Report on my first visit with pain doc

[JKerner59]

:grin: So I was so nervous about visiting the pain doctor as I was used to my primary care doc of 27 years handling my prescriptions for pain. The visit with the doctor went just fine...he was very caring and interested in addressing my concerns.

Bottom line is that I can no longer take the tramadol (50mg) every day and take the oxycodone (5/325) for bad flares (Thank you DEA..Ugh!) I had to pick one or the other..so I mistakenly picked the oxy not realizing how much the tramadol was actually doing for me until I didn't take it this morning as I have for the past 5 plus years. OMG! I thought I would lose it with how my body felt with the all over body ache. I will definitely call the pain doc on Monday and ask to return the script he gave me for oxy and get the tramadol instead.

I cannot believe the situation all of the pain sufferers are in today...all because of the "druggies" who have ruined our health care for all of us.

Just a few things:

I have to pay $60 more co-pay to see the pain doc than the $20 I pay to see my primary care. If the pain doc can only write 3 months of scripts and I have to go back every 3 months that's $240.

Let's get started on the pharmacies who are bucking the doctor's prescriptions and will only fill 90 of a 120 quantity prescription and make the person come back mid month and pay another co-pay for the rest of the prescription.

As what happened with me with my knee surgery, because I already had a pain prescription from my primary care doc which had nothing to do with my knee surgery, my pharmacy would not fill the pain script from my knee doctor after my knee surgery in June. I had to call my knee surgeon and have him tell me how to take the prescription I already had from my primary care doc.

At the next visit with my primary care doc, I asked him how in the hell was he supposed to know that the script he gave me for breakthrough pain (which he monitored how many I took over a certain period of time) was used for surgery pain? It is so SCREWED UP and the general public is just getting thrown into this mess without any prior knowledge.

The government is getting in the way of our health care rights to be treated by our physicians in a competent and compassionate way.

I plan to start a letter writing campaign to my congressman and senator and the DEA in protest of our treatment.

There are so many people who depend on their pain pills to have some semblance of quality of life and the DEA has taken from them the little bit of support they had to make their life better.

There is so much more I could say about how things are screwed up but I can't imagine that everyone has experienced something in the last month with the changes that became effective in early October.

Thanks for reading my rant!

 

[JKerner59]

Update to my post above...just had a conversation with my pharmacist about tramadol and oxycodone...she said they are both considered to be for "breakthrough" pain so that is why the doctor is asking me to choose one or the other...she said I need to be on a baseline medication to control the fibro pain...so what is that? the neurotin (sp?) I have been taking for 5 plus years? Obviously, it was the two times a day tramadol that allowed to work a job and live my life. I told the pharmacist that I have been trying to find a doctor that specializes in fibromyalgia but it is a touch search. The most respected rheumatologist in town is so booked up that you may not see her for six months between appointments.

I made it to the dog park and grocery store and am now back in bed with icy hot on my knee and a heating pad on my lower back..gorgeous day outside! Oh, well, LOL!

 

[annbarlow]

You can also take second advice. Sometimes X-rays reports may diagnosed wrong.




Link Not Allowed.

 

[Forgetmenot]

I to take two tramadol twice a day .but I have paracetamol with mine as it helps the tramadol work better. I to didnt no how much it was helping till I stopped it. I stayed off it for a few weeks and at first I started to feel good ,like I used to and thought ok tramadol was making me feel sick.but after a few lovely weeks bang I hurt like a b.....
I'm now back on them .just try to remember we could be on a lot stronger stuff so give yourself a pat on the back for coping with the pills u got. I tak amitripoline every night to make me sleep I say make as without it I'd never sleep.
And it's meant to help with nerve pain .i think it does but because u stay o. It all the time u tend to think it's not doing anything u till u stop it.right now I feel fluie shaky and sore glads.some times it's so hard to no if your coming down with something or it's just the fibro.