Aa
Aa
A
A
A
Close
6726276 tn?1421126668

Bipolar & prescription pain pills

Are you diagnosed Bipolar & also suffer chronic pain? Are your pain meds becoming a habit?
10 Responses
Sort by: Helpful Oldest Newest
Avatar universal
Now that sounds like a good plan. I wasn't smart enough to do it that way. I would now though. I think monitoring the  BP meds closely would surely help the taper. We'll celebrate over a plate of frig legs.
Helpful - 0
6726276 tn?1421126668
Hi everyone. I've got a great Taper Partner & instructions from my Psychiatrist on adjusting the Bipolar medications. Thanks
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
When I quit opiates, I got my feelings back, all of them, at once. That sensation and mental world shaking event blew my mind. It didn't kill me. It hurt like a divorce with myself. After my mind got blown, I am slowly creating a new me, off drugs. It takes so long to detoxed and staying stable wasn't an option. I had to lose control, surrender to the process. It is a long term commitment, but what better thing is there than trying to be our potential? Trying to control everything and relations was my shortcoming. I had to accept defeat, I have no control over how many pills I'll take after the first. Probably can't count that high. Somehow accepting defeat, a deeply humiliating feeling(humbling) and experience allowed me to throw in the towel. No mass opiates. I tried to avoid bipolar outbursts, but just enough not to mess things up. I think my surrender had to do with letting a lot go. Feelings didn't kill me. I thought they might, but I kept believing what they said, it will get better. Be here now and it will get better. Sometimes slow, sometimes fast, but it does get better for those who wirk for it. I know you like it there, but I think it would be better for you to be around people telling you you are okay. I sure needed that, because I really couldn't tell. I wish I knew a better way that riding through misery, lord knows I tread to find an easier way. You will find the answers, never stop asking.
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
Thank you for writing what you wrote. Amen to what you said, because it certainly rings true with me. People, for the most part, do not understand the work of living with an illness, managing the illness, working on the illness, and living life as well as we can and stretch ourselves under it's demands in order to be in a better place.
Helpful - 0
6726276 tn?1421126668
You really know how hard it is, all of it. Stay active, so you don't feel depressed. When the pain & depression have managed to take away every strand of energy you ever knew.
    Get exercise. Right-O. Just as soon as I can get out of bed.  Once out of bed, I have the fun task of dealing with my Agrophobia .
     Sorry. I know there are starving Children in China.
I'm getting off the pain medication & everything feels like a trigger. Pamela
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
Depression and pain often go hand -in- hand. I find one of the most difficult things is lack of others' understanding-including family. I have fibromyalgia, but more specifically, bursitis &  two swollen cervical discs. my pain has lead to a few other problems too. im on traditional medications but also use various herbs & supplements. some help somewhat. i get pain treatments-injections which are semi-helpful. i also see a chiropractor which helps much. sometimes doing all of this is as exhausting as the pain. no wonder pain leads to depression. its hard to stay active when in pain, which adds to depression. im on antidepressant drugs which help. im prescribed pain medication & muscle relaxant drugs which i use sparingly as these contribute to depression. it helps to stay active, be social, even if i have to force myself. sleep is important too. if i stay up too late, it throws off my whole schedule the next day. if i dont get enough sleep, it adds to depression. everything must stay in check. its very tiring sometimes-a day- to- day challenge.
Helpful - 0
6726276 tn?1421126668
I tried acupuncture.loved it
More tomorrow
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
Sorry, my stylus hit the "post comment" button. I will continue...

So, I took an aspirin and just tried  to do visualization, deep breathing, distraction, Hot Icy patches, stretching or just tried to go to sleep.  When the painkiller and the muscle relaxant wore off, I was much better mentally, but in excruciating pain. I couldn't really move without regretting it.  After the 3rd day, I found I could live with even that level of pain. When I could concentrate enough to read, I read up on all the pain control alternatives. like: Eating culinary mushrooms (a natural painkiller, not the hallucinogenic variety but stuff like criminis, buttons, shitakes, etc. You get the picture ),  acupressure, saunas, hot tubs, massages, back stretching, walking, etc. etc. So, it is possible to live in pain. I have to credit a young nurse who lives with severe  back pain since childhood to set my mind to this task of overcoming the pain without medication, and she has a strenuous bedside nursing job that is physically demanding. I also have to credit the people who I came to know since my teenage years who were recovering heroin addicts. They got into  long distance running partly for the natural endorphin effect that comes after 20 minutes in the run and which lasts a good long time after (for me it was about 2 days), and I learned to incorporate strenuous and distance physical workouts in my daily routine unless i was too sick, of course, or told that I was on limited activity restrictions as prescribed.  I will have anaesthesia and pain meds for surgeries. I have yet to try acupuncture, but it worked for a few people I know, including a sibling, and it is covered in my medical insurance, but I am doing okay right now.
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
Painkillers, bendaryl, pot, nitrous that isn't  mixed with a high enough O2 concentration, alcohol , and muscle relaxants are nixed for me. I either got speeded up or profoundly depressed with all of them, and during all of them, I had psychosis which included perceptual hallucinations and delusions. It was the real deal, because people talking to me pointed out that I should probably call my psychiatrist when I reacted to the meds that way. They just don't go well with the meds and the bipolar disorder....for me at least.

When I had severe back pain and sciatica that was so acute and persistent, took the pain med and the muscle relaxant, which threw my mind off a lot into depression and psychosis, my psychiatrist told me not to take them, and to only take aspirin or motrin. He was dead serious. He also knew I was in pain, but the pain meds, even though they were Schedule 2, didn't touch me anyway. So, I just rode  it out. Being in pain and being psychotic is not a good combination .  
Helpful - 0
2190999 tn?1504988891
Would this include other numbing substances like pot?
Helpful - 0
Have an Answer?

You are reading content posted in the Bipolar Disorder Community

Top Mood Disorders Answerers
Avatar universal
Arlington, VA
Learn About Top Answerers
Didn't find the answer you were looking for?
Ask a question
Popular Resources
15 signs that it’s more than just the blues
Discover the common symptoms of and treatment options for depression.
We've got five strategies to foster happiness in your everyday life.
Don’t let the winter chill send your smile into deep hibernation. Try these 10 mood-boosting tips to get your happy back
A list of national and international resources and hotlines to help connect you to needed health and medical services.
Herpes sores blister, then burst, scab and heal.