Drug and Alcohol Self Medication - What we all do but not a good thing for long term

I'm on OxyContin 80mg 3 times a day. Actually it's now called OxyNeo so as not to make it easier to abuse even though I never abused it and always took it the way it was intended.....orally.

Anyhow, when they switched from OxyContin to OxyNeo, I could tell there was (and remains) a huge difference in pain control. Unlike the OxyContin, the Neo doesn't give that "kicking in feeling" which admittedly I liked probably a little too much now that I don't get it from the Neo.

I don't drink alcohol and haven't for decades simply because whether I have 2 beer or a dozen beer I get a migraine the following day so that was an easy decision to make.

As for weed and hash etc, I dabbled in that back before I joined the CF and haven't touched an "illegal" drug since that time. I know a few chronic pain patients and others with PTSD who swear that smoking weed/hash relaxes them but because I was a "stoner" back in the day, I wouldn't be able to differentiate between getting high and therapeutic use.

All that being said, and getting back to the oxy, I know for a fact that I'm addicted to the shit! I can feel the withdrawals within half an hour if I don't take my next pill. Sweats, skin crawling, yawns, cramps, etc. I mentioned it to my doctor and he said my body doesn't know the difference between a junkie and a legit user and the symptoms are indeed withdrawals.

So yeah, be careful folks when taking narcotic painkillers because its a vicious cycle. Even if I wanted to get off them I'm screwed seeing how my body has been used to them since 1999 and no way would I be able to get off them without going mental.

Also I tried Robaxacet Platinum but the doctor said it was not as effective as Tylenol and/or Advil. Has a muscle relaxant and a small amount of pain medication in the product.

DVA does cover it from what I heard on documentory other day.

Free the Herb

Advil has been linked along with all Anti inflammatory drugs to increased risk of a cardiac event. For pain the only relief is marihuana which time and time again is the most safe of pain relief. It might not be politically correct but it's the best

bad day today boys lots of t-3s and gotta get more wood in its cold these days thank god its saterdy i can switch to booze soon lol.

propat

thanks bugout i never would have thought about this again if you hadent mentioned it.

propat

bug out a good idea and may start im alternating now as i continually take arthrotec and switch between t-3 and tylonal arthitus.now i dont know if things changed over the years but when i first asked about alternating the only thing covered by dva at the time was tylonal arthritis.maybe they cover advil now i will check.

propat

I was on Fentanyl patches and massive amounts of different Opiates. I attended a Pain Clinic in Thunder Bay in 1999 and found other ways to cope with pain. A lot of breathing and finding your happy place(imagery). I am now on a great medication called Tramadol. It is a synthetic narcotic topped off with acetominophen. Too bad VAC will not cover this drug. It doesn't make you feel "sick" (high), and doesn't have dependant tendencies. This drug is part of the reason I was reinstated for sisip I think, as I claimed the $100 per month to them on my drug plan through the years, keeping the lines of communication open. I highly recommend this drug. I also use Celebrex with this and 2 types of anti depressants used for chronic pain control.
Chimo.

propat, if you could alternate between tylenol and advil it would give your liver a break and at least that is what the doc told us.

ya i take a lot of t-3s but not sure if i have much of a liver left though lol.

propat

Tylenol is a pain medication relied on daily in high dosages however it affects the liver long term.

For most of you out there with pain and issues you self medicate....I'm sure even if you wont admit it to yourself. It is what you have done or are doing. This is the place for those that want to get some advise or guidance can let out your concerns.

As a start note. You may have found a perfect tool in the short term to keep you alive, but at some point you have to find a way to properly control it so you stay alive in the long term.