Does anyone know why narcotics make me CRABBY?!?

I mean, even the littlest bit, like taking cheritussin (with codeine) makes me SOOO crabby! It works, and Tylenol 3 & vicodin take away pain, but make me SOO incredibly crabby! Do ya'll think it's just the codeine doing it or is codeine in everything, like oxycontin, percocet (sp?) (cuz I've never tried them)? I take Tramadol, 6-8 a day, and it works great for me and does't make me crabby, that's kinda what prompted my suboxen discussion thread.....any one have any experience or thoughts about that?

Appreciate ya'll SO much!
blondie

Blondie,

That's not my experience; I usually feel less crabby because I'm not in as much pain. 

Codeine is not in the various medications that you mentioned - oxycontin, percocet and so forth.

I don't have experience w/ suboxen and all that...

Anyway, those are just my specific experiences.  If you have more specific questions feel free to ask. 

Now, re: being crabby/irritable....take away my Effexor (anti-depressant)....and then I can talk :) :)

--Tina

Good early morning Blondie!

My wife says I get love'y dove'y after my med's kick in, and that I'm cranky when I'm in pain. She is the same, and has been known to snap at me a time or two, when she's in pain.

I used to be in law enforcement, and we had three type of drunks, Silly and Happy, Scared, and of course the cranky and combative drunk. So yes, I can see where maybe a pain med might have the effect you describe.

I really don't have a suggestion as how to remedy it though, but just wanted to say, I can see that it is possible.

Take care,

SE

Hmmm, well, backpain sara, you may have a point, maybe i need to ask for a narcotic WITHOUT codeine?! It's worth a try probably. And, Tina, perhaps if I tried Effexor again, it would help....hmm, lots to think about and pray on. And, no, I don't get tired when I take the Tyl 3's or Vic's (they actually give me a little more energy - probably cuz they reduce my pain)...but then the crabbies hit when it wears off.

NiNi53,
What is your regime? I'm curious cuz I have SO SO SO much trouble in the mornings and wonder if I woke myself up at 5 AM to take my tramadol, maybe by 7 or 8 I'd be more able to get up.....

thanks guys, SE too, for all your input!! Sure love ya'll!

blondie

I think a lot of people have difference responses because we all have different body chemistry.

about 1 week ago, I end up in the hospital because my sciatica had flared up to a point where I had extreme difficulty in walking and my PM doctor told me they could not see me that day. Well the hospital ended up giving me hydromorphone, and the doctor told me that I would get very sick from it and throw up because I'm partially opioid naive (Although I take tapentadol/nucynta which is a schedule II, its binding affinity is 18 times less than morphine). Well I didn't end up getting sick at all and my stomach was just fine nor did I get any kind of dizzying rush. It ended up making me feel very relaxed and reduced my pain from a 9 to 4. My roomate said it made me extremely social.

Years ago when I was prescribed Darvocet by a doctor who obviously didn't understand my pain, it had a negative reaction and made me dizzy, nautious, and depressed.

People's bodies process medications differently and often narcotics affect more than just MU recoptors....they can also have affects on things like the GABA system. Just something to keep in mind. :)

You mentioned Tramadol, which has an m1 metabolite that activates MU receptors but only at 1/30th the binding power of morphine, so its narcotic activity is significant enough to have a mild effect on pain levels but its narcotic side effects are relatively low due to its potency. Most of tramadol's pain relief comes from its SNRI action so for people that are sensetive to narcotics, medications like tramadol and its more potent cousin tapentadol can be wonderful things.

The flip side of that coin is that a lot of people have trouble tolerating the SNRI effects of tramadol and the NRI effects of tapentadol. It causes anxiety and headaches for some, and tons of relief for others.

Interestingly enough, I have issues using tramadol but my body can tolerate tapentadol better. I think its because my body is sensetive to the seratonin effects in tramadol (which are stronger in tramadol) and it makes me feel really weird for like 12 hours (a bad weird)

Blondie,

I do think Tapentadol (Nucynta) is a great option for some people and specifically for acute neuropathic pain. However, has a few things against it, which have prevented its widespread use by PM doctors, though it has been gaining more acceptance slowly as particularly to those that normally use the lower range of doses of oxycodone and hydrocodone for pain relief (as tapentadol would definately fit into that category in that its for moderate to moderately severe typically treated with 7.5 to 15mgs of those medications). Tapentadol is not suitable for severe pain in my opinion but could serve as an adjuvant pain killer to reduce the dose needed of stronger pain medicines. 75mgs of tapentadol gives similiar pain relief to roughly 10 mgs of oxycodone.

The big things it has going against it are as follows:

Its a schedule 2 medication despite trials showing it should be labelled as a schedule 3 or even 4. So far from everything I've read up on it, many "seekers" do not enjoy the effects of the medication. This is probably due to the fact that they are taking 3 or 4 times the pain management dosage and experiencing side effects like hallucinations. Its also not well studied. Its the first accepted narcotic style pain killer in 25 years so doctors are approaching it with caution in prescribing. Due to its low abuse rate, it will likely gain more popularity over time.

Keep in mind, it is still a narcotic and still can be addictive. It also causes anti depressant AND narcotic withdraw when you come off the medication.

For me the pros outweigh the cons but its much more of an "individual" thing.