Cervical disk mass effect on spine/weakness and nausea

[Irishweaver]

I am a long time pain clinic patient and currently having serious pain/weakness issues.  My hand continually drops even when doing something as simple as typing this post.  Also, the pain has seriously increased over the last week to an almost unbearable level.  I'm scheduled for surgery for c-6, c-7 fusion this coming Thursday (18 June 09) but I would like to know if this overwhelming pain/nausea/weakness could be related to the cervical disk problem.  CT Myelogram (can't have MRI because of spinal cord implant) talks about mass effect on spinal cord.  At this point, even with serious pain medications - elavil -50 milligrams 3 per day, Methadone 10 mg/2 per day, and Percoset 5 mg/6 per day - the pain is overwhelming and the weakness is getting worse.  These symptoms are understanding, but I'm also having bad nausea. Could the disk problems/meds be related to the nausea?

Thanks for help

[Irishweaver]

Thank you MontanaGurl  for your advice, I was beginning to think I was crazy when the nausea started hiting, but you and sandee 1818 make a lot of sense and I've called and am waiting for my doctor now to call back now. Acutally my doctor is out of town, but I get my care in a military hospital so there is an entire department to rely on so I'm sure someone will call back.  

Thanks again for your help. I will certainly let you know what happens.  

Irishweaver

[MontanaGurl]

The nausea can be from the immense pain that you are experiencing.  I have experienced nausea on more than one occasion, some of it related to the medicines I am taking and other times to being in so much pain that I become physically sick.  

Definately ask  your doc to take a look at something with no tylenol if you are gonna be on a long term pain med.

I hope for the best for you.  Please let us know how the surgery comes along.  Keep posting as often as you can, this site, as you probably already know is a great comfort and assistant in the search for ways to ease our pain and also a great place to just vent!!

til next time
montanagurl

[Irishweaver]

Thanks so much for your reply sandee 1818.  I will certainly ask about changing from Percoset to roxicodone.  My pain clinic monitors my liver and blood counts on a regular basis, but I certainly don't want to sacrifice my liver if there's something less complicated I can take.  Again, thanks for your reply.  

[sandee1818]

There could be a number of reasons for your nausea. The extreme pain could be causing the nausea, when someone is in that much pain your stomach will react to it also. Such as when a person gets migraines they will too become nauseous.
I wanted to also bring up the amount or Tylenol your taking a day. If it is the 5/325 @ 6 a day that is entirely too much for you to be taking on a long term basis. I would discuss this with your doctor, ask him to change it too the oxycodone without the Tylenol. It is called roxicodone.
This amount your taking is terrible on your body and your liver especially.