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Coping with Pain

Since being dx'd with Fibromyalgia or CFS/ME, what steps do you take to deal with your pain and what medications are you taking to treat your symptoms?  What would you say your daily pan level is (how you feel most days on a scale of 1-10 with 1 being the lowest and 10 the most severe pain?)

I am on Lyrica, Ultram, Sertraline, Detro, Estracel for Fibro, Menopause and Neuropathy.  At night I take Trazadone and Xanax so that I can sleep, otherwise the RLS/PLMD would keep me up all night.  Due to a leg injury and planter tumors I am unable to tolerate most forms of therapy and can't get the exercise I would like.  Because of this, i'm now taking Lipitor due to my cholestrol and triglicerides skyrocketing.  

My daily pain level is typically 4-5.
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Avatar universal
It's difficult here to get anything stronger than Ultram or Oxycodone...and neither of those work that great for my pain.  Mine runs about 4-5 also constantly and it stinks.

I with you the best with your work and do understand about trying to retire from civil service.  I was one year away when they fired me because I couldn't return...and i'm sure they saw that had they kept me on LTD I would have retired early.  

Take care and best wishes to you.
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
I take Cymbalta, Lyrica, Morphine and vitamin D daily.  For sleep I take Trazodone. For breakthrough pain I use tylenol #3.   For migraines Imitrex works well for me.  I was diagnosed 2 years ago after 4 years of telling my primary doc that I just plain hurt everywhere.  Also diagnosed with chronic pain syndrome as well as DISH syndrome.  My pain level runs around 4-5 on a constant basis.  I am still forcing myself to work but an in the process of applying for disability retirement from civil service.  Much easier to get than SS disability although I must apply for it as part of my disability package.  
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
Thanks kiddthekatt.  Yes, good ole dramamine would do the trick.  Glad you mentioned that cause I forgot about it.  I had taken that at one time and recall it did help.  It was a prescription though...but you reminded me about the over the counter form.  

Thanks again for the info.
Helpful - 0
606078 tn?1247264553
My husband had a severe spell of vertigo a couple of months ago, hisardiologist gave him Meclizine HCL tablets, USP 25 mg. Yep meds for motion sickness, over the counter. It worked within a couple of hours. Just thought you all might want to know.

gentle hugs
Angel
Helpful - 0
620923 tn?1452915648
Hi.....jumping in here....u said u have vertigo...and dx with fibro.....what other symptoms do u have?
were u checked for thyroid issues?and if ur other symptoms r not relsted to ur fibro what r they related to?

just wondering....

Godspeed
"selma"

Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
I have never heard of using an anti-anxiety agent to treat vertigo.  I use Xanax and find that it typicallys enhances the feeling of lightheadedness.

I do understand about not being able to take many of the other medications, as most with fibro/cfs suffer from multiple chemical sensitivites and can't tolerate some of them.  
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
I also tried D-Ribose and noticed a moderate improvement in energy, but when I went off it again after several months, I didn't notice any significant backsliding, so I'm not sure if, like you, it became slowly ineffective over time, or if it was something else (a number of possibilities come to mind, from a placebo effect to a permanent change to just not noticing the gradual reduction when I went off of it, etc.).
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
For me, the vertigo IS vestibular, or at least has some vestibular components, but like most CFS symptoms, it's highly variable, making compensation incomplete.  Just for fun, it'll even switch which side is predominantly a problem from one day (or hour) to the next.

As for medication, I have difficulty getting anything for it.  The Ginkgo is a stop-gap measure at best.  The problem for me is that Lorazepam (aka Ativan) works wonders for the vertigo, but clinics won't prescribe it due to the substance abuse factor and I don't have a family doctor (because it seems there are none in Ottawa!).  I only take it when the vertigo is particularly bad, but that doesn't seem to matter to the clinic doctors...a rule is a rule, and they won't violate it it would seem.  I also tried Serc, which is much easier to come by, but it was utterly ineffective.
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Avatar universal

I also take magnesium (I buy the powered form) and B complex drops. In addition to that:

COQ10
fish oils or flax seed
ACETY L Carnitine
Zinc
Vitamins E & C
Raw, unfiltered apple cider vinegar (for my energy boost !)

I was taking D-Ribose, but the energy boost it used to give me no longer works anymore. D-Ribose has been proven in some studies to be beneficial for pain and it also helps with energy.
Helpful - 0
606078 tn?1247264553
I went through a series of meds before the Rheumy started me on Ultram ER. I take:

Ultram ER 200mg. 2x a day
Flexeril 15mg at night
Zoloft 100mg in the morning 50 mg at night
Restoril 10mg at night
Cholestrol meds
high blood pressure meds
magnesium 1000mg a day
B-12 500 a day
Vit. E to help coat my tummy so the meds dont make me ill, it works
Vit. D 1000 a day
Ibupuphen

I wish I could take a hot soak in the tub, but with 1 knee replaced and the other knee shot, well just say if I get in I can not get out. The knees just wont allow it.



Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
I hadn't heard of that detox bath.  I'm going to try that out.  It seems easy enough to do and sounds great.  

I'm glad to hear you got your meds. for those headaches.  I hate migraines.  Take care.

RobinHood - I've had the vertigo since I was a teen.  I had my eyes checked thinking something there was causing me to 'over-step' things...then went through a battery of vertigo testing and they found nothing.  My balance problem is what caused my fall that ended up with severe injury.  I know they have meds to treat the dizziness and wish they had attempted to help me more because i've suffered with this all my life.  Wishing you the best.
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
I have no pain per se unless I exercise too much (and by "too much", I mean more than 15-20 minutes of walking at once or lesser amounts too close together in a single day).  For that, I typically just take a hot bath or maybe some Advil...the latter doesn't help much, but it does do something.

The main symptoms I take meds for are vertigo and palpitations...and before anybody says it, no, those two aren't even remotely linked in my case...the vertigo is constant, the palpitations range between once or twice a day to once or twice an hour.  Anyway, for the vertigo, I've found that Ginkgo Biloba in large quantities is very helpful (200-300 mg/day).  For the palpitations, keeping my electrolytes up overall seems to help...usually something as simple as Gatorade is enough...and significant magnesium supplementation.  I typically take 200-250 mg/day, though the first 50-100 of that is from a multivite using magnesium oxide, which it's suggested in some studies is not very bioavailable.
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal

I'm doing detox baths. I add half of a 16 oz bottle of hydrogen peroxide (3%) along with 4 cups of Epsom salts to my bath water. And then I soak for at least 20 minutes.

The only thing I can't handle is my severe monthly headaches. At least I finally got my Relpax again and that is the only medication that will knock them out ! (thank God !)
Helpful - 0
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