Severe Aches and pains

[Bobby1952]

I am on week 15 of treatment. Type 3a. 9 weeks to go. I had minor aches and pains the first 3 months but lately the Aches have gotten a lot worse and the 400 mil of Advil isn't working anymore. I will see my GI tommorrow . Does anyone have any suggestions on a pain Medication that will help. A friend gave me some Vicodin and that really helped me, but I don't know if the DR. will prescribe it for me. I am not looking to abuse anything i just want something to help me get over the hump so I can complete my treatment.

Thanks
Bobby

[jdwithhcv]

Your doctor should give you whatever it takes to manage pain.  Ask for vicodin if that has worked for you.  Unless it is really toxic to the liver (I have not heard this) they should give it to you.

Nine weeks to go - thats great.  Good luck and remember, you have to be your own advocate in this stuff.

JD

[IAmTheWalrus]

Tablets with oxycodone or hydrocodone are not supposed to damage the liver and have been very effective for me. The hydrocodone would probably be safer of the two. These are usually formulated with Acetominophem as in Percocet and Lortab. So you have to make sure you do not exceed recommendation for the amount of acetominophen you woudl be getting. Unless you have an addiction problem already, I wouldn't think a few weeks using as needed to sleep, etc., would be grounds for concern of addiction. You gotta be the judge whether use of a narcotic drug (like those) will affect you in an adverse way (temptation to abuse). Probably the worst part if someone like us were to abuse, say, Lortab; we would probably be exceeding the safe amount of acetominophen and harming our livers from that, rather than from the narcotic. It doesn't take much to alleviate the pain for me.

I'm surprised your doc lets u take Ibuprophen. My docs forgade any NSAIDs (like ibuprophen, naproxyn sodium, etc). Too much acetominophen can cause problems for a liver, too. Ibuprophen and Naprosyn were my pain killer of choice for many years, and they worked well. Never whent on a long hike in the mountains or played a basketball game without them. That may have contributed to the progression of my liver disease, though.

Nine weeks to go! Do you know how great that sounds? Just hang in there and geterdone, even if the doc has to put you on a morphine drip! I am pulling for you getting good results. Good Luck!

[chevyelcam79]

Percocet really helped me also.  My legs and shoulders ached really bad during my tx.  It did get somewhat better towards the end of treatment though.  

Just make sure you dont ever do it.  Some of the most easy tasks really took it out of me.

good luck on the last few weeks, it will be over soon!

Shari

[jools57]

My Dr. lets me take Motrin(up to 600mg. a day), but i try not to until the aches get really bad. I'm a geno 3, and a slow responder so am txing for 48 weeks(17 more weeks to go,yeah!). Hang in there, you are almost finished, and I hope you can get some pain relief soon!!!

[Bobby1952]

I saw the GI today and even though he at first resisted, I was able to convince him to give me the Vicodin. Now I just have to be careful because he gave me 50 of them !! I thought that was a bit much.

[sfbaygirl]

That's not much.  I am glad you got some pain relief. Tx is hard enough without going through it with pain.  

Jools;  I believe motrin is an supposed to be taken on a regular basis, so the pain doesn't come. I know it takes awhile once in your system to work.  

[jdwithhcv]

Now you have to listen to your body.  Its important to use the pain killers only for physican pain.   It can be tempting to use them for emotional pain as well, be brutally honest with yourself on that score.  

You'll be fine and freedom from the physical pain will improve your ability to fight off the virus.  Keep posting so we know how its going.  Looking forward to doing the happy dance for you in 9 weeks time.  I have 30 to go :( but always glad to celebrate another's victory.

Be well.
JD

[jools57]

I must have a low tolerance for it, because I can take one Motrin(200mg) and 20 min. or so feel much better(at least the achy muscle pain in my back thinks so!) I'll just be so glad when this ride is over!!!

[buzz01]

I'm sorry you're having a tuff time....Where are you aches and pains?
Have you increase water as much as you can? Limit coffee and soda's.

I had severe ones too at about the 6mths mark straight thru to the 11 month but I resisted meds.
Mine were wicked bad in my neck, head, and back...it hurt to wash my head.

A friend suggested massages and acupuncture...and for me, both managed to help ALOT. Chiropractic also helped a great deal. And I used an all natural pain releiving gel called SOMBRA....My Chiropractor recommended it. http://www.sombrausa.com/products/warmtherapy.htm
it's excellent at releiving muscle aches and pains...I recommended to others in my support group and general consensurs was very positive....

Hang in there!

[sfbaygirl]

wish I had such a tolerance.  I don't and haven't.  Now with the Fibromyalgia I am not taking narcotics, but the Lyrica.  Man, I am fatigued.  Glad you can handle all the pain with motrin.  
all the best
Linda

[Deb_c430]

Have you had a CBC done lately? Check your WBC?  Hope your feeling better..

[wed1942]

the hydrocodone has tylenol in it so be careful what you get. i know tylenol is not supposed to be great for the liver.

[IAmTheWalrus]

Does hydrocodone really have Tylenol (acetaminophen) in it, or is it that the painkillers that have the narcotic hydrocodone in them (i.e. Lortab), are often formulated with acetaminophen? I think it is the latter. I guess either way the painkiller you are getting probably has acetaminophen in it and needs to be watched.

[alagirl]

I take morphine and demerol.  I don't take hydrocodone because it doesn't really work anymore, makes me vomit, has tylenol in it, and I have to overdose on it practically to even notice a pain level decrease.  

Much smaller amounts of these larger painkillers help me a lot more.  Plus I take phenergan and another anti-emetic that's sublingual for when I need faster access to an anti-nausea med.

I am having horrible muscle, bone and joint pain.  Started a few hours after shot 1 of the interferon and has been getting worse as I've added 80,000 units per week of epogen.  Last night the doctor made me take a shot of neulasta that I didn't want but I got the idea I wasn't leaving the hospital without the stupid stuff, and its really bad now.

[Lady Lauri]

  We are neck and neck on tx.....15 weeks, 9 more to go.
I also have severe headaches ,muscle aches but the worst in the legs. I am doing either Hydrocodone or vicoprofen (different days, not same day on both). Too much pain to deal with for some of us and as said above, if no addiction problems, use what you must in this.

   I have a rule of thumb on pain pill's or xanax, etc. which is try not to use daily…skipping days so your body doesn’t ‘need’ them (tho skipping days has gotten less lately) and I also usually do half of dose written, if it doesn’t work, I do the other half. (If ONE works, why take 2, etc.)
50 is not a lot in this, I know people getting 180 at a time -yes, most are addicted, but we’re talking stage 4 cancer, severe back injuries, etc…..they do ‘need’ them. Our ‘need’ is -hopefully-temporary so treat it as such and feel better. I suffered a lot the past 2 years with leg pain, pain from the Hep….afraid of getting on pill’s, than found only 1 could help on some days, etc. As all med’s, common sense, honesty and caution. You’ll be okay :}

                                                                                  LL

[alagirl]

My feeling is that everyone knows their own body and it should be left to them and their docs to make decisions about this.  However, nobody deserves to be in pain, and you shouldn't be too proud to ask for or to take meds if you need them.

I too had an increase about two weeks ago in my pain level, where it started involving my legs at a horrible level.  I have heard from many others on the board here though that its an unfortunate side effect of tx that your sx change, they get better and worse (both) throughout the tx period.  My arms have gotten better lately, but my legs are much worse and my head is suddently gotten in on the act, with my migraines, that had largely left me alone, coming back full force.  I had a bad one in the hospital over the last few days.

I honestly honestly believe that unless you have ongoing addiction issues that its your right not to hurt, and whatever that means for you, not hurting, is going to be different for everyone.  Some people seem to veritibly sail through tx, and others just have a rough time.  Nobody's doing anything right or wrong, and you just get through it however you can.  If you get through it, you did it right.  And more power to you.

[jmjm530]

I posted this to you on an earlier thread. Not sure if you saw it. Sorry you've been in the hospital and hope you're feeling better now.
--------------------------------------------

"...CONCLUSIONS: Our data indicate that morphine may play an important role as a positive regulator of HCV replication in human liver cells in vivo. This enhancing effect of morphine on HCV RNA expression may compromise IFN-alpha therapy as well as CD8+ T-cell-mediated immunity against HCV infection."

http://gateway.nlm.nih.gov/MeetingAbstracts/102260194.html

[sfbaygirl]

I disagree..  No studies to back up my claim, but it seens that those who take the pure form fo narcotics will do better that those (like myself) who take meds with tylenol of asprin.  I just agree.  I think what  have taken for migreines and other pain is worse that those who take pain meds that don't have the NSAID's and other things in them.

[jmjm530]

I think the NSAID issue is different. It has to do with low platelets and the risk of bleeding, not with viral replication like the study suggests with Morphine. I was not allowed NSAID's on treatment although was allowed Tylenol in limited quantities as is the protocol that many leading hepatologists follow.


-- Jim

[merryBe]

the aches and pains need to be defined. You may be having more muscle fatigue and wasting...from the disease, not enough protain, changes in blood sugars brought on by INF.
you may be having and autoimmune joint RA reaction, you may have lymphatic infection...and what's operative is first to define with your doctoe where the actual pains are so as to not miss something developing that needs addressing. Like for instance a lot of folks get a body wide infection from changes in their lymph system if they have a bad tooth or gum disease.

Once you define the what, then deal sparingly with what works, everyone is different.
don't exceed 2000 mg a day with any product with tylenol...and Nsaids are not wisdom, especially if used regularly they will lead to more bleeding internally.
If you need to take vicodin, I'd ask for Nortab???? or something with less tylenol/painkiller ratios, and just take 1/2 a pill at a time to start....keeping doses as low as possible will help you not form a dependance, as well as protect your health in many other ways, such as keeping your bowels regular which is important with liver disease....
If you need more later in disease progression that's fine, but starting low gives you room later on for more if need be. Plus, all the strong painkillers do not help with driving, or the classic HCV brainfog, so for everyones safety try to keep dosages to a minimum.
(plus, I found out the painkiller Ultram was effecting my liver enymes more than this disease was...so all this stuff has a down side....still pain is pain, if it's bad enough we all use something)

but first find out where the aches are, and if they have a serious message they are trying to relay. This is important to determine before you start masking some serious or life threatening development with more painkillers.

[Almondjoy225]

been having severe aches and pain everyday,for about a month, doctors dont know why yet, the pain is unbearable at time, but I got to work, my job is stressful, customer service on the phone.  Do anybody know if I can get temporary disability until I get better.  I cant work like this I constantly taking Aleve,naproven, when i run out my Lyrica, it all was working for a little while sometimes a day of release, then here come the aches and pain it taking its toll on me, I hope you guys can relate