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Severe Pain and Nausea

I have been an observer for the last several weeks now and found this site to be very informative.  I am hoping that you can lend your perspective on m y situation.  I have severe back and neck pain, DDD, fibromyalgia, spinal stenosis, spondylithesis, neuropathy, etc.  I have seen a neurosurgeon who recommended a two-level fusion in my neck and a four to five level fusion in my lumbar spine.  This was five years ago but he also said I should try to hold off as long as possible because of my age if I opted to have surgery then I would need to have a revision within the next twenty years.  Anyway I see a pain management specialist and I take MS Contin 30 mg, 3 times a day and Percocet 4 times a day and Lyrica and Cymbalta.  I usually wake up several times a night but last night I slept through until the alarm went off.  As soon as I got up I was in severe pain, far worse than usual.  I was in so much pain, I was severely nauseated but when I told my husband he said it was because I didnt take any pain meds over night.  He said that it was sad that I was so addicted that I was going through withdrawal already.  But I told him I have had bouts where the pain was bad enough to make me nauseous and he said that he had NEVER heard of that before.  Has anyone else had this before?
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Avatar universal
Thanks for your responses.  It makes me feel as though I am not quite so alone.  On a conscious level it is one thing to know that pain causes nausea it is another thing to doubt your symptoms sometimes.  While I know that I am dependent on the pain meds, I also  think it is a natural state after eight to nine years.  I find it hard to say that I am not being   adequately treated with the meds I am on.  As a mother of seven I find it easier to take care of everyone else and "just deal" with what is going on with me.  I go to the doctor again on the 3rd and will let the doctor know about my ongoing pain.  I really like this physician.....he has already given me some hope by telling me that there is a surgical procedure that he could try to buy me some time so I wouldn't have to face the fusion yet so he should be able to help.
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Avatar universal
Addiction and dependence are very different.  A lot of people (some doctors even) have trouble with this concept.  I'll admit to being conflicted about it myself.  People without chronic pain sometimes have a hard time understanding what it's really like.  I have a lot of family who just don't understand, despite me trying to educate them.  It may be a good idea to bring your husband to the doctor.  Maybe he would get a better understanding of what you're going through.

I often have nausea from pain and it can even get to the point where I'm vomiting (which brings another whole problem!)  You should let your doctor know about this, unless it resolves very soon.  You could be having a flare-up or it could be because you missed a dose.  Whatever the cause, it's something you need to address and correct before it gets too out of control.  Hope you feel better soon.
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1508881 tn?1313114901
Addiction is different than dependence. After being on opiates for five years, your body is bound to become dependent on them. So it is possible that if there was a longer than normal gap between taking your medication, your body could go into withdrawal. Withdrawal does not automatically mean drug addict. Withdrawal can cause rebound pain which may be why your pain was higher than normal, and it can cause nausea. But pain by itself, without the influence of opiates, can cause nausea.
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1731970 tn?1328087070
Severe pain can cause nausea. Perhaps he is correct about the addiction part I understand they are very addictive pain medication. Maybe you should see the pain specialist about the addiction part. Take your husband so he can have a better understanding of your pain. Severe pain can cause all sorts of problems starting with deppression. Hope it all works out for you.
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1508881 tn?1313114901
Pain can for sure cause nausea. It's happened to me several times.
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