Pain killers | Arthritis Information

 

Does any one here take oxycontin or oxycodone (same thing, just 1 is generic) for your ra. And if so, what is the dose?Not anymore but I did during onset. I forget what dose. I'll look when I get home. I remember I could have used stronger....I took oxycodone when my PCP thought I was having a pinched nerve in my neck /shoulder area, which later found out it was my RA acting up. That medicine didn't do a darn thing to help either.

I've never taken that one, only Percocet & Vicodin.  I sure hope you feel better soon.

I take both. They are the same thing but the difference is Oxycontin is sustained released and Oxycodone is fast acting.

Oxycontin - between 20mg - 60mg morning and night
Oxycodone - 5 mg 4 times a day - 10mg 4 times a day

Right now I am on - 60mg of Oxycontin morning and night/Oxycodone 5mg 4 times a day.

No wonder I couldn't get any relief 10 mgs every 12 hrs!  oxycontin and oxycodone are the same drug, but oxycontin is the sustained release form of the drug. oxycodone comes in quick release and sustained release. Brand names include tylox, percodan, percocet and others. [QUOTE=wanttobeRAfree]No wonder I couldn't get any relief 10 mgs every 12 hrs!  [/QUOTE]

10mg is a lolly to RA pain and every 12 hrs, no way. Would have done nada.

Just before my Mum died six weeks ago I was on 20mg Oxycontin morning and night and 5mg Oxycodone 4 times a day, I was very stable and pain was minimal. Of course, my RA has gone berserk so the dosage was upped, but as my pain settles again I will reduce it.

I play around with them a lot which my GP and RD are happy for me to do. I know my body, my disease and what I am doing. They know my primary goal is to stablise my pain at the lowest dose possible as I hate being on any pain killers and did not use them for 10 years because of that.

The reality though is a toss between using them and having some quality of life or not. I choose the quality of life which takes the edge off my pain so I am not so grumpy and cranky all the time, I can do things and enjoy time with my daughter. As a single parent this is a good choice for me.

And with severe RA pain often the best you can hope for is your comfort level improving a couple of notches with the edge taken off the pain.

Research shows that very few chronic pain sufferers have addiction issues. That is certainly the case with me. In the past, my doctors have seen me wean myself off addictive medications because they were not working for me including a 100mg Fentynal patch (this is the highest sustained release med you can get) and strong, addictive Oxyzazepam (?sorry, can't spell it) . If it's not doing the job, don't take it, but it is use it, no shame, no guilt. If you're more comfortable life will be easier and more pleasant.


My point is, I take 40mg 2x a day. plus about 4-6 vicodin a day. I've been on that dose for about 2 years. I've been hurting real bad for about the last 2 months non stop. I begged my rheum to increase it to the 80mg 2x aday. He said for ra I was at the max dosage. Unless I went to a pain management dr and got a note saying it was ok to give the 80 mg for my pain. As I told him before, being a new construction plumber is very demanding on my body. So I was just wondering if anybody else took that high of a dose.

I take flexeril and Vicodin and Ibuprofen 800. The flexeril is a muscle relaxer. It helps with my pain at night.

MaceysParade2008-11-18 22:43:10I am so sick with the way narcotics are viewed in the public eye. Do they really know how badly we hurt? My doctor lowered the number of vicodin I receive every month. She knows how I feel and does she really think this will make it better?. I don't run out early. I am a good patient and follow the rules. So what the heck? [QUOTE=JulieRay]

I've never taken that one, only Percocet & Vicodin.  I sure hope you feel better soon.

[/QUOTE]

Percocet is just oxycodone + acetaminophen (usually 5mg/325mg, though it can go as high as 10mg/325mg).
[QUOTE=r_a_reallysux]My point is, I take 40mg 2x a day. plus about 4-6 vicodin a day. I've been on that dose for about 2 years. I've been hurting real bad for about the last 2 months non stop. I begged my rheum to increase it to the 80mg 2x aday. He said for ra I was at the max dosage. Unless I went to a pain management dr and got a note saying it was ok to give the 80 mg for my pain. As I told him before, being a new construction plumber is very demanding on my body. So I was just wondering if anybody else took that high of a dose.[/QUOTE]

If you think you need it, then you do.

Go to a pain management doctor, you can learn a lot but I would be talking to your PCP not your RD about pain relief. However what I would really be doing is finding a good Pain Management Psychologist rather than a pain management doctor. Mine has been worth his weight in gold.

My GP (PCP) does all my pain medication. She sees me more often and that means she and I can play with my doses. In my experience, Rheumy's don't really want to be dealing with pain meds as the reality is it is tedious and takes time to get the right balance.

I think 80mg 2 x a day is not overkill, if you have RA and are working in a physical job.

I have been higher than that on the Fentynal patch...it's the max but I recommend you stay on the Oxycontin/Oxycodone duo. The down side of a 100mg Fent patch is that there is no equivalent in strength with the fast acting medications, so when you have breakthrough pain there is no where for them to go and I mean nowhere. This was why I weaned myself off it. Even a shot of morphine or pethadeine will not touch breakthrough pain when you are on the patch.

First step I would be taking is to go to your regular PCP and discuss the matter with them.

I hope some of my ideas help. Hang in there.
I was on the fent patch. 25 mcg. Along with 4 7.5.500 percocet a few years ago. Still no relief. Then he increased it to 50 mcg and it made me sick. Thats half my problem. Either the meds, which I been on every one on the current market with no results or they make me sick or I get a reaction. He seems to think I have some rare type of ra. He said he has only seen 4 other people like me. I have taken 50mg tramadol with 60mg oxycontin at breakfast, then 2 panadiene forte & another tramadol at morning tea, then 80mg oxycodine at lunch plus continued to take panadiene forte during the day as well until dinner time as well as diclohexal 50mg x 4 times a day -- and more oxycontin before bed...then more panadiene forte during the night ......I did that for 4 mths, I had broken my ankle (had plates and screws in) and developed a severe infection.  This was just for the pain, it is amazing how the body copes with large doses of pain relief if in fact you are in pain... Yes it can be addictive, and no I am not addicted to any of it, I needed that much just to survive - when I broke my ankle I only needed 1 panadiene forte every 2-3 hrs - so the infection for me was far worse.  Maz-aust2008-11-19 17:20:59 [QUOTE=r_a_reallysux]I was on the fent patch. 25 mcg. Along with 4 7.5.500 percocet a few years ago. Still no relief. Then he increased it to 50 mcg and it made me sick. Thats half my problem. Either the meds, which I been on every one on the current market with no results or they make me sick or I get a reaction. He seems to think I have some rare type of ra. He said he has only seen 4 other people like me. [/QUOTE]

Trust me, I am one of the other people like you. All it needs is for your RA to be severe enough or be out of control due to not being dxed for a long time, to be in that much pain.

If the Fent Patch made you sick at a higher dose then stay away from it. I think your idea of the increased Oxycontin dose and Oxycodone is still probably you best bet but they need to be aggressive enough with it to find the right dose for you. I would find a way to get the Oxycontin increased still and not give up yet. At least it isn't making you sick.

If you can't get your doctors to work with you then be very assertive or find ones that will work with you. Managing RA is a team effort - patient/PCP/RD. It is absolutely essential to have doctors who listen to you and include you in the process.

You also need doctors who aren't afraid to hit your pain hard as that is the only way it will come under control. You don't need them walking around it delicately, for goodness sake, you need them to hit it hard enough to break the pain cycle and stabilize it.

I hope you get something sorted out. I know how wearing being in severe constant pain can be.
Cordelia2008-11-19 17:15:36 I feel so bad for all of you who suffer with pain that requires such high doses of medication! I don't know how you do it. I only suffered for 2 1/2 months like that- I can't even imagine what it must be like. I wish you all pain relief!

edited because what I said originally was too negative.
wanttobeRAfree2008-11-19 20:41:37I take percocet10 3 tiems a day on most days, then there are days when I don't have to take anything and then there are days when I could take all three of those percocet at the same time and it wouldn't do a thing. I also get very nauseous from narcotics. I was offered fentanyl in the past and I probably should have jumped on it but it seemed like overkill to me at the time, like most of us I want to take as little as possible and still ave enough pain relief. The first time I had percocet was for a back injury.  I had a script for vicodin, medrol, and an NSAID, and I asked my mom to come pick up the scripts and run them to the pharmacy for me.  When she came over, she brought a couple of vicodin for me to take while she went and ran my errands.  Well, let me tell you - those were no vicodin!  About 30 minutes later, all pain seemed to float away, which was good... but I also found myself watching 2 TVs (note: we only have 1 TV in the living room JasmineRain2008-11-22 11:02:18
Copyright ArthritisInsight.com