How Do You Deal With the Pain?

Mental Health Bipolar Disorder
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I know that many of you are going through the same thing I am going through and that is having constant chronic pain. How do you deal with it on a daily basis? I have don't have anything stronger to take than Tramadol and that is not even scratching the surface. Are there any herbal remedies or non medical things I can do to at least make it through a couple hours without suffering through pain? Please respond to this discussion, I am anxious to hear what other people to do manage.

Thank you for your time...
Marlo

1 Heart
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I have found glucosamine really reduces my joint pain. I have not found anything that helps my headaches.

1 Heart
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Thank you for your help, I will try that out :slight_smile:

Marlo

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oh marlo honey, i'm so sorry. i do know how you feel, it's hell hun. i'm on piroxicam, nuerontin,oxycodone and fentynl. with all this i still suffer. can't you see a doc for something else? non medical, i eat foods that are supposed to help pain. i've seen no change. i'm waiting on surgery but am also curious to see what others have to say.

1 Heart
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I used to take Darvocets but they recalled them and the doctor I am seeing right now can’t prescribe anything that strong. They took like an hour to kick in and then they would only last about an hour. The only time I have ever been completely pain free for a couple hours is when I have went to the emergency room and had gotten Morphine or the other stuff, starts with a “D”. Anyway, thank you for your comment.

Marlo

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Marlo, sorry that you are in so much pain.I wish there was some kind of advice that I could give that would take it away.It is hard to deal with everyday and frustrating. I also am trying to find something,anything that will ease up the constant pain.I also take tramadol and do not see any improvements.I just got a perscription for cymbalta,so I am hoping that helps.I tried lyrica but only took it for two days, it made me dizzy and i felt like i was high or out of it. I also was told by a doctor to try fish oil capsules. have you tried any of these things? It's so hard to know what would work, they say everyone is different and there is no one medicine or diet that works for fibromyalgia.Someone also said that massage therapy or repositional therapy works for them,havent tried this yet. Hope you find some relief soon,wishing you well and pain free.

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I am currently on Tramadol, and I have tried Lyrica and Cymbalta, but as you, made me feel very high and out of it. I would fall asleep on the bus and miss my stop or have horrible dreams, it also made me gain weight. I have not tried Fish Oil, my mother takes them, so I may try that. It doesn't seem like a medicine that helps Fibromyalgia, it is a horrible disorder, even if it is not life threatening, well, it actually is because if you get depressed enough to be a cutter like me it is very life threatening. I thank you for your comment and for your help.

Marlo

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I know words do not help heal the pain inside and that u don’t know me from adam, but please try not to hurt yourself. I know what it’s like to try and make everything go away by cutting yourslf, I’ve delt with depression since I was a child. I used to cut myself and worse when I was younger,the pain of cutting made the pain I was feeling on the inside numb for awhile.But it always comes back.My childhood was not a childhood at all and was a nightmare,But eventually I meet the most wonderful man who has helped me cope a little better. I still suffer from depression and still want to cut myself once in a while when it gets over welming, but I try and think about my husband and my children. when my husband and I first started dating I cut myself and he totally freaked out, he didn’t understand it and didn’t know how to deal with it.I promised him I wouldn’t ever do it again,I’m trying to keep that promise.I guess you have to try and find that one thing, anything that will help you through and try and focus on that when you feel that over welming urge to cut yourself. I know it’s hard to stop when You don’t know how else to deal with everything that inside and you feel like there is nowhere or nobody to turn to for help. It’s like standing in a roomful of people and screaming at the top of your lungs, but no one can hear you or see that your screaming for help. no one can really understand what it is like unless they have personally delt with it. My heart goes out to you and I hope you find your something else. I wish there was a magic word or solution that I could pass on. But from my experience it’s not an easy fix, but it can get better and a little easier to deal with.Sorry to be so long winded and hope this helps alittle to know you aren’t alone. Gypsy525

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I'm sorry I wish I knew. I rarely take pain meds so a few ibuprofren works somewhat well, but I am just not feeling well at all today. I have this dull ache in my side, a really mild yet strangely annoying headache and it feels like I burned a hole through my sinuses. Apparently I had never come across any stuff this strong in the past. It really scares me. I want to quit so bad. Does anyone know a good way reduce the effects of the drug like to counter the effects?

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i sure don't hun, hopefully someone on the sight will know, call your local pharmacy they could say for sure. hope you get to feeling better

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I feel a little silly for even suggesting this with the prescriptions you've listed but the only things that work for me even when pain makes me pass out or when I got all 4 wisdom teeth removed is 2-3 ibprofen and 2-3 tylonal.

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So sorry. That must be so hard to live with. I know how chronic conditions can really affect your life and change it. I have interstitial cystitis and it brings me to the brink of going nuts many times. You really need to go to the doctor and tell him you have to have something stronger for pain. Also, have you tried Acupuncture? Did your doctor give you a prescription for Physical Therapy? I am considering trying acupuncture also. I knew someone with back pain and although it hurt for them to move, the doctor said the best thing to do was for her to get up and move around and she started walking every day and did eventually get better. I wish you the best and hope you feel better soon.

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I am so sorry to hear your pain. I am very dependent on my meds. I cannot function due to chronic pain. I have tried accupuncture. Unfortunately, it did not help me. I wish you well and hope that you get better.

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Marlo,
I'm so sorry to hear you're going through so much pain. And I definitely relate to feeling like an old woman. A few years back I actually had a nurse at a doctor's office say to me 'are you sure you're 27 and not 72?' with a smile on her face after she looked at the list of all my illnesses. I wanted to hit her.

Anyway, all I can tell you is what I take: Vicodin for the overall pain from endometriosis and fibromyalgia, Flexeril for my back spasms, Tigan to help with the nausea from the pain meds. Also, my doctor just upped my Savella, which is supposed to help with chronic pain and fibromyalgia pain, plus it also works as an anti depressant.
The Lyrica did nothing for me, and the Cymbalta made me more depressed (which I wouldn't have thought was possible), but I'm talking severely suicidal at the drop of a hat.
The only thing I've found that helps my migraines is IM injectable Stadol mixed w/IM phenergan (it helps with the nausea from the migraine and the Stadol). But VERY few doctors will prescribe like this. Oh, I'm also on a Fentanyl patch which actually does help when I remember to change it consistently.

Hon, honestly, I wish all the doctors I've been seeing since I was 14 had thought to do something else than just shove more and stronger pills down my throat. All they do is take the edge off -- the pain never fully goes away -- and I'm sick of having to take all of this everyday. I had the same experience in the hospital twice with the morphine - it made the pain go away almost completely. The other drug you got was probably Demerol (I can't take that b/c it gives me severely horrible hallucinations).

The last time I saw the pain doc (well I saw his nurse) I got her to precribe PT for my back - I'm really wanting to try other options like accupuncture/pressure, yoga, nutritional supplements, basically anything.

My advice is that if you do need opiates for the pain, try taking the lowest dose possible. It's a terrible feeling to know you're physically addicted to something that if you stop taking, you'll be in even worse pain.

Try not to give up hope. I know it takes a profound mental toll every day, and that some days are almost unbearable physically, emotionally, and spiritually. But remember you have a little boy who needs and loves you. That's a wonderful blessing.

Hope this could help you a little bit.

*hugs and prayers*
Ash

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Ashley, I am praying for you. You have been through hell obviously. I hope the PT helps you I'm glad you got the prescription for that. Yes, try acupuncture but try to get a Chinese doctor if you can..they know what they are doing. I am praying that your new treatments help you. And you are right, the pain meds just mask the pain don't treat the symptom. (doesn't mean you don't need them though) I just hope you find the treatment to help the problems so you can cut down on the meds. Take care dear, you are very brave.

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I've been bipolar for the last 20 years. I've been on every kind of antidepressant, mood stabalizer, antipyschotic. I don't recommend this at all, and you people can judge me all you freaking want to, but I deal with the pain by cutting. I'm pyschotic yes, I need to hurt to feel better. I'm sure I'll get nasty feedback but, you are not in my shoes.Later.

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Hun, do you feel that emptiness afterwards? Do you have to lie to your kid and tell them that a cat scratched you really bad? These are my reasons to find another way to cope with the pain. Without my son I think I would cut a lot more. I hope you have something to make you think about quiting. It’s an addiction just like drugs and alcohol, but not understood like them. People feel that we should just be able to pull the plug and quit this behavior. I know it is not simple and some of us do not want to stop, it is one of the only comfort we experience in this otherwise tormented life. I only want to cut, that’s the only skill I have developed to tolerate the pain, but I know it is bad and I don’t want to end up cutting deeper and leaving non healing scars, harming myself beyond repair, or killing myself although that was not my intent. My son is my world and I already have plenty of scars to explain to him when I grow up. I want him to know of the battle I fought but I want him to know I won by eliminating more scars. He is my joy and I need to focus on him as my means of healing instead of always turning to the knife. I don’t know if you have anything to focus on besides cutting. I know it is hard, and I am not preaching or telling you that is wrong because I still do it, but if I didn’t have my son I don’t know what I would use to focus on not cutting. I hope you can find something that is not self harming to replace cutting. You can read about me struggling to quit on here and feel that you are not alone if you want to quit or feel that you can’t. God bless and take care.

Marlo

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Scorpio, thank you for the prayers; I'm not too sure that I believe they'll work for me, I greatly appreciate it

Marlo, It's the same thing with an ED. It's totally and addiction, but you can't just stop eating and never eat again. You need food to live. I don't think a lot of the specialists get that either, the addiction part of it. It's also really similar (esp bulimia) to cutting in the way that you're doing this horribly self destructive thing because it makes you feel like you're getting all the bad stuff (feelings, thoughts, emotions, etc. out with the food.) And it's all you can think about is that you know you would feel so much better if you just got it over with and purged -- for me I feel that way when I eat just about anything, I very rarely binge anymore. I only eat once a day, and I've been trying to to better with my portions; eating smaller amounts than I normally would so that I don't get to that uncomfortable place where I can't think about anything but purging. It's ridiculous that the thing I hate most about the meds I take for my migraines is that it makes me ravenously hungry. I try to let it knock me out to sleep before I eat anything b/c if I eat first, I eat too much -- not a true binge, but more than a normal amount of food.

Another big thing in common is that people who have no idea what they're talking about will tell you 'why don't you just eat healthy if you want to lose weight?' 1) it's sooooo not that simple and 2) as much as it IS about being a certain weight/size, it's also about so much more than that. And I know cutting is that way too. I'd probably be one if I didn't have the ED, that's my coping mechanism, cutting is yours.

I'm really glad having your son around you is motivating you to get better. Everyone needs a purpose to live their life for. Without one, we fall apart. You are so very blessed that your purpose is your little boy.

*hugs*
Ash

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I've been trying a lot of things too...and nothing seems to help. For me the biggest thing is using a heating pad or taking a hot bath. Drinking a lot of water helps too, to cleanse your body.

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i no thata it is hard to deal with but i just try my hardest to not think about it