Back Pain Patients

[JonnyMohawk]

I am going in for an appointment tomorrow and I believe I have some discs bulging, besides the obvious opiates what other meds do the docs prescribe you and how often are you instructed to take them?


(i.e. toradol ever 4 hours) blah blah.

Just curious! As anything about now can help... besides I don't want her to think I'm only there for the opies, some real pain relief would be nice too.


<3

[Nonphixion]

How old are you? did you get an x-rey &/or MRI? I have back problems too & am pretty low?mid 20's and have to do everything before they even considering opiates.

[JonnyMohawk]

How old are you? did you get an x-rey &/or MRI? I have back problems too & am pretty low?mid 20's and have to do everything before they even considering opiates.


On bad days I have to have help getting my shirt on.... I may be young but my car wreck left my back completely fucked.

[taj]

I'm scripted 800mg of ibuprophen 2x a day, but I don't take them very often, usually when I have a headache or when I can tell my back is inflamed. I don't think my doctor thinks I take them as often as he prescribed either though, and he's ok with that(I think.. ha ha)

I am also scripted lyrica, but that's more for fibromyalgia and nerve pain. I take 100mg at night. He did write for me to take 50mg in the morning as well, but that just knocked me out after I woke up and took them, so that wasn't cool. I told him about it and I guess he just decided to keep me at the 100mg at night, for now at least. I actually do think the lyrica helps somewhat though and it helps me sleep too.

I have bursitis in my hips that really really gets bad at night and has kind of been getting a bit ridiculous lately. He talked to me about maybe having cortisone shots a while back, but I decided I wanted to hold off doing that. Now, I think at my next visit, I'm gonna bring it up again. The pain has just become too disruptful during the night while I'm sleeping(or I guess not sleeping, cause the pain wakes me up constantly). I even got a prescription for a 300$ special mattress pad thing, and that hasn't done anything to help..


good luck tomorrow, and although I don't want you to be in pain, I hope things go well in getting something that is helpful *and* that you can have a bit of fun with..

[duck]

I get hydrocodone and muscle relaxers for my back pain...but my doc still thinks I'm in the "healing" phase and I will get better -- I hope he's right but I don't count on it.

[Nonphixion]

Oh sorry I totally forgot about the car wreck, that was pretty bad from the pictures you showed a while back. Never mind then, you might get lucky who knows? I hope you do. All I am saying is that I am younger too and all I have got is bullshit stuff and I have been playing the game for a long time now(w/proven documentation)(CT-Scan,MRI,& X-Rey) Good Luck, &try to get a doc who is like 45+ yrs. old.

[port rhombus]

I don't have back problems, but I've had good results with two adjuvants that would be appropriate for someone who does: tizanidine (Zanaflex) and pregabalin (Lyrica)

Tizanidine is a sedating muscle relaxant, chemically related to clonidine. I don't think it has any recreational value, unless you consider falling asleep to be euphoric (which I sometimes do.) It's typically dosed tid. The 4mg tablets are quadrisected and I can't take more than 1/2 during the day without having to compensate with megadoses of caffeine. If your doctor gives a script, make sure it's NOT for Zanaflex capsules, unless you have insurance that pays for anything and everything. You want "Zanaflex" or generic "tizanidine."

Lyrica is relatively new, so it can be expensive--even with insurance, and doctors love to prescribe it off-label for chronic pain. 75mg bid is a typical starting dose. This is gabapentin/Neurontin's successor. FWIW, I had horrible nausea on gabapentin and haven't had any noticeable side effects on pregabalin. I take 150mg twice a day.

Both of these drugs have true opioid potentiating properties.

Good luck tomorrow!

[Burtron]

I'm on Hydromorph Contin , Cyclobenzaprine and Naproxen for a double disc herniation.

[Papa Verine]

Oh sorry I totally forgot about the car wreck, that was pretty bad from the pictures you showed a while back. Never mind then, you might get lucky who knows? I hope you do. All I am saying is that I am younger too and all I have got is bullshit stuff and I have been playing the game for a long time now(w/proven documentation)(CT-Scan,MRI,& X-Rey) Good Luck, &try to get a doc who is like 45+ yrs. old.

you should try to get a new doctor yourself.

[drew1503]

I get Oxy 40 and Roxi 30's for breakthrough pain for my back. I have intractable pain from multiple accidents. It took a little while for my PCP to move up to the Oxy, then he sent me to PM who continued the regime. I had to find the right doc.

[Shadowsblaze]

Definately try asking for Soma, I love them and they are great for the back and neck especially lying down. They are most often given for spasm's so if you point them out and ask if you could try them. They are abused alot so its iffy there. A physical therapist I had liked them so much she told me she would give me $5 a piece for them but I refused. She then asked me not to tell anyone. She had some cahones.:D

[Nonphixion]

you should try to get a new doctor yourself.

Papa V- It's crossed my mind, but I knew I was going to have to jump through hoops. & trust me I have & still am, hopefully it pays off in the end. I'm thinking it's going to.

[hopefiend]

i bring in a list of drugs i am on naproxyn 375 mg is a good one that wont raise any radars. i just get on medicaid recently i went to my pcp told him what i was on walked out with 75ug patches and 120 30's. i also used elher danlos syndrom from an old post on the site and got everything i wanted

wow i cant spell for shit...

[Poppylvr]

I am going in for an appointment tomorrow and I believe I have some discs bulging, besides the obvious opiates what other meds do the docs prescribe you and how often are you instructed to take them?


(i.e. toradol ever 4 hours) blah blah.

Just curious! As anything about now can help... besides I don't want her to think I'm only there for the opies, some real pain relief would be nice too.


<3
You can expect some kind of NSAID - ibuprofen, naproxen, toradol. Those really help, try them.
Possibly a muscle relaxant - we use Robaxin or skelaxin at the hospital quite a bit. Soma (carisoprodol) not so much because it's scheduled now in some states and its abuse potential is high.
I had a pt on the tizanidine and she said it's really helpful.
Good luck!