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Pain and depression, the one two punch.

Chronic Pain | Last Active: Jun 20, 2020 | Replies (40)

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@ceceilia

I 74 years old and I am in constant pain and have been for at least 4 years. Last October I had A L4 through S1 spinal fusion surgery at Mayo Clinic in AZ, which only increased my pain. I felt the surgeon did not want to treat my pain and told me to find a pain doctor. I am now taking Dilaudid which I have to jump through hopes to get, My insurance will not cover this and I have to have urine test, to continue to get this pain medicine I need. I agree, something needs to be done. Pain takes away your life, breaks your spirit and you always feel unwell. Something needs to be done. Pain medication is a much needed medication for survival.
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Replies to "I 74 years old and I am in constant pain and have been for at least..."

I'm sorry to hear this. That's so unfair. They're giving you that urinalysis to prove that you're actually taking your drugs and not selling them and that you're not using any illegal drugs which would point you out as a drug addict. It is actually a good thing and you should encourage your doctor to continue that practice. It gives the doctor some cover should he be accused of giving out too many drugs to the wrong people. About cost, have you asked your insurance company what narcotic they would cover ? It seems odd that they don't want to pay for dilaudid because it's one of the cheapest medicines that we have.

I take Dilaudid too but I get mine from an intrathecal pump surgically implanted in my belly. I take between 4 and 5 mg per 24 hours. That's a small dose but it is 100 to 300 times more effective than taking it orally. It also prevents the side effects of grogginess and constipation. Better yet as I can't touch these drugs I can't alter the way I take them I can't sell them it puts me Beyond reproach in the eyes of the doctor's as not being a drug addict. Search these chats under my handle wsh66. I've written quite a bit about the pump. The four milligrams is automatic. The other milligram is divided into 10 doses that I can give myself, one an hour over 24 hours. My doctor also continues a small oral dose for later in the day when the rest of the medication is not adequate to deal with my increasing pain. The only downside is I can see is I will have to have a surgery every five to seven years to replace my pump and I have to drive down to M Health, about an hour away, once every 10 weeks to have the old medicine removed and new medicine put into my pump via a small needle. We need to find a better solution to this crisis than just cutting off people whose lives were saved by getting pain medication.