14years clean/ drugs free/alcohol free

[sheilac242]

i have chronic pain when I take the pain meds it stop the pain but it makes me want more meds , becuase i'm tired of being in pain so now I fill like i have to choose pain to stay clean what would you do ?

[Franny62]

Just a word of caution about pain. It can, and will kill you, and that's a fact. I suffered a heart attack from  too high a pain level. I thought I could tough it out as well. WRONG! I your level ever gets above 6-7 get to a hospital if you cannot get it down. Please!  Oh, and BTW I'm a retired ER, and Surgical Nurse- retired. So I've wtnessed pain kill many folks!

[kittycat1433]

Well if u are tking med's then u are not clean!I would ck into ALL the other thing's out there shot's thereis ton's of stuff besides pill's.And if u feel like u want more&more stop now while ur ahead u don't want to be addicted i PROMISE if u have been b4 then u know. But for me the pill's were the ONLY thing i liked.Sound's like u like them al so stop now cuz it's not fun afer a while. Uare only taking them to make ur self feel normal and ur not getting high prob only sick.Like i said stop now if u really don't want to go down that road~Ask ur doc all the difrent thing's avaliable and go from there.I know the pain med's are aking u feel god now but the won't in a few week's so stop just stop.Kitty

[gnarly_1]

HI and welcome to the forum well you have found yourself in the same fix as many of us
choose pain or choose addiction .....I chased pain away for 16 1/2 yrs with narcotics
now that im off them I have less pain then when I was on them...its a vicious cycle with pain pills the more you take the more your body/brain wants your brain will actually create the very pain your tring to get rid off to get the narcotics ...sooner or later you need to get off the stuff to see just where your pain level actually is if you like a lot of us you may find it is very manageable without narcotics we have a lot of members here who have found that out
im glad you posted keep reading the post here and see if there is any similarity in your own life where glad to have you congrats on 14 yrs clean  good luck and God bless....Gnarly  

[Punkinhead75]

Congrats on the 14yrs that is terrific!!!  Thanks for sharing that.  I have a bad back too.  Right now I will use ibuprofen or tylenol when needed.  I also do exercises, stretching, walk and swim.  I also work on that four letter word "Diet".  LOL!!  Working on dropping 20-30lbs.  I occasionally need muscle relaxers.   My neighbor hangs on to them and gives them to me as needed.  I find that as soon as take the first one I want more.  Seems like a rock and hard place.  That is where I find a Higher Power most comforting.  Good luck!!!!

[Addict63]

Good question on pain meds. I had to face that question also. I go to AA and was on pain maintenance. Vicodin is addictive and I'm an alcoholic/addict. I was lucky though sheilac, thru the grace of God I was able to stop the vicodin. The pain finally got under control thru 2 years of PT, and ESI/RFL treatments from the pain clinic.

I trust your doctor knows you're 14 years clean?

I started to go to NA when I stopped using in Feb of this year. Now have over 6 mo clean. 3 ppl at my NA home group are on pain maintenance because they need to be. Page 101 in my NA book states: "There is no safe use of drugs for us. Our bodies don't know the difference between drugs prescribed  by a doctor, and the one's we prescribe for ourselves to get high.

But as one person said at tonight's NA meeting,"just because I'm a recovering addict doesn't mean I have to walk around in pain." He said he is on morphine. He has a really bad degenerative back. He's in his early 60's. Somehow he takes as prescribed. Me? I couldn't do it. Not for a minute. I had to quit because I couldn't quit once I got going. I chased the buzz all day. Never caught it. I had to quickly admit I have no control over any mind altering drugs; liquid, pill or powder, and got off the garbage truck before it arrived at the dump. I've toured the dump a few times in my life.

If you can take as prescribed, fantastic! If you can't... you know yourself, in your heart, the answer to that one.  It quit working long ago for us who can't.

[bmdad]

One more thing...I know exactly how you are feeling about this. It's almost like there is no other option. I'm sure, with you being a fellow addict, that you know where this road could very easily take you. After being on the pills for the first year they grabbed a hold of me and didn't want to let go. While I was on the pills I knew what they were doing to me and that carried over to my family. I always seemed to be down in the dumps and I associated it with pain. Come to find out it wasn't the pain causing my mild depression. It was the pills causing it. Now that I'm clean I haven't been this happy since before my injury. Sure, I do have some rough days dealing with pain but I deal with it as it comes. It's better than having to deal with active addiction.
Just know that I can relate. It can be an emotional roller coaster. If you need anything, even if you just feel like venting, I'm here for ya!

Brian

[dominosarah]

I wish i had an easy answer to give you but this is something you have to decide.      sara

[cantfly]

at the moment i am choosing pain -can only sit for 15 mins... but at least i can understand and rationalise the pain. hell, i SHOULD be in pain... but it is early days for the pain and i know it will wear me down in time, i just hope i can manage it conservatly. -it may well be a blessing that my Dr is on hollidays so i cant just run to him for somthing... it is 3 weeks since i weaned off the tramadol, the pain started after week 1, but for me it beats being ill from meds..
best of luck

[bmdad]

I suffer with back pain. Many others here that suffer with chronic pain will agree that taking opiates will actually cause us to feel more pain eventually. Our brain will tell us we are actually suffering with more pain than what we really are in order for it to get its fix. Once off of the pain meds for awhile you will probably find out that this is true for you also.
There are a number of ways to control pain that are non narcotic. It really depends on what you suffer from on what direction you need to go. I get steroid injections, I exercise, do stretching exercises, core strengthening, physical therapy, and live a much healthy lifestyle. Sure, it seemed much easier taking a pill but my use spiraled out of control and it was not how I wanted to live my life. I actually feel better most days now than I did before I injured my back.
Do you go to a pain clinic? They are not always about handing pills out. The one I go to does their best to find alternative ways to live pain free. There is also a pain management forum here on medhelp. They might have some other ideas over there. We will support you every step of the way in your fight to stay off the pills.
Best of luck to you and welcome to the forum!

Brian

[Lindsay_T]

sheilac,
Are you taking pain meds now? There are a lot of people that have quit them and learned other ways to manage their pain. Getting clean has been the most healthy thing in my life. I do not have chronic pain though.

[IBKleen]

Good for you! Keep up the good work!!!