Urine test at pain management

[safesinger]

I have been seeing my pain management Dr. for almost 4 years.
Was previously at the methadone clinic for 5 years before seeing my phsycian aka: Pain mgmnt.
Anyhow I go bi-monthly in December they gave me a urine test. The only things I took was my Methadone which they prescribe me and 3-4 days back took a 30mg roxy and a 1mg xanex which is not prescribed to me.
So took the oxy on Thursday & the Xanex on Friday or Saturday and my urine test at the pain management was the following Monday.

After all the years i've always seen my Dr. well yesterday I get a call saying that my appt was pushed up to 2 instead of 1:30 and I would be seeing the Physicians Assistant.
Am I introuble? I've been taking Metadone on a regular basis for well over 9 years and if they cut me i'm in a lot of trouble:(

[Katrina81]

Did you sign a "pain contract" stating you would only take pain medications prescribed by the pain center? If you did yes, you are at risk for being discharged from the clinic. If you didn't sign the contract, they may or may not ask you to show them prove, like a prescription from a dr, that you are legally prescribed the roxy and xanex. Do you have breakthrough pain that methadone doesn't take care of? If so, you should really speak to your dr about that before taking anything that isn't prescribed to you. Not trying to scare you but the same EXACT situation happened with my good friend, and since she signed the contract, she was discharged from the pain center. She had to go back to the doctor that reffered her to pain management and come clean. The center wouldn't take her back, but her dr and her came up with alternative treatment that wasn't narcotic based. Good luck to you. Keep us posted as to what happens.

[scoenen]

i believe the roxy would be out of your system but i am not sure about xanax.  xanax i believe is a long lasting anti anxiety and am not sure how long it is detectable.  you know what is expected of you and pain management docs don't play around.  if it is not detected this time please don't put yourself in this position again.  they will discharge you if you get caught.  stop now.

good luck and your in my prayers-
scoenen

[swflafun]

Hi - You can usually "fail" one test, but have no illusions you are in for a chewing out and possible discharge. They are taking this a lot more serious these days. I think as long as you are OK the next time, you shouldn't have any issues. Just remember that you will be flagged and probably tested monthly now. My brother got dismissed for failing two in a row (xanax, alcohol and pot). Good luck.

[safesinger]

So the fact thye want me to see the PA instead of my doctor is a pretty good indication that my usrine is bad then:(
Because in the almost 4 years i've been going there they have never had me see a PA.

[safesinger]

I should mention though that they did allow me to break up my urine test in 2 payments so I didn't have to pay the whole $100 up front. But then again if they are gonna kick me out iy wouldn't matter because after co-pay and stuff they would get thier $100 anyhow.

[Katrina81]

I guess nobody can really speculate as to why you are seeing the PA today. It's very possible it's because your UA showed other drugs in it, but maybe not. You are just going to have to see what they have to say. What are you going to say to them if they question these other drugs in your system?

[safesinger]

Well I have been taking Xanex off and on from depression a few month prior I tried killing my self and my wife gives me them when I have panic attacks and restlessness.

[Katrina81]

Did you take the roxy cuz of break through pain?

[safesinger]

I've been struggling with addiction to opiates for many years. And after I lost my job and my mother died things just seemed to twist in a downward spiral.
The hopelessness of addiction & the failure I feel is unbearable It sickens me that i've done thsi to my family & friends.
Mthadone keeps me on a semi normal path but without out my depression spirals so badly it's uncontrollable.

[safesinger]

Guess what I am saying is I self medicate.

[Katrina81]

I understand. I was in the same boat! I self medicated all the time. I am coming up on 40 days clean. Have you thought about trying to get off all opiates and try some counseling and anti-depressants? I know that's not for everybody, but it has helped many. I have found that coming off the drugs actually put me in a better state mentally. Not perfect, but better. The opiates have a way of really twisting and distorting our minds. Its such a fine line that we, as addicts, walk. We have come to mentally believe life is better on the pills, when in fact they become much worse. I lost all my care. While that was heaven for a while, my life really began to suffer. My children began to suffer. My family in general began to suffer. I thought I was doing wonderful in my own drug induced mind. But when you take away the ability to truly feel and care, life really becomes unbearable sooner or later. I have had thoughts, while on the pills, that I never would have thought being sober. It's scary! I really hope that you don't take this as me preaching at you to get clean. Only you can decide if that is what you want. I am just simply sharing my life with you. Take what you would like and leave the rest? I hope you continue to post on here as well. So many people here, including myself, have been where you are now. We can offer great advice, or just listen. Whatever you need!

[Katrina81]

Oh, did you in, infact, sign a pain contract with the clinic? Ive got some running to do, I will check back with you shortly.

[petroglyph54]

Don't worry about it! Maybe they are interested in your health and the pa is gonna interview you and ask general questions. Often it's like dental xrays and it's just something they can charge you for at the maximum rate while the real doctor is seeing another patient. Maybe this is the time they'll bring out the ole pain contract. That being said, the whole industry is changing, med records available to almost anyone. I showed positive for thc, however I had been completely honest with my doctor and although for me it was a little embarassing cuz, I only do weed once or twice a year and totally respect my doctor, I was shown that yes they can check your urine and find out what your doin. They told me the ua was to make sure I was taking my meds and not diverting the medication and had discharged several patients. Again total honesty goes a very long way. Another thing I'd like to share is, it seems like your taking the methadone for addiction control. Should you be at a pain clinic, or like a methadone clinic? Semantics, I know. There's a fine line, between the two and would mostly matter to them, certainly not me. I was on methadone for pain, and the manufacturer came out and said they didn't want it prescribed for pain so I was switched to oxy. At the time, It bothered me as the oxy was way more expensive, and the methadone did control pain well, I like to stick with the demon I know versus the one I don't. But now I do know they are both demons, and am working on stopping any narcotics, a long battle, Good luck to you, this might be an opportunity to get clean, eventually it's what we all want.

[safesinger]

Thanks, to everyone who took the time to care enough to answer/ counsel me on my worries.

Yes, from what I remember I did sign some kind of contract.
I do realize the methadone clinic is what I really need but being unemployed and coming up with $88 a week for the clinic is tough. My Pain management doctor allows me to come every other month which is a whole lot cheaper to keep me maintained.
If I get dropped I will be scarred I do eventually want to be clean of course but just not like this cold turkey it's a living nightmare especailly when you have children that depend on you to be up and going not sick & puking in bed for weeks at a time. Ans beimng depressed normally with methadone is tough to control without it my depression is magnified by 1000x it's so terrible i'm  frantic right now just knwoing hwat i'll soon be putting my family through.

[geminigirl1963]

By all means, IF they do dismiss you from the pain clinic, you NEED to go to your primary care physician or someone else who will help you wean down off the methadone.  DO NOT go off of it cold turkey if you can at all avoid it, especially with how long you've been on it.

As far as you having to see the PA this visit, it may or may not be related to your urine drug test.  It could be that your doctor has gotten busy enough that he simply can't see all of his patients by himself and wants his assistant to get familiar with them in the event that he is not avaialable himself when someone needs him.  He also could be out sick himself.  One thing you DO need to check into, however, is in your contract - check to see if in the contract it says that your DOCTOR alone is the only one who can write your presriptions for you.  If it does say that, make sure that you do NOT accept any prescriptions that are not signed by him.  Even a script written by his assistant could cause problems with your contract if it's written in the contract that that person is not permitted (according to the contract) to do so.

As far as the roxy and xanax - your PM doc needs to know EVERYTHING that you are taking - no matter how infrequent - and also no matter whether it had ever been prescribed for you in the past or not.  This is not only because of the contract, but it is a safety measure.  If your PM doc does not know EVERYTHING that you take, and he prescribes you something that could possibly interact with it, it could be dangerous and even possibly deadly.  While some pain contracts don't specifically mention over the counter meds, it's also a very good policy to notify your PM doc before taking any of those also - even tylenol or ibuprofen.  Even these seemingly "safe" meds can potentially interact with prescription meds and/or cause incorrect results on a drug test.

I wish you the best of luck

[namnam46]

Hi,

First I want to welcome you to the Pain Management Forum and let you know that we are glad you found this Forum. I want to let you know that there are NO Doctors on this Forum only CP - Chronic Pain - Patients that help each other with our OWN expertise and experiences that we have developed through our OWN CP Issues.

I wanted to say that MY Pm Doctor has so many patients now that they have changed it to where I see him 1 month and then I see the PA the NEXT 2 months. In your case it could be something as simple as the Doctor MAY have some reason than he can't be there at the time of your appointment and thy thought the PA could handle your meds for you this month. I KNOW that MANY people on here SELDOM see their PM Doctor's and almost ALWAYS see the PA's instead.

That said, what you are doing is VERY dangerous and IF you did fail the UA then you will VERY possibly be dismissed. IF you aren't, I HOPE that you will STOP taking meds that AREN'T prescribed as that is a formula for disaster.  I would HATE to see you lose your one connection to what is helping you and I hope that you have learned from this.

I wish you the very best and hopefully you will keep us updated as to how your appointment goes today.  Am I reading it correctly that your appointment IS today?

We will be looking for your update...........Sherry

[safesinger]

Thank you everyone.
I have learned my lesson i'm so worried sick that my stomach hurts:(

[fluffy215]

Was reading your thread, just wondered how you made out? Xanax does not stay in ur system long, I am prescribed it & even though I take it 3x day per prescribed it occasionally does not show in my drug screen. Hope this helps

[Katrina81]

Just wanted to check in and see how it went for you today? Let us know hon!

[safesinger]

I won't know until Friday.
Got a call yesterday that I would not be seeing my Dr and would be seeing his PA. Instead of going in at 1:30 they pushed me to 2 instead.
In all the years i've been going i've never seen the PA at all.
This is what concerns me.

[safesinger]

I've heard nighmares from others saying that when they were going to a pain management clinic that the Dr never discharges them it's always the PA or by mail.

[namnam46]

Thanks for letting us know when the appointment is!  We were all thinking that is was today.

Which time zone are you in? I live in AZ and I'm in the Mountain Time Zone.

We'll be looking for your update on Friday........Sherry  :)

[atonicat]

I actually only see the PA. I don't get drug tested because I don't take a regular schedule of narcotics. I am under a contract though but it would be pointless for them to test me since they prescribe me on an "as needed" basis, not a monthly supply. I know that some PM's don't care if you have other drugs in your system as long as you have your prescribed drug in your system. Of course not all of them think like that. The practice that I go to is really busy so sometimes I have to see one of the doctors instead of the PA. It's happened a few times and nothing bad ever happened. They were just over booked. They have also moved my appointment times several times. As well as move my appointment up a day because of scheduling issues. I wouldn't worry about it too much.

[namnam46]

I was thinking of you and wondered what happened today at your Doctor's visit.

Looking forward to your update.........Sherry