Need pain meds advice

[Gracie561]

I have been on pain pills from clinics for 10 years.I found out fibromyalgia 1999 severe until summer 2003,but then ws diagnosed FINALLY with hepatitis c .I recieved a blood tranfusion in 1986 with my first child.I was feverish and ill for 10 days.I could not take care of my daughter or myself.Luckily my mom and dad were still young enough to drive from pa.to fl.They took care of me a baby again.Got infection in womb.c-section.anemic.I have post tramatic stress disordere for many reasons in August.Present day I found a Dr that graduated med school at 17 yrs old.He thinks I may have aplastic anemia.My right shoulder hardly works.Because he`s a new dr. he only gave me vicaden.I hate pain management.They had me on 45mg of morphine sulfate,which did not help my pain alot,and I HALLUCINATED all summer.My pharmacist of 20+ practicing 30.She is smarter than the M.D.s about rx because she ONLY studied drugs, science, molecules,interactions etc.She suggested a normal dose of Demerol,an oldie but worked for me after  c-section.Is Demorol is this a good choice for apastic anemia.My right arm always hurts.I am not funtioning no driving hrd to get a bath,confusion,prepare food only eggc.I DO NOT want to be drugged up ,I just want to be a normal person:take a shower ,go to mall,start painting again.disability check not here yet(liver transplant)

[Tuckamore]

Hi Gracie,

Welcome to the Pain Management Forum. I am very glad that you found us. I saw your post earlier but was hoping Mollyrae and Babs would post first as they both suffer with Hep C. In my opinion they understand what you are experiencing better than someone that does not have Hep C.

I am happy that you recognize that expertise of our pharmacists. I often say, ask your pharmacist. They do have the knowledge of medications and their interactions better than most physicians.

Demerol (meperidine), though an effect narcotic is not usually prescribed for long term use in chronic pain, at least not in my state. If you search the Internet you will discover that there are actually some articles (written by PM professionals) that say, "Never use Demerol for chronic pain." Don't be deceived by the effectiveness you obtained from an IM post-op dose. Demerol is much less effective orally than on parenteral administration.

I too have hallucinated on Morphine, too high of a dose of morphine, while hospitalized. It's a horrid feeling. Your dose may have been too high. In my opinion there are better and safer options than Demerol. Also Demerol should be given with caution in those with severe impairment of hepatic or renal function.

The patch (Fentanyl) is often a good option for severe pain, obviously it is not the only one available. Everyone responds differently to different opiates so you may need a trial and error period to discover the right one for you.

Best of luck to you. I hope you will consider becoming an active memeber of our community. We will look forward to your updates. Please let us know how you are doing and your progress.

Peace,
Tuck

[Mollyrae]

Hi Gracie:

Hep C can cause many things. Diseases or infections that are secondary to the virus. The Doctors need to keep a good eye on your blood work. Like Babs said, stay away from the Tylenol. The other pain meds should be fine for your system.

Have you thought about the possibility of treatment for your Hep C?? MedHelp has a forum dedicated to members who have Hepatitis C. You may want to check it out. There is a lot of information on the treatment for the virus.

Like Babs..I too suffer from Hep C. Acquired it back in the 80's with a blood transfusion like you only I had two of them so I don't know which one infected me.

I have constant muscle and joint pain. Some of it from the Hep C and now from secondary issues. You will most likely be on pain meds for the rest of your life so I would suggest that you and your Doctor find the best one for you. I use the Fentanyl Patch along with Morphine for breakthrough. Ask the Doctor about the possibility of using Fentanyl. I find it easier on my system and I don't feel "high" all the time.

Well, I wish I had more advise for you. Please take care and good luck,
Mollyrae

[Babs1469]

I'm sorry for all you are going through, You had a lot of info so I'm going to try to answer some of what you talked about, first off, Fibro cannot be helped with pain meds so if a dr is prescribing only pain meds for your Firbr, see another dr. Also, with the Hep C you need to be especially carful of what they give you and the amount of aciteminiphen because it is very hard for the liver to deal with. I too have Hep C and finding the right balance can be very very difficult. If Demerol works for you and helps with the pain and doesnt give you hallutionations then I say go with it. I hate to think a Dr is that stupid that he would prescribe something contraindicated when you give such an accurate medical history. The first thing you should do is find a doctor that you trust. If you hate pain mgmt doctors then hopefully you can deal with another specialist that doesn't have a problem prescribing narcotics. Are you on the list for a liver transplant? I know they frown upon heavy narcotic use even when valid, when considering recipeients. I hope someone on here can give you better advice and I hope things work out for you and your baby I'll be thinking of you\

XOXO
Babs