pain control post stroke

[kenniebobennie]

my mother is now 15 days post stroke and in acute care (complex care), pain constantly from head to toe. right middle dense CVS. left sided paralysis absent gag and swallow reflex at present. signs of recovery are slow, some gross motor movement returning, aggitated and right leg shaking with pain. she is constantly crying out and wants to die with the pain at the present. we stopped the morphine, stopped the ativan and flexeral because very sedated and lethargic. she is 82 and very viable living on her own. she is getting tylenol 650 mg via feeding tube q4h to help with comfort measures. family is assisting with care 24/7. my question is: what drugs are available if any which can help with the pain and keep her alert for physio, etc. or any devices to help with pain control. is there any leading edge treatment therapy, acupucture, chiropractic,etc, please help    kennie

[brain2005]

Kennie ... I forgot to mention earlier that after a little over two years post stroke the terrible stabbing head pain is all but gone. Now I do suffer with some head pain that is stroke related, but it is no where near as bad as I described in my earlier message. Today the pain is manageable with Motrin, Tylenol, Advil or similar over-the-counter pain medications. I should also mention that stroke caused me deep, deep depression. My doctors switched me to a newer anti-depressant medication called Cymbalta, a time-released medication that also has some pain reducing properties. It has been very, very helpful in helping my depression and head pain. I have needed to get off the barbiturate based pain meds because I was starting to like them TOO much; I am a recovered drug addict and could not risk a relapse on these drugs. Again .. I encourage you to continue this research. There are no easy answers for stroke recovery as every stroke and every brain is DIFFERENT.  ... Thanks, WALTER

[brain2005]

I suffered a massive hemorrhage and hemorrhagic stroke in September 2005. Two brain surgeries were required to save my life: one to clip two ruptured aneurysms and another to install a shunt to remove blood and cerebro spinal fluid from inside my skull. I was comatose for a while and it is a miracle that I survived.

Part of the time I was placed on a morhphine drip for the pain; later I went through a course of treatment with Percocet and Fioricet for pain. Luckily, I do not remember a period of about 6 months after the stroke and do not remember much of the pain. What I do remember is many weeks on intense stabbing head pain (some people call them "Ice Pick Headaches." The Percocet and Fioricet helped considerably but did not completely stop the pain. To learn more about these two barbiturate type drugs, go to this resource: http://www.drugs.com/   ... just type in the drug name in the search bar and you will be started on the research. There are many, many sources of drug and stroke recovery/rehab information on the Internet. I hope this is helpful to you.

WALTER

[strokeoflife]

I experienced unbearable pain while in hospital after stroke.  Was told it is nerve pain and no drug can really bring relief.  They did all they could.  I was crying and moaning constantly...thought i was going to loose my mind.  In time it got better.  Later I paid my homeopath a visit, and she advised me to keep taking my pills and use the homeopathic remedy.  Within 24 hours after starting with the remedy my suicidal thoughts dissapeared, I felt I had more control over my affedted side and the shaking of my head and afftected sitde dissapeared.  I know now there is also a homeopathic remedy for nerve pain and wish I had known about it when I needed it in hospital!  I would give it a try if I were you!