Pain meds?

[marti]

Can you all list the pain meds you take for all the various aches and pains we get? I realize some things are just from aging or other muscular/skeletal problems, but they can be related to the MS also. Seems like my MS makes all my other problems seem worse or maybe it's the other way around.

All I know is that I can't find one single pain med to cover most of this stuff. I'm never sure if I'm dealing with a nerve pain thing or muscle pain thing or whatever. I hate to take too much medicine, but it's getting more and more necessary. And I don't want to over-do it or take 2 meds together that shouldn't be taken together. I'm medicine phobic. Afraid of all of them.

[palmtree]

The best thing is to consult a pain doctor. They know how each kind of pain should be treated. If necessary, they will give narcotics but you don't have to agree to it.

I take a lot of different pills. But they work. I'm living with some terrible pain conditions and I am free of pain. Arthritis, MS aches and pains, neuropathic pain and on and on.

There aren't very many ways to treat in modern medicine without pills. Shots for MS, patches? or alternative medicine.

Wish you luck in your search.

[hunterd]

"The best thing is to consult a pain doctor. They know how each kind of pain should be treated. If necessary, they will give narcotics but you don't have to agree to it." palmtree

Ditto

That being said, I take lyrica, Cymbalta, and over-the-counter aspirin or acetaminophen as needed. The Lyrica is for nerve pain due to either MS or diabetic neuropathy ( I am diabetic), the Cymbalta helps take off "the edge". Together they work wonders for me. One thing to remember is that not all medications work the same for every individual and the best thing you can do as already has been said is to see a pain management specialist. Good luck

Medication Interaction Checker http://reference.medscape.com/drug-interactionchecker

[marti]

"The best thing is to consult a pain doctor. They know how each kind of pain should be treated. If necessary, they will give narcotics but you don't have to agree to it." palmtree

Ditto

That being said, I take lyrica, Cymbalta, and over-the-counter aspirin or acetaminophen as needed. The Lyrica is for nerve pain due to either MS or diabetic neuropathy ( I am diabetic), the Cymbalta helps take off "the edge". Together they work wonders for me. One thing to remember is that not all medications work the same for every individual and the best thing you can do as already has been said is to see a pain management specialist. Good luck

I tried Cymbalta once but it caused my heart rate to go up a little. So, we pretty much eliminated that one. My neuro told me she would NOT give me Lyrica as it is pretty strong and since I can't seem to take more than 100 mg of Neurontin she feels the Lyrica would really make me goofy. Thanks.

[wizardsmom6]

I take the big boys

You were wondering what pain medication people were on and I agree you should consult a doctor, however I have had chronic pain for 14 years (non MS related) and nothing takes all the pain away. I wish it did but I am on high doses of pain medications and still have pain...unfortunately there is no cure for what ails us.

[Portia]

I take Gabapentin. 300-600mg two or three times a day. Nerve pain
Motrin only when necessary for a headache.

[JayMee888]

Some herbs and salve can make the pain not stich one and with time almout painless, but you need to find out the reasons and to be diagnosed to get well.

[venice]

I take several for the various kinds of pain I have: Lyrica, gabapentin and Cymbalta. They are supposed to work in synergy. I still get breakthrough pain, so they are not perfect, though it is early days with the Cymbalta so a higher dose might work better.

I am increasingly getting stiffness, which I take to be early spasticity. I think the meds also might help with that, but as they are not specific to it, I will likely need something else at some point.

I also take an anti-inflammatory for a disc issue.

[TaoWarrior]

I tried Cymbalta it messed me up emotionally so stopped. I tried Gabapentin it worked great but it had ummm... bedroom side effects, additionally when I lost my job and was uninsured it was crazy expensive.

Now I take vicodin 5/325 and klonopin at night. Klonopin stops spasms which lets me sleep and cuts back on fatigue and therefore pain the next day. Vicodin only kinda works on nerve pain so mostly I just suck it up. Breakthrough pain is pretty brutal but mostly I have just learned to ignore it. I tried medical marijuana and it didn't really do much but it did make me high enough to make ignoring it easier.

[KevsLuv]

I'm a few months late but here we go anyway!
I take fiorcet for my headaches. I also get botox every 12 weeks to help with that.
I take Norco 5-325 as needed. I only get 45 per month so I don't take many of those.
Though it is not a pain med, I also use flexeril for my muscles...this is becoming less and less effective.
I was on Gabapentin but it made my fatigue much worse.
I didn't get much benefit from Cymbalta and the withdrawals from it was a nightmare.
I am nowhere near pain free and am hoping, like you, to find a bit more relief.

[duckfan]

My husband takes neurotin, and ibprophen and baclofen for spasticity . He has severe back pain and won't take any narcotics. He tried Ultram through the VA but it caused the inability to urinate. He had prostate cancer.
One of the best things for his back pain is acupuncture but it doesn't last. I massage his back and use one of the heating creams and that helps relax his back. If he could find an answer to his back pain he thinks it would help him walk better. We've gone to orthopedic doctors but they won't do any type of surgery because of the MS.