Tramadol Helps with Exhaustion

I had good results taking a 1/2 a pill of tramadol twice a day for nerve pain in my left leg and foot both before and after my back (S1-L5) fusion and synovial cyst removal.

I am a 76 year old woman who has been feeling very fatigued since my arthritis pain has gotten worse about 6 months ago. I also have a herniated lumbar disc which causes pain and numbness down my left leg into my feet. My legs feel heavy and tired. I read that pain can cause exhaustion. When I take a 50 mg Tramadol, the pain vanishes and I feel more energetic. I take it a couple of times of week when I have yard work or house work to do. With the Tramadol, I can work for 3 hours without pain or fatigue. Without Tramadol, I would be sitting inside working a jigsaw puzzle.

Appreciate I’m only just coming to this post from 6 yrs ago. But in answer to @keeptrying YES, YES, YES Tramadol gives me energy too(physically & cognitively) and I’ve only ever taken modified release Tramadol!!I knew I couldn’t be the only person who experienced this ‘side effect’ but I guess unless you have a problem with energy levels (or are a Ghanaian Commercial vehicle driver) you probably wouldn’t link the two. I’ve only read the 1st page of replies so far & it will take me some time to get through the rest to see others experiences/story. Tramadol it seems is like marmite, people either love it hate it & understandably as with all drugs how it effects each person can differ vastly. But it is such a relief to finally have some proof I’m not crazy in my belief it has been the Tramadol doing this & providing me with at least a small amount of quality to life. Alas like others to date no medical professional overseeing my care has believed this. My primary diagnosis isn’t neuropathy but myalgic encephalomyelitis & I won’t go into details about everything, but will say that even after 20years I still experience this positive side effect. Before people start replying in horror, I am well aware of the dangers & repercussions of being on this kind of drug for this length of time & heartbreakingly for me it’s unlikely to be for much longer. Once I lose the energy it has provided I won’t be fit for a haircut, let alone being able to go online to post on a forum or research this further. It infuriates me that because of the fact this drug is a synthetic opiate & opiates are no longer the go to pharmacological panacea for pain relief prescribed by the medical fraternity for decades, any resistance to reducing/stopping this treatment is labelled as ‘addictive behaviour’!!
I did want to say thank you for asking your question & I hope are day someone will do some research into this effect. Although it will be too late for me, I pray that even if it doesn’t result in it being used for this positive effect, just understanding how it creates this effect could lead to something further down the line.

Finally I just wanted to wish you well & so hope you are in a place where you have some bearable(if not pain free) time & quality. Thank you again!!

Hello @changling and @mary1947, Welcome to Connect. I'm not sure @keeptrying is still following this discussion but there are others who are and it's important to know that you are not alone and sharing your experience helps others.

Hoping you have a pain and exhaustion free day!

My pain doctor has tried a couple of non invasive treatments. Failures. His next suggestion is medical grade TENS, which I may try. He said Medicare covers it, which is unusual for pain clinics. I went to a podiatrist for the first time yesterday, to address the purple/red & odd skin texture of my feet. No answer. I've had vein ablation (disaster, made my neuropathy worse). The cardio vascular "specialist had no answer. My PCP has been aware of this for 1.5 years. No answer. Evidently, I am the only neuropathy patient to ever have this condition. Absolute, medical mystery. The podiatrist suggested seeing a vascular doctor! HA! Back on the merry go round.! He also referred me to a DIFFERENT pain doctor to consult on Nevro HGX spinal stimulation. I've had MRI's, Ultrasound, Nerve conduction, 2100mg of Gabapentin, blah, blah, blah. Sent him all my test results. Appointment on June 12. Do I have the courage to try another experiment? I dunno.

It helps joint pain but after I take it awhile I wean myself off because I don't like the dependency. I did not ask doc to renew it. However I struggle with constant exhaustion and Tramadol really made me feel normal and energetic. I miss that, along with freedom from pain. Wish it wasn't addictive

Wondering if you were ever seen by a hematologist for cyroglobulinemia? Can cause the purple red rash and neuropathy.

I have the purple/red odd texture on both legs. Started on right lower leg, then showed up on left lower leg and now right thigh. PCP, cardiologist, neurologist, and oncologist are astonished when they first see my legs, but no answers. Blood flow test done on both legs - good flow. I have demyelinating peripheral neuropathy and been through the pain level of 9.5, lots of other weird pains and paralyzed limbs that eventual recover. Legs so exhausted that it is difficult to place one foot in front of the other. Some relief from exhaustion now that I have a set of C Braces. I have a lead for group experimenting on similar devices for arms.