What pain meds work well for Gastric bypass patients?

Hi @laurie1l welcome to Connect.
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Lauri, Have you had gastric bypass with chronic pain?

I'm new to this site. Does anyone ever get an answer from The Mayo Clinic ? Isn't that what we're looking for ? → Professional answers fro Doctors....

Did you ever get a reply on this ?

Good Morning and Welcome @bigjas747! I am in Arkansas USA and the original poster on this thread in March 2017. In August my primary care doc switched me from Hydrocodone to Nucynta ER (Tapentadol). I started at 100 mg twice daily. It is extended release. It works much better than the Hydrocodone at relieving my pain, but I do still have a good bit of pain. My dosage has been raised twice and I am at 200 mg now. When I have surgeries they give me the acute pain, quick acting version of the Tapentadol but it's just for a few days or a couple of weeks depending on the surgery pain. I absorb it pretty well considering I am gastric bypass. I hope it continues to work well for you and you are successful at losing your regain. God bless.

👍

Hi there everyone I’m from Australia and this is my first post so be gentle with me. I had a Gastric Sleeve 13 years worked really well till they put me on Lyrica I put on a truck load of weight thanks to that drug. I have chronic back pain like you all a couple in the the neck and then from the start of the Ts through Ls to S1. I really take ownership of my pain after the Lyrica debacle I’ve been through a pain management clinic and learnt everything I can. But now when 1 of the so Health Specialists recommends something I go home and research the hell out of it first. For Instant sake I am having revision surgery done in 4 weeks for my Sleeve and I’m upgrading it to the Bypass and I wanted to know how it was going to effect the pain medication I take Palexia (Tapentadol). Which I take it 12 hourly most likely the way you all take your drugs as well not surprisingly know one could give me an answer. Because of what they do to your insides in the operation it changes how your slow release pain drugs are being absorbed cause they pass through your system so much faster. I’m lucky the Palexia I take does come in a instant release tablet that I can take 6 hourly and what I found while researching was it’s better to take it with food.

Doctor and other Health Workers just annoy me that they just do there bit and don’t worry about the finer points or side effects.
Hope I haven’t bugged everyone to much I mite do this again some time.

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Regarding Kratom
Indeed kratom is derived from a plant as are many supplements and drugs, including chemotherapy drugs that can be highly toxic. Being derived from a plant or natural does not mean without side effects. Kratom is an unregulated substance, so we consulted a Mayo Clinic pharmacist on the posts. She offered the following information.

Kratom is a natural product but it does have significant risks and side effects. Because of these risks the FDA banned import of Kratom in August 2016 and issued a notice of intent to classify 2 chemicals in Kratom as Schedule 1 drugs (the same category as heroin). There are no FDA-approved uses for kratom, and the agency has received concerning reports about the safety of kratom. FDA is actively evaluating all available scientific information on this issue. (2019) https://www.fda.gov/news-events/public-health-focus/fda-and-kratom

Kratom can cause dependence and withdrawal symptoms including aggression, anxiety and other negative psychiatric effects, muscle aches, spasms, tremors, insomnia, fever and upset stomach. It can also cause dangerous slowed breathing and seizures. It can worsen psychiatric disease and may increase the risk of suicide. Kratom can impair liver function. Kratom interacts with other herbal medications including Jimson Weed. It interacts with sedating medications. It has the potential for many other drug interactions because of the way it is metabolized.

For more information see:
– National Institute of Health: Drug Facts, Kratom https://www.drugabuse.gov/publications/drugfacts/kratom
– Center for Disease Control https://www.webmd.com/mental-health/addiction/news/20190411/cdc-americans-are-dying-from-kratom-overdoses#1

Here are additional articles from Mayo Clinic on Kratom:
– Kratom: Unsafe and ineffective https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/consumer-health/in-depth/kratom/art-20402171
– Kratom for opioid withdrawal: Does it work? https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/prescription-drug-abuse/in-depth/kratom-opioid-withdrawal/art-20402170

@brambo As with @lioness, tramadol worked for me after a knee replacement and after a hip fracture. It didn't eliminate the pain totally but it sure made it a lot more bearable. We all react to drugs differently. Hydrocodone helped with the pain but it kept me awake at night so I can't take that -- I literally lay in bed for hours staring at the ceiling.
JK

An herb in the coffee plant family. Legal most places but it’s under attack. Steep learning curve. May help some but don’t take pain meds. It is a powder I can put in s drink or capsule it. FB has the knowledge groups. Do not believe what u read because big pharma can’t make money on it. Read Dr Christopher McCurdy in FL? Leading researcher

It does not even work for my dog! Great if u get relief, but read more extensively, join all the chronic pain, CRPS and fibromyalgia sites on FB. You will see pure misery for 99%. They are researching alternative herbs etc due to the sheer volume of non pain relieving drugs with side effects being given them. And most are still barely functional except those on opioid therapy! How did Tramadol “”suddenly” become an opioid or opiate? Lack of adequate pain relief is contributing to overdoses and suicides. It’s fact