Is it better to live with agonizing pain or take pain meds and function?

[PJ4444]

Hello Anyone,  I have Celiac and some undiagnosed, unknown underlying abdominal issues.  I have had these problems for 20+ years.  I thought they would improve since going gluten free three years ago, but they have not.  I have almost constant abdominal pain with running to the bathroom 5 to 8 times a day (Imodium only makes my pain worse).  I have gotten down to 100 lbs several times because of lack of appetite and it is just to painful to eat.  I will also have occasional bad 'bouts' where the pain is so intense for hours on end, that I end up on my closet floor screaming.  I have been to countless doctors and had countless tests done with nothing to explain my pain.  The docs have tried several different meds (non-pain) and none of them helped.  I have also been given perc, oxy, and narco from time to time and that is the only thing that seems to calm down my bowels and relieves my pain enough to be tolerable.  I was given oxy consistently for about three months, which helped until I ran out and suffered through all of the fun that entails -bad, but my body does that to me on its own.  I have four children and I teach junior high (math of all things) and I need to function for them and for me.  I have been very close to suicide several times, because I just want to crawl out of my body and get relief, but I just couldn't do that to my children.  My goal is to hang on long enough until they are all out of the house and then end the pain, but when I am having my bad 'bouts' it is very hard not to give up.  My husband is supper supportive and just wants me to feel better.  Does anyone know about medical marijuana?  If if helps, is that a better solution that the typical pain meds?  Help

[bambi2275]

I don't have Celiac but my brother is a holistic doctor.  While trying to go off opiates, i lived with him for two weeks, and went gluten free.  He says it causes inflamation.  I have been completely gluten free for 2 months.  I also juiced for almost a month 2 meals a day.  I always had stomach aches, and along with supplements I personally feel SO much better.  Obviously I'm not a doctor so I can only tell you my experience.  There is also a FABULOUS movie on net flix called Fat Sick and nearly Dead.  If you can watch it, its great. !  Also, I do want to tell you that all those opiates are really constipating.....

[ActingBrandNew]

Many people find success in medicinal marijuana. I had Hep C and did the Interferon/Ribavirin treatment for it. Its a very tough treatment that causes pain and nausea. Long story short, many people went that route for pain management. I did not because Im a recovering addict but many I know that were treating the same time as me used it instead of opioids and it helped greatly. Talk to your doctor about it or a doctor that deal in that area.

I had undiagnosed abdominal pain for years which went away after I finished Hep treatment. Don't give up trying to find out whats wrong with you. In my quest to figure out what was wrong with me, I learned of so many conditions it could be from. If you've eliminated gluten, and have Celiac, you should be feeling better. Have you ever had an MRI on your spine? A lot of undiagnosed abdominal pain in many cases end up being referred pain from the spine.

There is even an overlooked diagnoses called Chronic Abdominal Wall Pain that can be treated with low dose tri-cyclic AD or trigger point injections. The point is, dont give up! Please dont give up!

CHRONIC ABDOMINAL WALL PAIN: A MISSED DIAGNOSIS
Madhusudan Grover, MD
http://www.med.unc.edu/ibs/files/educational-gi-handouts/Chronic%20Abdominal%20Pain.pdf

[DeliriousNomad68]

I would say try Medical Marijuana if you live in a state where it's available before jumping on Opiates. However, opiates work much better for diarrhea and pain in general.
To me, the only drawback with Opiods is that people are generally UNDER-prescribed, and when ya run out its no fun. With marijuana, there is no  physical dependence-so I'd try it first.
At its definitely better to be addicted to opiates than to commit suicide- That's why I currently am on Suboxone.

[kkcopacetic]

    I choose to take the pain meds for chronic pain. My doctor is in on this decision. Its NOT a popular stance to take on this forum. Understandably so. Its a difficult and dangerous path for an addict to walk. I regard it as a quality of life issue , a personal choice and thats the compromise ive made.......just my 2 cents........k