severe head pain after siezure and fall

Question

I'm nerw to this forum so bare with me if you will:
  I have had siezures from november 2005 to present day,....a handful of them have been very violent and I've had alot of damage to my body as a result,....I have siezures fairly often but not all are violent,....Last good friday 2008 I had a really bad siezure while getting my mail from my rural mail box,...I passed out in the middle of the main road, fell backward and hit my head on the pavement,....My doctor had been giving me pain killers, Darvocette, oxycodone, hydrocodone, percocette and flexeril......recently she claimed that a drug test she did on me showed "Opium" in my blood,.....I have no idea how this could have happened because I have no "Opium"...didnt that go out in the early 70s?.....anyway, she told me she would no longer give me pain meds of any kind though she is keeping me on "Xanax" for my sleep disorder which brings about siezures if I go without sleep,....I take 4mg per night and sometimes 6 mg....with her approval....I think I'm getting mixed messages from her.  since last good friday, my head is constantly in extreme pain simpy from the wounds which havent healed right,....I am at my wits end, I dont think I can take much more of this,........anybody got any ideas as what I can do?...other than change my doctor?.....I live in Oregon for pitty sake,.......we aint got alot of doctors here to begin with.......I cannot fathom going through another 2 or 3 months of this kind of pain,.....my scalp nerves are extremely sensitive to the point that I can effect other parts of my body simply by touching my head....I have hip and shoulder pain as well all down the left side of my body and alot of the left side is numb with extreme pain in certain points in the numb area,....I dont know how to describe this any better....................Please help!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Tuckamore · Answer

I am glad you have founhd some releif. My doc wanted to order something for me that you applied right to the spot that hurt but when I went to pick it up my co-pay was $60.00 and I refused it.  And I did that as so many things haven't worked and I was afraid I would be "wasting" money again on something that wasn't effective.
I agree with you that something sounds fishy. And if it wasn't a blood test then where was she getting her information. You have a right to know because I am sure it is in your records. Indeed I would ask for a copy of my medical records from her office. You have that right also. If you plan on retaining her as your medical provider you will want that information....or if you go elsewhere you want to know what she has written in your chart. Remember that WE HIRE docters to treat us. They work for us and too often they forget that. But there I go..on my soap box...sorry. I am glad you have pain relief. Thank you for the update. Please keep us posted. Take Care, Tuck

woolyinoregon · Answer

Thanks for your support guys, I went ot my doctor last friday and confronted her about the drug test results and my pain condition and she kinda stepped back a bit and gave me back my flexeril and upped my xanax for me,.....she also gave me a sample tube of "VOLTAREN GEL" which is some new anti-inflamatory drug, it comes with some small strips of paper that you squeeze the gel onto for an exact measurment and then apply to whatever area is affected,....I have to say, it works immediately,......Mollyrae?.if you're out there dear ( and I'm sure you are) try this medication out.
  Now I also have to report that my doctor's visit didnt really go "smooth" I told her that I was deeply offended at her for accusing me of taking "HEROIN" and that the blood test results were falsified on purpose...and she then replied to me "it was'nt a bloood test"....I had my hosuemate "Lisa" with me right there as she had been when I was first accused and Lisa told my doctor "yes in fact you did say "Blood test and you did accuse him of taking heroin"..so something fishy is going on but I cant put my finger on it (maybe I shoud'nt).still she wont give me narcotic Drugs ( which is ok by me as long as I can control my pain )

sandee1818 · Answer

You would not really have to increase your mg's if you were to switch to the er or sa brand. The long acting is much better for pain relief and you only have to take it twice a day. I know in my experience it worked much better than the short acting, maybe it would be worth a try. I wish you the best of luck, keep us posted:)

Tuckamore · Answer

I think we all should star a practice together just to treat medical providers like Dr. Sadist. Is your PCP willing to keep treating you? I bet that 45 minute drive to see tha high-risk specialist seems like a piece of cake now. I assume that is for your pregency or is that for the pinched nerve....whatever it's for I wish you the best. Take Care, Tuck

StacyCPHT · Answer

Yep, Oxycodone not oxycontin. I refuse to take that. the "addict" doctor said it's because I like the instant "high" of the quick acting, Hate to tell her honey, but I haven't had SIDE EFFECTS (what non addicts call the dissiness, itchiness etc of a medicine.) for about 2 and half years! I appreciate that it is a main reason I do not want to switch. Of course it doesn't stop the pain anymore but i'm not willing to increase, it makes things tolerable. I did briefly toy with the idea of asking her (dr sadist) to participate in a  little experiment with me where I stick a taser up her a*s  (since that is roughly what a femoral nerve pinched in your tailbone feels like...)and then offer her an ice pack and tylenol, oh yeah., I can't take tylenol, advil or aleve either!!!! So just ice. I even begged for a nerve block, did not have to be narcotics. 
But all in all thank you for your support and jokes, a good humor helps..

woolyinoregon · Answer

yeah,..I'm just now getting the impression that the medical field is full of "WEEDS" and alot like politics,....what happened to the idea that " a doctor's effectiveness is governed by his or her knowlege rather than by the DEA? or some committee?....I need to grow a third hand out of my backside just to grasp this "new American identity crisis".....the doctors pretty much have their practices all protected and a person has to hire a lawyer to get anything done,......The word "lawyer" used loosely here ( I assure you ) is the same word as "Liar" only it has a sort of chicago accent!......why cant people just get along without having to resort to legal assistance?......I havent the vocabulary to demonstrate my feelings on the matter !....at least without having to swear.

Mollyrae · Answer

Health care just isn't what it use to be. It took me years for the medical profession to diagnose me. Oh and I might add, enough money to buy 3 houses. Very nice houses.

woolyinoregon · Answer

So is this your first child?.....and why did your doctor tell you that you were selling the drugs without any first hand knowlege of it?.....This kind of behavior from doctors really makes me angry,........
  So  doctor dies and goes to heaven, he finds himself standing in line in front of the pearly gates ( which were far off in the distance )...the line is very long and doesnt move much and the doctor gets tired of waiting and he gets out of line and runs up to St Peter who is sitting at a desk in front of the gate to heaven.  "The doctor annouces himself and sez, "do you know who I am?" "I'm dotcor ...(so and so )St.Peter doesnt even look up...so the doctor clears his throat loudly and asks St.Peter why the wait is so long,..... "St.Peter replies"..."wait in line like everyone else" and then shoos him away like a fly,...so the doctor goes back and waits in line but again the wait is too much for him and he again gets out of line and repeats the trip to St.Peter's desk,...again he announces himself and sez "hey there I'm doctopr ( so and so ) and I have an appointment,......... again St.Peter tells him to go stand in line like everyone else and then looks up and shoos him away and looks annoyed.  A third time the doctor does this and St.Petter looks really disturbed by the doctor but looks past the doctor and smiles,.....the doctor turns around and sees a man in a doctor's coat and examining lens and bag walking up,....St. Peter smiles at the guy and lets him through,.....the doctor looks up at St.Peter and sez " who was that..he looks like a doctor, why does he get to go through?.......St Peter looks at the doctor and replies,....."Oh him?...thats God, sometimes he likes to dress up like a doctor and mess with people's minds"!!!!!!!!!
   7 months? pregnant?........geeeeeeeesh I can recall when my kids were yet unborn, 7 months,......now the good stuff happens!

woolyinoregon

woolyinoregon · Answer

wow, Pregnant?....and on Oxycodone?.....geeeeeeeeeeeeeeeesh !!!!!!!!!.  Well Here in Oregon, most people seem to be really poor,....Now I am too!.....I was doin quite well before I moved here.  I'm not sure why my doctor would have accused me of taking heroin but she got right in my face about it. Before this test, I had a really decent relationship with her and she didnt have any qualms about giving me pain meds though I had previously made it known I am semi-allergic to "codiene"......( much like alot of folks I hear ).....The pain meds really only work for a few hours at a time and so I have had biottles of them that I've flushed after getting really frustarted with the results.  Back in 1989 I was a durg and alcohol abuse couselor for a well known Drug rehab program and I had to go to college and learn all about drugs ( not that I didnt already know )....but now that I'm having siezures and my sight is failing and I can no longer sit in my studio and work for longer than about an hour at a time, ( most times alot shorter than that ) I am fairly concerned.  Back last year in december, I was hospitalized after hallucinating and not being coherent,....they placed me in a coma for a week and gave me huge shots of Heperin in my belly,.....this last siezure on good friday?.....after splitting my head open?...They gave me stapled in my head and sent me home after 3 hours!!!!!!!! I'm shocked,.....I really think this is mal-practice and shoudl be treated as such,...I actually went as far as to file a form,al complaint against the hospital and it got citied by the "State office of hospital licensing and inspection"......I think I'm pretty staright forward with my opinons about what is fair practice ( and this aint it ) but I also think that the way this system is, I'll be dead long before anything gets changed ( and I'm being serious here ) and I've come awful close to dyin from these siezures in the coupl eof years just passed........what makes me really curious about the health care system here is that they can get away (literally) with murder and nobody really cares!.....kinda sad!

Tuckamore · Answer

I take it back, yes one day of my pain. And no narcotics for that Doc, in her best interest...so she wouldn't becoma an "addict" or "sell them." Tuck

Mollyrae · Answer

Wouldn't you like to give that dr. just one day of your pain and then tell her to just go home and take some asprin. There wouldn't be any question in giving someone a script for narcotics...............

Tuckamore · Answer

I am so sorry..that is AWFUL, just AWFUL. Doc's with all that compassion and bedside manner should have to live one week with the kind of pain you, I and most of us here experience...except I wouldn't wish this on my worst enemy! Geezzz I am sorry. I hope you gave her a piece of your mind, mine is gone or I would help you. Take Care, Tuck

StacyCPHT · Answer

Hon, Effective doctors are like prudish strippers. They all just there for the money and will do whoever as lewdly as possible to get it. I found that out recently... See if this makes you feel better.... At least you aren't 7mos pregnant... I was seeing a hi risk doc in a city about 45 min away. Have been on Oxycodone 10-15mg every 4-6 hrs for YEARS for RA and NOW I have a pinched nerve in tail bone. mmmm yummy. SO I wouldn't have to drive they said, OH the only Hi risk office in your city is a MEDICAID CLINIC. I said, What is the big deal? NOW I KNOW> Dr;s who don't get paid the big bucks treat people badly. Within 4 min of the doctor walking in she told me I'm an ADDICT then told me I should be on METHADONE instead EWWW !!! Then when I asked how long it would take for withdrawals to start and she informed me within 12 hours for the HUGE amount of narcotics I am taking and I let her know gee... It's been 42 hours since I took anything she then stated I WAS SELLING THEM> because I wasn't going through withdrawals. SO>>>> EVERY other "PAID" doctor had no issues and then that was my morning today at the "clinic" I am so sorry quality healthcare is not available to you. It DOES make a difference. Take care and feel free to IM if you'd like. Friends in frustration. (the land where quality of life is a myth)

woolyinoregon · Answer

Wow guys, I didnt expect anyone to really answer to my post, I'm impressed!.....Yes I've had an MRI, in fact I've had several,......Despite what I haerd the Techs talking about in the MRI room once, "there is some kind of tissue in his left cheek on the display"....nothing was ever found.  I've had migraines all my life since I was very young and I've dealt with the recurring left side numbness during and after a migraine,....this current set of events though has me baffled.  The drug screen is a bit concerning, I was thinking about this last night and I came up with a question of my own to ask my doctor:...."why are all these drugs on the screen if I didnt take them all at one time?"...cuz I never had all these at one time!!!!!!!,......kinda worrisome.  I'm beginning to think that my doctor really doesnt want me as a patient,..I am broke afterall,...I owe the hospital and cotors about $81,000.00,.....I cant see up even if I'm layin on my back!.....I have this theory though which goes as follows:......" if a person goes to a doctor for help, they usually go in expecting to get some kind of relief,...if that person goes in and sees the doctor and walks out with the feeling that they have made some headway, then the doctor has done an decent job,....on the other hand, if a person goes in and seews the doctor and walks out with no real perception of benefit, then all that has happened is ineffective at best,....I want an effective doctor,....she doesnt have to be pretty or well known or rich or have all sorts of diplomas hanign on the wall,...all a doctor needs to be is "effective"......
  Thats just me though.  I never expected this to happen to me, before my first siezure in 2005, I was relatively well off and had all the money I needed,.....now I'm happy just to have a ride to town and to be able to afford my xanax!!!!......  Thank you all for your comments, I'm really impressed.  I wish you all the best of luck with your own problems......if I can do anything for any of you, lemme know.

woolyinoregon

Mollyrae · Answer

How is your relationship with your Doc? Could it be that he/she just does not want to treat you anymore. Sandee is right about opiates. Also the Doctor should know and does know about opiate findings in your blood. I would question the Doc further. Take care, Mollyrae

StacyCPHT · Answer

All of those medicines, the percocet, vicodin etc, except flexeril are opiates. You dr is giving you opium. She is a moron.

sandee1818 · Answer

Opiates are a derivative of poppy and your results are in fact right but the opium in your test results were from your meds.
Your Dr knows this and I would definitely bring it up to her. When the test are done and your taking an opiate then sure it will come up as opium because they are derivatives of opium. If anyone taking narcotics such as morphine , hydrocodone, oxycodone, codeine, were tested they would test positive for opium.

sandee1818 · Answer

Opium will show up if you eat poppy seeds for one and there are many other reasons too. The meds you were on will also give a opium result. Let me get some more detailed info for you  and I will post it. 
I am so sorry your going thru this as mollyray and tuckamore say this is getting more and more common. I am still looking into reasons why this happens and I have found little information. Opium really surprises me though because opiates will show as opium in some drug test depending on the extent of the test. I will have more info for you soon.
Stay strong and know we are here for you.

Tuckamore · Answer

Welcome. I am so sorry you are in pain and without pain medications. Yes I hear about inaccurate drug tests fairly often on this forum. As Mollyrae said the community leaders will be with you soon. I too am new to this forum; you will find lots of supportive and understanding people here. There are several drugs or substances that can change your drug results. Did you demand a retest when this happened? You can also have your hair tested that will show the narcotic's you have been on accurately. And it will reveal the time frame and length of thime you were on those medications. But again our community leasders will have many more facts and information than I have. Hang in there. Take Care, Tuck

Mollyrae · Answer

I was thinking about your drud screen. I believe Heroin and Morphine can come up as opium. They are dirivatives (spelling).  I will try and contact one of the members. She can answer your question.

Mollyrae · Answer

First of all Welcome to the community! I am sorry for the ordeal you are facing. You are one of a handful of sufferers who have had crazy drug screens. Like another member said, you should have demanded another test immediatly. Our community leaders Sandee1818 and Toomanyadvil can help you. I am sure they will step in here shortly. Your numbness sounds related to your head injury. Have you had an MRI with contrast to your brain (brain scan)? My thoughts are with you, Mollyrae