Posted 2/18/2008 9:54 AM (GMT 0)
I hate to play the role of "Debbie Downer" (Saturday Night Live)......but.....
Unfortunately, Darvon/Darvocet (Propoxyphene) is no more effective on pain than Aspirin, according to virtually every study I've seen....and first-hand experience on my part as well as that of many other fellow pain sufferers.
I would just leave you be with whatever placebo/slight actual benefit you might be getting, but you need to know the truth so that you don't get suckered into the Doctors' cop-out games that they play; doing things like pawning Cymbalta, Lyrica/Neurontin, Effector, Amitryptyline, etc., which do next to nothing for pain, off on us.....and pretending that they don't know that they are useless if not downright harmful.....
The really scary cases are the docs who actually do know what they're doing, but keep on doing it anyway, because that's where the safe money is -- it sure as heck isn't to be found in real compassion and actually putting the patient's quality of life first......
Anyhow, you deserve better. Codeine, up to 400mg/day, metabolizes into Morphine in the brain and should work almost as well as morphine in low doses, for those without tolerance. Eventually, you will want Hydrocodone, Oxycodone, Hydromorphone, Morphine, Fentanyl, Oxymorphone, Methadone, Levorphanol or one of the other "true" effective analgesics.....but things like Codeine may help you get your foot in the door without pushing you luck.
If your doc can't even justify a small script for 2-4 30mg codeine tablets per day for chronic pain that really impacts your day to day life, then you should be looking elsewhere, IMHO!