Question about PERCOCET for those in the know.

[Madrone]

I have constant back pain, with it sometimes bumping up to excruciating.
For the excruciating moments, I have narcotics on hand. A couple of scripts ago, I had vicodin.

Anyway, I will only take the narcs when going to bed. I had to stop the vicodin because it didn't TOUCH the pain, but made my brain feel like it was on speed so I couldn't sleep. Now I have a percocet script.

Someone told me that I will have the same reaction intensifed with percocet as I did w/ vicodin. Percocet may actually handle the pain, but I'll be amped up all night. Is this true?

Well - my back is letting me know that tonight is a narcotic night, but if I won't be able to sleep I don't want to take anything.

Percocet users and abusers - check in please!

[southerngirlwriter]

1. The only thing I know about percocet

is that, in 7 years of sobriety, I've had two friends go on it for legitimate medical reasons, but they enjoyed the "high" and started drinking again.

If you have substance-abuse history or tendencies, please be careful.

I'm sorry about your back. Mine goes out from time to time, but I find that muscle relaxers work for me.

[Madrone]

3. I have a HUGE bottle of muscle relaxers :)

And no substance abuse tendancies, which is why I can pretty much get what I want from my doctor. He totally trusts me. In fact, this time I requested he only give me 10 of the percocets, because I usually don't get thru a script before it expires. It has to be UNBEARABLE before I ever consider narcotics, and most of the time I can just suck it up and deal.

[DemoTex]

20. Flexoril 10 mg, TID, my MD wrote.

I told him last physical, NO WAY! I cannot function on 20 mg Flexoril a day PLUS Attenolol. I said 5 mg "as needed" at night works fine for my back. He said "OK."

So I'm cutting a 5-year supply of Flexoril. I take half a tab maybe twice a month. Usually at night, after over-doing-it. The RX will be way out of date before I need a refill.

[Tandalayo_Scheisskopf]

2. Do you deal with depression in your life?

If so, in some rare cases, people with depression can take a depressent/narcotic and experience symptoms such as those. It's rare, but it happens.

I really doubt that Percoset will do that any more than Vicodin. That sounds all too anecdotal.

[Madrone]

6. Nope, no depression issues.

I thought about taking a perc before, on a weekend, just to see what it "feels like" - but I didn't want to do that. As I explained above I only have 10, and they are only for the most unbearable moments. I would have hated to waste one just to "see" if it keeps me awake or not. Although, now that I feel like I need one, I almost wish I'd tried one out so I'd KNOW. Laying awake and in pain all night on a narcotic and having to go to work in the morning don't mesh so well.

I'm not very functional on no sleep.

[unblock]

4. vicodin and percocet are not the same thing

they're obviously both narcotics and all narcotics are related, so you might well have the same reaction.

but then again, you might not.

the few times i've taken vicodin, it did almost nothing; percocet was perfect, it took care of the back pain without causing much drowsiness/narcotic dissociation.

i'd say give it a try ... if you're really worried, perhaps you could try a half dose?

[jimshoes]

5. I have taken percocet for migraines

and do not experience those kind of symptoms, however a friend of mine who had the same experience as you have with vicodin, had much the same experience with percocet. My advice would be to take a couple of advil or regular tylenol tonight and try the percocet during waking hours to see how it affects you.

[NewHampster]

7. Dumb question - Have you ever tried Ibuprofin?

when I slipped L4 L5 or whatever the proper terminology is, I was on Percocet for weeks until I passed out in the bathroom. I also had PT and saw a Chiro for many years.

Back kept popping yearly and I was laid up a few days every couple of months.

The Ibuprofen was invented. It is a miracle drug for back pain. Specially when taken profilactically, before you do something stupid.

If you haven't tried it in script high dosage, you should. the presecription version is usually 800 3 times a day rather than the 200 on the advil bottle.

IMHO

nh

[Madrone]

10. Yeah, I have. But you're right - maybe I should do it again.

At least if for no other reason than the nights that are bad, but not narcotic bad.

I've got the "no one's really sure what it means or why it happens" fibromyalgia on top of it, so sometimes my whole body is so hyper sensitve about pain I can't even stand the weight of a blanket on me.

The worst back pain I get is when it feels like it's centered in my spine, in the upper lower back - feels like the vertebrae are grinding, and grinding, and grinding... with the hypersensitivity.

[NewHampster]

14. I've known that one too

I think they do grind. I used to get that when I was drafting in the old days sitting hunched over a drafting board all day. Ouch

Ibup is a miracle. nuf said, except read my buffy post....

[NewHampster]

8. An' my belly is craving, I got shakin' in my head

I feel like I'm dyin' an' I wish I were dead
If I lived till tomorrow it's gonna be a long time
For I'll reel and I'll fall and rise on codine
An' it's real, an' it's real, one more time

When I was a young man I learned not to care
Wild whiskey, confronted I often did swear
My mother and father said whiskey is a curse
But the fate of their baby is many times worse
An' it's real, an' it's real, one more time

You'll forget your woman, you'll forget about man
Try it just once, an' you'll try it again
It's sometimes you wonder and it's sometimes you think
That I'm a-living my life with abandon to drink
An' it's real, an' it's real, one more time

Stay away from the cities, stay away from the towns
Stay away from the men pushin' the codine around
Stay away from the stores where the remedy is found
I will live a few days as a slave to codine
An' it's real, an' it's real, one more time

An' my belly is craving, I've got a shakin' in my head
An' I've started heating whether my body said
Steady yourself with the grains of cocaine
An' you'll end dead or you'll end up insane
An' it's real, an' it's real, one more time

An' my belly is craving, I got shaking in my head
I feel like I'm dyin' an' I wish I were dead
If I lived till tomorrow it's gonna be a long time
For I'll reel and I'll fall and rise on codine
An' it's real, an' it's real, one more time
An' it's real, an' it's real, one more time

Co'dine - Buffy Saint Marie - Percocet is Codeine

[Madrone]

11. *L* My last script was Tylenol 3 -

Doc just keeps me on a random sampling rotation of drugs - but we're talking one small script per year, two max.

[madrchsod]

12. buffy! dam i love her singing

codeine,yup, i was on that when i got my teeth yanked-codeine and hash..i felt no pain

[madrchsod]

9. have you checked into

any pain clinics? i know mayo clinic has a pain clinic that publishes the latest news about their research and treatments. i`d have your doctor or you get a hold of an accredited pain research hospital or clinic. check out mayo clinics website for information..

[Madrone]

13. No, I haven't actually.

And I don't know if I'd want to - all that time off work, oy. There's nothing around where I live, so the closest real hospital is 1.5-2 hours away.

I've been living with this pain for SO long it's what's normal to me. It's the occasional more intense flare ups that give me trouble.

I will take your advice and check into it though - can't hurt.

[NewHampster]

15. I think docs don't know squat about backs

unless it is "operable" which mine wasn't.

go to a chiropractor or physical therapist. they'll fix the problem instead of feeding the symptom.

[welshTerrier2]

16. Other sources of pain relief

fwiw, i know two people taking Vioxx and both are getting excellent pain relief ... both suffer from arthritis ... do you know what's causing your back pain?

i also get great pain relief from Aleve or other NSAID's (like Advil) ... Aleve seems to work the best though ... i wouldn't view these as weak drugs just because they are sold over the counter ... they used to be prescription drugs and they are very effective ... plus, unlike the percoset, you can function fine on them during the day ... might be worth a try ... they might even do a better job with pain relief ...

last point, my SO has severe back problems ... there are all sorts of websites, books, products and stores that cater to people with back problems ... for most back problems, a special exercise routine is a must ...

top tips include good footwear, lie on back with knees up to chest and arms around legs, sleep with a pillow between your knees, lose weight, swim, walk on soft surfaces when possible, sit in a good chair, lift heavy items properly and don't lug around or lift anything heavy ... also, when standing for long periods, put one foot up on a stool ... hope this helps ...

[Madrone]

18. I like aleve - I take that when I'm having a unbearable DAY -

Sheesh, sounds like I am one hardcore pill popper over here, doesn't it?

Actually, that's not the case - I will rarely take anything, mostly I just deal with it. It's crazy what a person can get used to. When it gets so bad that I can't push it to the back of my mind is when I start looking for relief.

[aquart]

17. What's causing the back pain?

Muscles? Bones? Those evil discs? Makes a difference what will help.

[Madrone]

19. Don't know -

Had a really ghetto xray done 1-2 years ago - and I mean ghetto. Like I haven't seen an xray that poor since well, before I was born.

I also didn't like the way they took it, I had to lay in the fetal position on my side, and another lying on my back, stretched out. From those, it didn't look like anything was wrong, but the pictures were bad. I would have also preferred to have been standing up, not lying down and stretching my spine out.

Muscles are definitely a problem - that's a given. As for bones/discs, I don't know. It really FEELS like something is going on there - and the vetebrae in question is noticeably "pushed out" from the one below - and if anyone touches that vertebrae, I FREAK. When the pain level amps up I can't stand to have my spine touched at all, anywhere, not even with a brush of the fingertips. During the days I was lucky enough to have someone rub my back for me they could only do it if they did NOT touch my spine - if they did, it would bring tears to my eyes and I seriously would have a hard time trusting them again and remained tensed up waiting for them to do it a second time.

All that, but the xrays showed nothing.

[welshTerrier2]

21. just x-rays ??

it sounds like you're a very good candidate for a CAT scan or an MRI... i'm not an expert on this but i'm doubtful "just x-rays" would be an adequate method of diagnosing the problem ... x-rays are OK as a starting point, but where they didn't show anything and you still have pain that requires narcotics, you need more diagnosis ...

lots of HMO's try to save money by discouraging you from having a CAT scan or an MRI ... but given the amount of pain you're describing, it seems like at least one of these tests is absolutely necessary ...

talk to your doctor and tell him you want him to help you get a better (i.e. more accurate) diagnosis than you've been given ... don't let the healthcare bastards push you around ...

[Madrone]

22. Was scheduled a brain MRI before - for MS

They thought with the pain and weird stuff I've got going on, that may be an issue. Well, actually, neither the doctor nor myself thought that was the issue, but he wanted to rule it out before pursuing another avenue of treatment.

Result of brain MRI = There's a brain in there! And no lesions.


I've wondered why I never got something better than those shitty xrays, but I really get sick of doctors, no answers, and feeling like a hypochondriac after awhile, so I never pursued it. Plus, that MRI was expensive, even with insurance. I think it was over $300 - which may not sound like a lot, but that's 1/3 or more of my monthly take home pay.

[AlienGirl]

23. Vicodin does the same thing to me

But percocet was fine, didn't affect my sleep at all.

Tucker

[Madrone]

24. thanks - I'm still wavering on the fence... :)

Although - now I probably won't take it, as I would have preffered to take it an hour ago - I don't want to still have it in my system when the alarm goes off in the morning.

I'll just take a flexaril - won't touch the pain, but hell, it'll knock me out so I won't feel a thing

[Seldona]

25. Benadryl

Take a normal dose, and nighty night.


Just make sure you are able to get 8 or so hours of uninterupted sleep.

[Failure]

26. Listen to me...

I blew out my rotator cuff a year ago and was on every kind of pain medicine you can imagine from Celebrex to Lortab. Because I'm a musician, the last thing I wanted to do was have a surgery...one slip, my career's over. So I decided to try and manage the pain. Eight months and several thousand pills later I was no better off and so I guess what I'm trying to say is, get every single test you can possibly get to find out what's wrong with it-then fix it, right away, so you don't get hooked on them. Wanna end up like Pigboy? Just kidding, I hope you feel better.

Failure.