methadone as a pain killer ?

[Doug195]

If methadone is suppose to be a pain killer why doesn't it block pain? I have been on it for 6yrs. at a dose of 195 per day- I recently had a surgery and the doctor refuses to give me pain pills because he says methadone should block all my pain.

[gnarly_1]

HI and welcome to the forum....well sounds like your in a jam....methadone actually is a great pain killer I took it for years just for that reason but like all narcotics you build up a tolerance to it and eventually even high doses dont work for pain...I dont know why you where put on it but its irrelevant if you been at 195 for 6 yrs its no longer going to work for pain control
I got to 150 and it quit working....you need to contact your primary care doctor they can give you something for the pain even if its just for a few days if abuse is factored in....dont sound like the surgeon is going to give you anything so try your primary care doctor...its always sticky when theirs methadone in the equation...when your ready to get off of it come on back to the forum we can help you break free from the stuff and it is so so worth it when you do
good luck and God bless......Gnarly    

[hellc@mst]

Hi there. You dont say why you were put on methadone in the first place. I am assuming that you were put on it 6 years ago because you were addicted to opioids. So after a recent surgery you have been given no additional pain relief because a doctor thinks your daily methadone dose should provide sufficient analgesia for post operative pain.

If this is the case i am absolutely shocked. A person on a stable dose of methadone can expect little or no analgesia at all. If however you have been on the methadone for the last 6 years for pain relief( not methadone maintanence) you may expect some relief after a surgery but only as an adjunct to the real pain relief they should offer in the first place.

I dont really have anything to add except maybe looking for another doctor who appreciates the need for an augmented pain relieving regimen for people maintained on methadone. I can only assume your doctor is reluctant to prescibe extra if you had a history of abuse. Even then i would of thought some arrangement could have been made to accomodate this scenario. Good luck.

Regards Jeremy.

[justneedtotalk]

Methadone is a pain killer.  It works better than any of the other opiates but unfortunately once you are on Methadone no doctor is going to prescribe you any other pain killer.  Hydrocodone, Oxy, etc....is like a fire cracker and Methadone is a nucleur bomb.  You are on a really high dose of methadone and I suggest that unless you plan on being on it for the rest of your life you start talking to your doctor about tapering off or finding a way to detox through an inpatient program.  Methadone is one of the most addictive substances that man has ever created.  Due to its half life it builds up in your system and takes a long time to detox.  Your body builds tolerances to any opiate based pain killer so your body is just tricking you and it is trying to get you to increase the dose.  195mg/day is extremely high and much more might cause some additional physical problems.  Talk to your doctor about getting off of them!

[vicki595]

No opiate "blocks" pain. Opiates diminish our perception of pain.  You should speak to the folks at the clinic. They should know what and how much you can take of another opiate.