I am about to see a new doctor regarding my severe neuropathy in my feet. It was cause by rhabdo last may. My med history says opiate abuse (even though this is not true, it was a psychiatrist who didn’t know what he was talking about).I have tried all other pain medicines such as lyrica, gabbapentin, ibuprofen,trammadol, vicodin, vicodin es.The only medicine that has worked thus far is oxycodone. Is there anyway I can convince him that I need the stronger pain medicine without sounding like a drug seeker? I am at my wits end with doctors now, and this pain is impacting my quality of life in a very negative way. Its like "opioid abuse" blacklists me from any sort of effective pain management. Am I screwed or is there a way?
I know exactly what you are talking about since I am in the same boat. Michael Jackson & people like him just make things worse. I am going to assume that you are telling me the truth and so I am going to be honest with you. Considering the info you provided, doctor’s will probably be very leary of you. It will take a certain kind of doc that deals with chronic pain. When you see this new doc be completely honest with him altho I would be careful about appearing to bash a professional opinion. Better to come up with a logical explanation of why he came to that conclusion. Don’t you think? Explain to the physician your activity level and how exactly the pain effects you as far as it relates to that. Again you are just stating the truth. Do not beg, just tell the truth as it applies. State that you understand if he is reluctant to order meds of this level and your are willing to go to a pain clinic, but you will need a referral. By the way, these pain clinics are your best bet for this level of care if you didn’t know that. There should be one somewhere near you and this doc will be aware of it.
gbh
I honestly would try being as open and honest with him as possible. Talk about the note of the "drug abuse" and how you have made a good faith effort in trying many different types of medication. That having been said, vicodin works on the same pathways as oxycodone (slightly different receptor affinities, but very very closely related, they hit the same receptors, just in different proportions) so you do need to be honest with yourself about if this is a true physiological difference in response, or if it is a psychological preference. Tell the doctor you are willing to work with him to limit the abuse potential, and are open to any other ideas about things you have not tried yet. Doctors tend to be reluctant to prescribe opiate based pain medications over the long term. Talk to him about the possibility of drug cycling (opiates tend to have a short period where they gain/lose a tolerance, so if there is a different drug that you can get by on for a few days every week or two to prevent addiction and loss of effects, that is a good thing to discuss with him. You could also consider asking for a referral to a pain management clinic. The biggest thing I would say to you is that if the doctor suggests you try something that you have not tried before, give it a fair trial and keep him involved in the process.