vicodin

[Guest guest]

Oh no,

Im currently taking hydrocodone,

Im on my second bottle.

I have a sinus infection.

But....I think theres something more wrong

because its been two weeks and its not getting better

My head hurts..Anyone know what this is ?

Is this drug safe?

Lydia kay

[Guest guest]

Lydia Kay,

Hydrcodone is Vicodin. Another name. You should probably have your infection

followed up on.

gayle/trans.6-99

galye@... ^0^

`

[Guest guest]

Kay,

I've been taking Vicoden for more than a year. Until very recently, I've

taken minimum dose (5 mgs. twice daily) without need or interest in

increasing it. During the past few months, I've had an increase in leg and

now back pain to the extent that I would be bedridden without pain relief.

With the full consent and encouragement of all of my doctors (Hematologist,

Neurologist and Internist) I've increased to two 10 mgs. daily, which is

still considered a mild dose. The potential for abuse is there, but not at

those doses.

This week's Time Magazine has an article on " death " (morbid topic) and they

go over the issue of pain relief with a little bit about our society's

preoccupation with fear of " addiction " regardless of the cost to the patient

in pain. They point out that the actual addiction rate of patients who

receive narcotic pain relief is 1%. They explain that the reasons that many

doctors are reluctant to prescribe pain medications are multiple. Mainly,

ignorance about pain control, addiction risks in general and fear of censure

from the FDA for indiscriminate dispensing of controlled substances.

I watched my brother dying from pancreatic cancer, in a hospital, having

pain meds withheld by ignorant nursing staff who would not give him

scheduled pain killers because they claimed he was " addicted " . He would

have to call me at home; I'd call the nurse's station, ask why he hadn't

received his meds, then I'd have to threaten to call the Oncologist at home

if they didn't give them to him. That worked, but the cruelty and

humiliation of the entire sequence was an affront to a dying man and in my

eyes, shameful.

I also had to battle my own father-in-law who withheld his dying wife's pain

meds during the days before her death, claiming she was going to become

addicted. Ignorance and fear at play.

I've never suffered chronic pain until recently. Most of my life I've

refused pain meds, not because I was afraid of becoming addicted, but

because they made me sick. However, I now know that given a choice of

living longer, but in severe pain or living a shorter, " addicted " life with

some semblance of serenity, I'd opt for the latter. Of course, my pain

isn't severe. It's just totally disabling, so a walk across a room is more

than I wish to endure. And, this pain is not necessary and is easily

relieved. Why would I choose to put up with it if given a choice?

About the risk to people with liver disease - Vicoden can be risky to people

with liver disease as well as a number of other conditions, IF it's abused.

Taken as prescribed, however, according to my doctors, it is not a risky

drug for me despite relatively advanced cirrhosis. If only one

irresponsible doctor had sanctioned me taking Vicoden for pain relief, I'd

question whether it's alright. However, Hepatologists from Cedars-Sinai and

Scripps, the Hepatologist who has treated me for almost three years (and who

thinks that Prednisone is immeasurably more dangerous than Vicoden), a

Neurologist, a Rheumatologist, an Endocrinologist, two different

Cardiologists and an Internist have ALL told me that Vicoden is not going to

do me any harm as long as it's taken as prescribed. On the other hand,

every one of these doctors routinely lecture me about smoking.

Seeking relief from chronic pain is not sinful or an indication of moral

weakness. It's a reasonable demand for some quality of life after being

robbed of years that otherwise might have been different. Speaking only for

myself, I'm neither martyr nor masochist. I would not feel more noble if I

bit my tongue and suffered in silence. I would feel like a fool for

depriving myself of what I can get out of the remaining years of my life.

But, each of us has to make this decision for ourselves. And, each of us

has to trust our doctors. Some of our doctors will tell us that Vicoden is

risky. I would not want to be their cancer patient. Others will treat us

like adults and assume that we will not abuse any medications we take. A

few really enlightened doctors might even think that if we were to abuse our

medications, that would be our business. Only when we start buying and

selling on the streets and robbing 7-11's to get our supply do we become a

social risk.

As usual, these are only my opinions, but they are strong opinions - I've

seen too many people suffer too much as a result of prudish, controlling and

uninformed doctors and a society that is overly inclined to believe that if

it's not painful it must be sinful.

Take care,

Geri

[Guest guest]

Lydia Kay,

I also have sinusitis right now. Hydrocodone, for some reason, doesn't seem

to relieve headaches. I'm reluctant to take aspirin, but about twice a week

during bouts of sinusitis, I take two Sinutab with two Bufferin. Sinutab

has acetaminophen (same ingredient as Tylenol) so shouldn't be taken in

excess and probably not taken with Tylenol at all. It does usually seem to

help. You must be having severe headaches for your doctor to give you

Hydrocodone, which is Vicoden. You have my sympathy. Headaches are hell to

live with.

Take care,

Geri

[Guest guest]

Geri,

youre opinions on pain relief are right on,

as an alcoholic my Doctors dont script me too many drugs----- nor do I

need them or want them, but if and or when I reach the levels of pain

some of you guys have beenn describing I know I rather die sooner than

to live a useless life. It`s typically illogical to force some one to

live on in misery . How could one become addicted if thier life

expectancy is measured in a few short years or

months,and SO WHAT if they do? As long- as you said,- they aren`t

jacking 7-11`s or depriving thier family of food.

jerry

..

[Guest guest]

Jerry,

One of our sons who is a recovering alcoholic has also had four back

surgeries over the past three years. Needless to say, pain control is an

issue for him. He knows that he has an addictive personality but he also

has to deal with the pain. He takes 5 times or more the pain meds I do and

he realizes that he's probably become addicted to them. He hasn't drank for

more than two years, however, and with the medication he's able to live a

relatively normal life. I fail to see where his " addiction " is an issue as

long as he isn't overdosing and spending half his time in the ER. He says

that he's even run into an " attitude " at the pharmacy where he fills his

prescriptions. There's too much bugaboo attached to the concept of

addiction. In my opinion, the only kind of addiction we need to worry about

is the kind that involves illegal drugs that are bought on the street, and

that could lead to criminal activities, or the kind that cause substantial

physiological harm. We could easily overdose on OTC meds like Tylenol, so

overdosing shouldn't even be an issue. Our society needs to have an

attitude adjustment and to have a better understanding of the need for

adequate pain control instead of worrying so much about how that control is

achieved.

Take care,

Geri

[Guest guest]

Geri,

I just came in from an A.A. meeting and had this conversation with a

friend there.

We concluded that the use of narcotics AS

PRESCRIBED wre no more a sin than a normal person. The trouble begins

when the addictive personality abuses them in order to escape from

reality as he has done in the past . As an addict he is prone to do that

and rationalize the abuse as pain control. He slips back to the

dishonesty with himself that marks his disease. If a recovering

personality keeps spiritually strong through the use of tools given to

him by A.A. He can use these drugs the same a normal people and indeed

has just as much right to For a self= righeous caregiver to deny him

this right is playing God and is morally wrong.

I don`t think that an alcoholic has lowered his pain thresh-hold.through

years of self medication. What happens is whatever tolerance he may have

innately had has been blocked and once the fog has lifted his true

tolerance comes forth , I my myself drank alcoholicly for around 35 yrs.

and have been sober for almost 7, I have ben throug a good amount of

paingiving situations and seem to stand it better than most. `ve had

oral surgery and instucted my dentists not to prescribe any narcotics

but didn`t seem to endure any more than some discomfort. After my

transplant I experienced practically no pain that I couldn`t easily

handle and eventhough they insisted I take a 2 week supply of pills with

a refill home with me I flushed them down the toilet because I knew I`d

be lying to myself if I took them under the excuse that I needed them

because the real truth was that I just didn`t hurt that much.

jerry

[Guest guest]

Danny,

Vicodin in reasonable amounts is safe to take. Just because it

contains acetaminophin doesn't make it unsafe. Vicodin is probably

one of the most prescribed pain meds - and I mean prescribed by GI's

and hepatologists. Acetaminophen is VERY predictable as to the

situations in which it might be toxic, much more predictable than

many other medications. It's only toxic in VERY large doses, when a

person's body is in an extreme state of starvation, or when taken

with alcohol (more than just a very small amount.) These are all

situations in which glutathione levels in your body become depleted,

and it is the lack of glutathione which allows the acetaminophen to

become toxic. Drugs which are unpredictable as to when they may be

toxic to the liver are much more dangerous than a drug in which you

know exactly what situations can cause the toxicity. Then you can

control it. Acetaminophen has been tested in people with HCV in doses

of up to 3 grams daily and found to be safe.

Claudine

__________________________________________________

[Guest guest]

Hi and everyone,

I have had 4 back surgeries and all this time my Dr. in San ,

Tx. Put me on vicodin too. He first had me on the 5/500 but have moved me up

to 750/500 something like that. And to relieve the pain I have been taking

(2) every 4 hours. Just to help with the pain. But, over the week end I ran

out of pain pills and I just hurt something awful. But, could do nothing

about it. Well, I started to shake and feel like I am jerking in side. And

could not sleep at all. Felt like ants all over me. I decided that I was

going though a withdraw. Even though it was mild. I did get my pills filled

Monday but now I take them only 1 every 6 to 8 hours if I can stand it. I

might take 2 at night when I go to bed as both legs starts to hurt and most

of the time they wake me up. But, don't take any more pills for the rest of

the night. So, that is how I am doing with the vicodin.

And when they fused the third disc from the bottom (don't know the name for

it) but they had found it had movement in it. And had to do it all over

again. I have to wear this brace that is so hot and hard plastic. And I use

my cain to keep me from falling. Doing anything is out for now. My hubby does

everything. Sorry for going on and on.

Take care,

Hope that you are feeling better....

[Guest guest]

Virginia,

I too had the identical withdrawal symptoms you describe, mine went

on for over a week. I have had 5 back surgeries and live in constant

pain. This last time the dr switchted me to percodan (It has asprin

instead of tylenol base. Its tough on the stomach and the side

effects are worse......(headaches, ornriness). I works well however,

it does not help in the sleeping department....it tends to make you a

little wired (at least for me) Dont know the withdrawals

yet...........not anxious to find out. Anyway, what you went

through is normal and as far as Im concerned you are right in the way

you are tapering down the dosage.....do it slowly.....

Just a thought...

Still am,

Always will be,

Jest me,.

Vern

> Hi and everyone,

> I have had 4 back surgeries and all this time my Dr. in San

,

> Tx. Put me on vicodin too. He first had me on the 5/500 but have

moved me up

> to 750/500 something like that. And to relieve the pain I have been

taking

> (2) every 4 hours. Just to help with the pain. But, over the week

end I ran

> out of pain pills and I just hurt something awful. But, could do

nothing

> about it. Well, I started to shake and feel like I am jerking in

side. And

> could not sleep at all. Felt like ants all over me. I decided that

I was

> going though a withdraw. Even though it was mild. I did get my

pills filled

> Monday but now I take them only 1 every 6 to 8 hours if I can stand

it. I

> might take 2 at night when I go to bed as both legs starts to hurt

and most

> of the time they wake me up. But, don't take any more pills for the

rest of

> the night. So, that is how I am doing with the vicodin.

> And when they fused the third disc from the bottom (don't know the

name for

> it) but they had found it had movement in it. And had to do it all

over

> again. I have to wear this brace that is so hot and hard plastic.

And I use

> my cain to keep me from falling. Doing anything is out for now. My

hubby does

> everything. Sorry for going on and on.

> Take care,

>

> Hope that you are feeling better....

>

>

>

>

>

[Guest guest]

It could be the vicodin alone. It happened to me after surgery. Can you

take something else? Maybe Tylenol w/ Codein , that worked better for me.

Sheila Tomas

Tiles and Stones, Inc.

[Guest guest]

You should probably ask a pharmacist or doctor. Vicodin is a narcotic and

may not interact well with Lexapro.

Sue C

-- vicodin

Dear group-

I have been on lexapro for 2 years and I love it. I recently had a car

accident and have been on vicodin. I have found that it causes me to have

panic attacks when it begins to wear off and I am awake. Has anyone else

noticed this? Also, last night when I took it I fell asleep and I noticed

that I had a terrible nightmare. I was just wondering if this was a mixture

of lex and vicodin or just a personal response to the vicodin. THANKS

---------------------------------

FareChase - Search multiple travel sites in one click.

[Guest guest]

Hi Everyone,

I too take Vicodin & Xanax 3 times a day for pain as well as Ambien at bedtime.

I was also wondering about getting on LDN, and worry about potential yeast

problems as well. Sometimes when I cough, little round creamy colored ball like

structures come up, I have taken them to my Dr. prviously, but they didn't have

a clue. But, I think it must be yeast after doing some research.

I have CFS/Fibromyalgia, with possible underlying Lyme Disease and am wondering

where to start, or what to do before I talk to my Dr. next month about LDN. I

really want to try LDN, and see if I can get some kind of life back for myself,

as it has really taken a toll, but am worried about problems. I already have

sleep problems, and never feel like I have slept well, and never feel refreshed

like before I became ill, which I know is pretty much part of the illness.

I know that someone says to get Betaine HCL for yeast, what is this exactly,

and where to you get it, and what kind of doseage is ideal? If anyone has

CFS/Fibro and has tried LDN, I would be really appreciate any input & help.

Thanks, Randy

[Guest guest]

The little balls are coming out of your tonsils.  They are called tonsiloliths or something like that.  There are pockets in your tonsils and food, bacteria, etc can build up in there and those little balls form.  Pretty much everyone has them.  Some have them worse than others.  It is not necessarily a sign of yeast or a problem in your mouth.

 

LDN - if you are taking vicodin 3 times a day you will have a hard time using LDN.  The general rule of thumb is NO opiate based drugs while on LDN and to get off the opiates for a good 7 to 14 days before starting LDN if you have been taking large daily doses.

 

Some argue you can use opiate based drugs and LDN if you time it right.  Some try that and it makes them feel like crap, or worse.  AND if you were to try it now and NOT go off the opiates first it might cause a severe withdrawal reaction from the opiates due to the high amount of opiates you are consuming.

 

For what it is worth I was taking more pain meds than you are before I started LDN.  I weaned off them and started DLPA.  I had been doing DLPA and zero opiate based pain killers for 2 weeks by the time my LDN arrived.  I am in much less pain now than I was when I took all those pain meds.  AND I feel much better in general.

 

I would also hope you could back off the xanax, although it has its uses it is not a great drug to be taking large amounts of for an extended period of time.

 

Jaxi

 

 

 

On Thu, Mar 10, 2011 at 10:50 AM, Randy Dean <randydean3@...> wrote:

Hi Everyone, I too take Vicodin & Xanax 3 times a day for pain as well as Ambien at bedtime. I was also wondering about getting on LDN, and worry about potential yeast problems as well. Sometimes when I cough, little round creamy colored ball like structures come up, I have taken them to my Dr. prviously, but they didn't have a clue. But, I think it must be yeast after doing some research.

 I have CFS/Fibromyalgia, with possible underlying Lyme Disease and am wondering where to start, or what to do before I talk to my Dr. next month about LDN. I really want to try LDN, and see if I can get some kind of life back for myself, as it has really taken a toll, but am worried about problems. I already have sleep problems, and never feel like I have slept well, and never feel refreshed like before I became ill, which I know is pretty much part of the illness.

 I know that someone says to get Betaine HCL for yeast, what is this exactly, and where to you get it, and what kind of doseage is ideal? If anyone has CFS/Fibro and has tried LDN, I would be really appreciate any input & help. Thanks, Randy

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