as I walked along side them, it was like I was drunk or something! Once my dx came out, it just all made sense.

Carolyn
Helpful - 0
1435895 tn?1304291241
I took a spill down some stairs about 2 years ago and fractured the tibia plateau in my knee.  I subsequently developed severe post traumatic arthritis in that knee.  I took Darvocet for over a year for that condition and was able to stop when it wasnt needed anymore.  I was prescribed 1 every 4-6 hours and usually averaged 1 a day or less.  So I think it is possible to use these medications in moderation and only when you need them and not become addicted.  I dont think we need to be a martyr to this illness and show our strong face while we suffer.  If you have been on pain control for a period of time and are concerned about needing stronger pain control at some point, for surgery for example.  Discuss it with your doctor, they can adjust for high tolerance.  

I wonder now if Chiari might have had something to do with that spill???
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
I have been trying to take less d/t my doc told me to stick to one pain pill per day which is so unrealistic.  i might need none on one day and 4 on another and it does not equate to one a day and he has really limited me lately and i don't know what to do.  I have to keep driving to his office for minimal relief.  If my rheum appoint goes nowhere on monday then to pain management i go because i can't take this.  The lortab helps me to function, i took one and a half pills today because i was crying on my way home from work
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
Wow...well said Jenn.  I think you just spoke for a lot of people out there in pain who are afraid, embarassed or scared to use the pain meds/narcotics.  I have them but they are controlled by a pain management specialist.  I don't like to take them, but I also have 4 children and have to take them when the pain is really bad.  There are times when I feel embarassed to tell others I have to take them.  With Chiari, people don't understand it at all, so taking the pain meds is questionable to others.  Also, there are days I feel great and don't have to take them.  It is a balance between the pain, the meds and your daily life.  Again, thanks for putting this in writing.  It gave me a sense of relief knowing someone else out there felt this way.  
Helpful - 0
1141287 tn?1287496799
i think pain medication is just like a lot of other things out in this world...  when used properly and in moderation - its a great thing!!

i take a daily medication to prevent migraines (as when i get them - i can not function).  but someone said to me 'oh no - you dont have to stay on that forever do you?'  and it made me feel embarrassed.  but then i had to stop and think about it.  my doctor understands my migraines and knows that a daily pill can take my migraines from 5-8 a month to MAYBE 1..  he knows about the medication and felt it would be best for me...  so i dont feel bad about it anymore.

there is a scary 'feel' about taking narcotic drugs as the risk of addiction is not fun.  however, if you take it as prescribed and use it as long as your doctor says is 'necessary' - you should be fine and no one should judge anyone for that!!  
Helpful - 0
1063386 tn?1287878569
I think the doctors add to this stigma. Most are very stingy with prescribing them and therefore we feel bad to take the ones we have.   The medical community as a whole needs better pain manegemnt addressed

Thank u jenn
Helpful - 0
997898 tn?1303734864
AMEN, sista jenn!!!
beautifully spoken!
strong points made by all
i, for one, take them when i need them.  there are days where i take 2 vicodin every 4 hrs....and there are days i take none at all.  on an as needed basis, it works for me!
great points made by all!
elizabeth
Helpful - 0
1375148 tn?1323166921
Interesting thread!!!

I think the search for medication that you respond to is a long and really tiering one, i started on

diclofenic 4 times a day - didn't work - was so upset and in pain

Arcoxib - didn't work - got more stressed out and upset

Codine phosphate hermidryde 30/500 - didn't work - got so upset and major pain made me mega stressed, couldn't sleep.

Tramadol - works for the nerve related pain i get not for headaches - take a few now and then when it's bad, but nether the less totally upset and down about living with constant HA

NOW - propranolol - taking 10mg 3 times a day to increase to 40mg 3 times a day over an 8 week period - am 3 days in, and today has been the first day in about 8-9 months where my head hasn't felt SO pressurised, still get the occasional head pain, but am happy not to feel like my head is going to explode.

Conclusion -- it's a long journey, and one that really drains you, all im saying is once you find a good medication that works for you, then only then can you feel a bit more relaxed. Other people are not so lucky .... i guess if you take the meds away and the pain is still there, that's not right!  Personally it doesn't sit right with me someone needing strong pain relief for life, but hey thats the human body for you and again, im Learning to accept my new body.


Nice1 for this thread, i think it will get alot of people talking

x
Helpful - 0
620923 tn?1452915648
COMMUNITY LEADER
Very well said  for the pro side of pain meds.....and these r all valid points.....my only however is this, there r sooooooo many of us that pain meds do nothing for....and many that every time we take one runs the risk of a reaction to them.

Case in point- I had surgery on my ankle...had pain meds,...worked for my surgical site, but nothing else(chiari HA's)...and then I had a second ankle surgery.,..same pain meds...I am now allergic to them....????

I am not sure y, or if it is bcuz of other issues I also have, but I did chat with a few other members that have the same issue with developing problems with meds.....

And why we advocate trying to find ways to use PM , meditation and other means as a way to help reduce the pain we r in....and hopefully allow the meds to work when we really need them.....

For those that taking meds is an option, by all means use what u can....always in moderation.,...and for those that can not use them in the same manor....remember, to use all means possible to help reduce pain and stress that u can : )

"selma"

Helpful - 0
1179332 tn?1297478990
Hi Jenn,

You are absolutely right and my previous comment did not mean to make out like we should be anti-meds. For myself, I have always been wary of taking anything consistently b/c I worry about the long term affects it would have on my body. However, that kind of thinking is what got me into a state after surgery of continuous pain, which is why I finally relented. I do not take narcotics for pain b/c my body is really susceptible to them and I find it hard to function and take care of my kids. However, the Lyrica and Amitriptyline have helped me somewhat.

I do however, believe that it is best to try and combine both. Medications, meditation and rehab (for post surgery). Also, just taking a break when you need it and resting can do a lot for your body. I have made the mistake many times after going on my meds of feeling better and then doing too much, which sends me right back to the cycle of pain. That is what my physiatrist was trying to get me to understand.

So like anything in life, it's all about balance. But, no one with a chronic illness should ever feel bad about seeking medication for pain..that choice was taken out of our hands when we felt the effects of this condition.

Great point to bring up!
Carolyn
Helpful - 0
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