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Posted 6/28/2013 3:35 PM (GMT 0)
I see what his oncologist is saying to an extent, however, David you say your cancer is progressing, but I thought your tests cleared you of active cancer. If your cancer is in remission so to speak then the oncologist would not be comfortable increasing your meds and this would be reasonable. I think you once stated the oncologist said your pain is not a cancer related pain. If this were rampant cancer going on and the dr knew it was cancer pain then he would have no problem with increasing the meds. Something else to consider is you have been on these meds a long time & there is always the very real possibility of being tolerate and this would not surprise me.

From what you have shared here even if it is CRPS, all the treatment available you say you cannot do for one reason or another, so getting a dx would be that, just a dx with no treatment.That will do you little good. Because CRPS is so involved with nerve pain, narcotics have little effect on that type of pain. You say you have tried all of the nerve meds, can't do blocks, can't do steroids so this leaves pretty much nil treatment wise unless you tried ketamine infusions. There is limited treatment for CRPS. But, I am opting for being positive & hopefully you do not have it.

I will say this, if a drs office has time to call you back, then they should have time to call & schedule you an appt because they know why you are calling them. Or, why don't you call & schedule the appt, notify the oncologist so if a referral is needed that is all they have to do. Besides speeding up time, it may be a long wait to get an appt with the neurologist. I do this all the time & my drs appreciate it because it cuts down on the staff's work. Rarely do the make my appts for me because its like they say, I know my schedule, they don't & it eliminates a bunch of phone tag.

Of course my mother was terminal with cancer but the very first thing her oncologist asked at each appt is how is your pain, do we need to change anything or add something. As much as I disliked him, he did not believe in her being in pain.

Hope everyone has a good day....Susie
Posted 6/28/2013 3:53 PM (GMT 0)
Susie, you have several facts wrong.

My cancer is very active. I have already failed surgery. I have failed salvage radiation, which was my last curative hope. My PSA was 16 when diagnosed, and it is now at 60 and climbing away. It is considered advanced cancer, and it is not curative. The only thing I don't' have is bone mets at this time, based on the recent PET scan. But its only a question of time. With a PSA of 60, its a miracle that no mets are evident yet.

Second, my current CP is officially diagnosed on paper as "Cancer pain". Cancer pain is not always pain directly associated with the physical cancer, it can be from the damage from the cancer, or even from the treatment for the cancer. Mine at this point, is from the treatments for the cancer that failed and further damaged my body.

Unlike your mother's situation (sorry to read of this), my doctor always asks me about my pain, its a major topic on my regular visits, and he totally believes and understands, because I am just as graphic with him as I am here, perhaps not quite as many words, lol.

I spent 30 minutes on the phone yesterday with the neurologists office, and to see the exact doctor that will have the expertise I need, will require a referral, which should happen either Monday or Tuesday at the latest. The new office is considering my case to be Urgent (her words),and she assured me they will fit me in, ahead of the crowd.

david
Posted 6/28/2013 4:00 PM (GMT 0)
SNOW:

sorry, thought she was talking about the "m" word, misunderstood.

and we have tried some other of the pain meds over the past 2 years, none worked as well as the combo I am on now, and my body tolerates what I am on without any real side effects.

have tried to supplemt with otc stuff, but mostly useless.

been on 2 nerve pain meds, neither worked

so its not like nothing else has been tried.

and he's been pretty good about upping the fentanyl on a regular basis.

on my normal CP days, I would say that 80% of my pain is being controlled most of the day.

however on these severe days, its obviously not enough to control such a large area of pain, and that is the problem in my estimation. plus we need to know what is really going on here, thus the search for the right doctor and the right diagnosis to get the right treatment, before things getting even more out of hand

Advil helps, but its problematic. I have used some in between times, and being an anti-inflammatory, serves some purpose, however, my oncologist and the expert in Charleston both agreed, that the ingredient in Advil can actually make things worse for people with severe radiation damage like me, and my own doctor has strongly recommended that I do not use Advil at all.

david
Posted 6/28/2013 4:12 PM (GMT 0)
Appreciate all the kind words, good advice, and support, really do.

As soon as I have something useful to post, like when I see this next neurologist, will be happy to post the results.

It would take me hour(s) to answer and counter every point back and forth with what has been written and suggested. But it would serve no purpose in the end.

We all have different thought processes, and different senses of logic, and we are all different.

There are times to be pushy, and times that its counterproductive. By nature, I am not a pushy person, I am a polite and accomadating person, always have been. I don't like to make scenes, and I rarely make returns at stores.

And this is most important point I am going to say. In my area, it is difficult to find a good oncologist that only deals with advanced PC and BC. I have that doctor. It was a miracle how I got hooked up with him in the first place. I don't intend to become an a.h. to him, and ruin a relationship that has worked well for me for over 2 years now. I can not afford to get dumped by him, and we know there are plenty of doctors that look for excuses to dump problem patients. I will need him more in the future as my cancer further progresses, so I have no intentions of blowing him off by becoming a pain in the "a" to him because I am not getting what I want when I want it. That's now how I treat people in my real life.

I am very patient and very forgiving, if I thought I was being mis-treated, I would be the first to say something. But I am not going to lose this doctor - as he truly understand my entire situation, but cancer wise and pain wise.

Thank you again for all your input.

david
Posted 6/28/2013 4:17 PM (GMT 0)
I think that is why many of us are suggesting to have a really good BT pain med to have around for those really bad moments that you talk about having at least a few times or more a week. Lortab is pretty much the weakest one out there (of an opiate) and since you have been on it for 3 years or so, it's likely your body is tolerant to this med.

That is where Fentora or Fentanyl lollipops are extremely effective as they are strong, work quickly, but also go out of your system in a shorter period of time than your patch so that you aren't drowsy or "out of it" if you need to do something later.

Tina, Quincy, and even a few others on the CP board are on these particular meds and they are doing fine on them.

And there are other meds besides just the two that help with nerve pain. There are also a lot of muscle relaxers from which to choose that could be very helpful with those bladder spasms as well as other pain.

We are just trying to say there are a lot of different options that you haven't tried yet and it's also about the different combinations of meds that could work better at controlling the pain.

From what you have been writing...and not the descriptive part...again...that isn't an issue at all, but just in general you have written updates almost every week or two and have talked about having horrible pain episodes where you can't enjoy anything as of late with your family, and doing outings, or any type of trip even local or within a few hours without you being in terrible pain, or even be able to handle walking around your local neighborhood.

Another aspect to having better pain control is being able to exercise more, do other types of PT, especially if it turns out to be CRPS.

So, it sure does "seem" to most of us that over these last 4-6 months that things have gotten pretty darn bad. This does NOT mean that you shouldn't write these things on HW....It's wanting to see you get better pain control. As well as addressing the aspect of depression..which is something that we all face when living with chronic pain. That is a very important aspect.

**You were writing the other above post while I was writing this one...So wanted to say that no one is saying you have to leave this Dr...We are just saying that either he should be handling your pain issues or find an actual Board Certified PM for you where they can work together. I can't imagine any going and caring Oncologist  "dumping" a patient because they have horrible pain episodes.....

Ok...I've said my part on this...just wanted to be clear on why I posted. We all try to help in our own way and sometimes that is stating things as they appear from the outside looking in or hopefully adding something that you haven't thought of previously.

 

Post Edited (Snowbunny21) : 6/28/2013 12:26:47 PM (GMT-6)

Posted 6/28/2013 4:24 PM (GMT 0)
I must have read your post incorrectly, sorry about that, will go back & read it again, lol. David, if your dr has it as you say on paper your pain is a result of cancer, then please explain to us here at the forum why he cannot justify giving you something extra for the days when you say you have the horrible pain. That would be perfectly reasonable for a cancer patient. This happens all the time for non-cancer people. Yes, you are very graphic when describing this pain & how awful you feel, that is where the concerns are coming from with people at the forum. If you are not that graphic with him maybe you should be. He could very easily refer to you to a PM dr for an evaluation on the severe pain only, let that dr rx something for those days only & he would still be in control of your care. When quality of life is not there every day and a dr knows this, the dr is not doing his job with his patient. You always say he believes you about your pain, does he really, or is he just mouthing those words?

Hopefully you will know something soon but we I guess we will see......Susie
Posted 6/28/2013 6:21 PM (GMT 0)
not going to argue and justify every single point here, geez, this gets tiresome

I said my oncologist only sees patients with advanced pc and bc, there's are tons of oncologists in the area that see PC patients, that's not the point or the issue.

and your last line makes no sense. he's been treating me for cancer pain since I have seen him, it was this doctor that made the diagnosis. he's never been treating me for non-specific pain. I am coming up on the 2 years mark (July) of serious chronic pain. was never a real issue prior.

going to take a well needed nap and see if I can escape all that my body is feeling right now, got perhaps 3 hours sleep last night, did a few things around the house today (not much), went to one store and paid one bill - that was enough to wipe me out.
--------------------------------

thanks again for all the input, care and concern.

be very glad when whatever is going on can be figured out, and my treatment can be adjusted to match what is found. I have total confidence there is the proper answer out there.

david
Posted 6/28/2013 9:19 PM (GMT 0)
David
Please post whatever you want - please !
Where else can we feel comfortable saying how we really feel ??

IMHO you have choice to not read responses that you don't want to.. usually I read every word.. but sometimes I decide not .. just like I record & zip thru the news .. smile

Just everyone expressing their concerns in their own ways.. I care about u & think most everyone else on here does too..
Posted 6/28/2013 11:57 PM (GMT 0)
Thank, Diane.

Obviously, I am very much the 'open book' here at HW CP, sometimes, I think perhaps a bit too much.

I fully realize that everyone cares equally, as I do to the family here. Just like in real families, we don't always agree with every one's views or suggestions, but get to hear them anyhow, lol.

That's what makes us unique and interesting.

david
Posted 6/29/2013 7:16 AM (GMT 0)
David,

Thank you for reading my post to you.... I wanted to clarify that I wasn't asking you to be less descriptive either. The point of this forum is to offer support and to be able to vent. Your descriptiveness has never been a bother to me. As Sephie said, though - it's just hard to read of anyone suffering.

A few added thoughts to your responses:

Injections/nerve blocks/etc: There are other things to inject besides steroids. I, too, have widespread pain. You asked: just where would they choose to inject? You use the injections where you have the most severe pain. I get occipital nerve blocks (base of head); trigger point injections (cervical/thoracic back); steroid injections (in both hands); etc. If you get some pain relief in a few places - that still gives you an overall pain reduction.

You stated: So all these things take time, why is that hard to understand. It's not hard to understand.... and I was not blaming your doctor. However, I don't understand choosing to suffer - when there are things to try. I'm sorry, we will have to disagree on that one. I'm the one who said that, yes, it WILL take time to get a proper diagnosis....

You stated: so he has to make sure there is a proper dx to justify certain meds and higher doses. that makes perfect sense to me. in my cancer situation, I can not afford to close such a skilled oncologist, as my cancer continues to progress. You said that your dx, as of now, is "cancer pain" ? With that diagnosis - I disagree that your doctor has to justify certain meds/doses/etc. You are still at relatively low doses - especially of your BT med. There ARE meds to try! Even ones that you've used in the past... could work when tried again. Between another narcotics (specifically oral fentanyl - used for CANCER pain), muscle relaxers/antispasticity meds, nerve medications and so forth - there ARE other meds.

Is there a reason that you/your doctor won't add on another BT med - for the severe episodes? I'm sorry to hound that point home, lol.... but I just don't understand?? You say:However on these severe days, its obviously not enough to control such a large area of pain, and that is the problem in my estimation. Once again - this is where another med comes into play. It doesn't matter if it's in your pinky finger OR from head to toe - another (strong) BT med/nerve med/muscle relaxer/etc might be the thing that helps!

You said: I am not a pushy person, I am a polite and accommodating person, always have been. I don't like to make scenes, and I rarely make returns at stores. I would describe myself to be the exact same in all areas that you mention. I just don't understand how you equate advocating for proper pain control to EQUAL being rude, impolite, scene-making? The one thing that my doctors really like is that I stand up for myself... am willing to try anything/everything.... and won't settle for a crappy QOL when there are things left on the table to try.

I have no intentions of blowing him off by becoming a pain in the "a" to him because I am not getting what I want when I want it. That's now how I treat people in my real life. Once again, how is the desire to end what I read as absolute suffering - being a PITA? I'm certainly not a PITA to people in my real life either.... but I do stand up for myself at my doctors.

Finally - last point - not going to argue and justify every single point here, geez, this gets tiresome. I don't want to argue and certainly not wanting you to justify every single one of my above points. You don't have to justify anything to anyone on this board.

However, in the same way you feel it's "tiresome".... it's the same type of tiresome to see someone suffer. Someone that I honestly don't feel is doing enough to help themselves. You don't have to like all my suggestions, or anyone's suggestions for that matter. But I see people that care... and are trying to help you... and I see ALL of our suggestions getting knocked down. Reasons why none of our thoughts makes sense. And, it's really frustrating.

Anyway, David, despite my frustration.... I will continue to look for your updates and truly hope to see you post one day that you've found something that works for your pain. I truly do!

--Tina
Posted 6/29/2013 1:46 PM (GMT 0)
Tina,

I am very open with my doctor. I listen well. He listens well. My average regular visit with him is one hour in length, he even books me so that he can spend the most time with me, without worrying about his other patients.

I agree, if nothing else, I need an additional med that I can safely take when I am having the extra severe pain on the really bad days.

david
Posted 7/1/2013 4:47 AM (GMT 0)
David:

First off soft gentle (((((hugs)))))) to you. I'm sorry that I've not been posting, but I have been following the thread.

I too, like the others, hate to hear about the terrible pain you are having to deal with. This breaks my heart as you are such a giving person here. You always offer up support and compassion.

I understand this pain that you are dealing with. I've had to step away a bit as I'm living with a constant daily pain of 8-9/10 everyday with no foreseeable relief in my near future. My child is so upset that I can't be comfortable, she's raving mad, too bad, at the wrong person, me I think.

I think that you really need to ask for something stronger from your oncologist for the episodes when you are at that 10/10 pain. I agree that most likely you are VERY tolerant to your current meds. It's also possible that your metabolism may affect your response to your meds. Possibly you could discuss this theory with your Dr, maybe he can prove or disprove this.

I'm never bothered by the in depth description you give, but I'm so saddened by the suffering you put up with. I feel your pain totally and I worry about how it affects you mentally. I ONLY say this, as I know how it's affecting me. I like you, have ZERO QOL, I can honestly say each day when I wake up, I HAVE TO FIND a reason to make it through that day.

I have found that seeing a therapist weekly is helping some, maybe you could consider this option. Or if you would like, we could pick a time and day that we could talk to each other on the phone. I'm more than willingly to spend time with you on the phone. We both have severe pain, and we both have cancer that can not be cured, except for our passing on to a better pain free place.

Please think about our talking to each other, and please ask your Dr to provide you with something stronger for your really bad days. I just wish for you less pain, a better QOL, and peaceful and happy days with those you love, during the time you have left. Whether that time be 12 hours or 20 more years. This is the wish I have for myself, you see, and IF I can't get that, then YOU need to get that.

I hope you are resting tonight and have had a low pain night. You have my email, if you'd like to talk sometime this week, send me your number and I'll call you.

Hugs,
Barbara
Posted 7/1/2013 5:18 AM (GMT 0)
Barb,

Thank you so very much. Would love to start by e-mail, I communicate better and more fully that way (guess the writer in me). I suck on the phone, and most people find it difficult to ever reach me by phone, as I often have it off or on silent. I tense up on the phone, unless I have to be on it, or if I know the person real well. We could probably help each other.

Yes, one way or the other, I need something in addition to cover the "bad days". I don't feel I am overly tolerant of what I am on, because on the normal "CP" days, they still probably take care of 80% of the pain. The trouble is, I am having more bad days than normal days.

Today, I woke up in terrible pain. Horrible thing to say after laying around all evening, and getting perhaps 5-6 hours of broken sleep. Within an hour of getting up, was back in bed. Then up for an hour, then back in bed. However, by 2 pm, the severity weaned off, and by 3 and even till now 1 AM, back to normal pain levels - which are a blessing compared to the other pain.

Hoping to avoid any severe bouts, but never know when they will strike me. No rhyme or reason. Saturday, didn't do anything in particular to trigger a severe spell, just happens.

Aside from the other arrangements I am in the middle of to see a new neurologist, I will be now seeing my own doctor this Wednesday afternoon, 2 full months before my next normal visit. I don't intend to leave his office without some new med, or change to what I am on, until we can get everything sorted out.

I wish I could offer you more in the way of help too, you have a very good understanding of what I am going through, and I sense its because you are in the same situation pretty much.

My wife was very frustrated today, she was all chipper and happy to be off on the weekend, and as usual, I was having a bad pain day earlier. She never gets mad at me, just frustrated that there is really nothing she can do to change things for me. But she is always there for me, and that means a lot to me.

david
Posted 7/1/2013 1:07 PM (GMT 0)
I think it would be great for you (David) and Barbara to e-mail each other, it could be benefical to you both. To me you are two good friends with tons of courage going thru horrible things and I so wish I could help out more! I will keep saying prayers for you both of course and thinking of you, and just hope that one day medical science will have some cures...Gotta keep hope that some young kid in research will find a cause then link it to something that can be fixed. You both hang onto Hope, it's there and I wish you both the best and keep us posted, okay...Want to know when you get your neuro appointment David, so do keep us posted...
(sorry about the typo's sometimes my fingers just won't hit the correct keys and then sometimes I just do not know how to spell things and I'm too lazy to look things up!)
Posted 7/1/2013 1:46 PM (GMT 0)
thanks chart, anyone that likes to write is welcome to.

dr.'s nurse has already e-mailed me this morning. to confirm I will be seeing my own dr. this Wednesday when he's nearest to me.

also, to confirm I can pick up my latest fentanyl script in person at the same time. I will be out on Thursday morning, and since my dr. has been gone for 2 weeks, she was unable to get any other doctor there at Gibbs to sign off on the script. this happened before, and even docs of the same practice, are reluctant to sign their names to another doctor's prescription, especially for pain meds. Had I been out, some accomadation would have been made. but she knew I had enough to make it to Wednesday

also they neuro place made a change, the neuro I wanted to see thought it was better for me to see someone else in the physical medicine/pm portion of their practice, so the process for the referral is already in the hands of my doctor. they told my doctor to mark it urgent so that I could be seen as immediate as possible, they said perhaps before the end of this week if all goes well.

so I feel a little encouraged about things.

when I see my own doctor, want to re-affirm our long term relationship, and see if we can prevent any "gaps" in the future. knowing him for 2 years, I am sure he would want it that way too.

these unpleasant events lately were not typical of the standard of care I get from him, so I view them as "exceptions" not the norm.

david
Posted 7/1/2013 5:05 PM (GMT 0)
Sephie,

Normally, my fentanyl scripts are mailed to me in time before I need it. It's a med where they will not accept a faxed copy, has to be the original. Because my dr. was still out of town all last week, she tried to get another to sign off - this happened a time or two before, but on a med like that, even my doctor said he would be reluctant to sign off on another doctor's patients script, again, unless it was a true emergency. I have no problems with that.

Due to the mail, she was afraid to get it signed today and put it in the mail, we had one lost before doing that, so I am fine with this solution. A little bit of a drive, but I will have it in hand and filled right before I run out.

They are not saying I will not see a neurologist, but the first doctor is in a different division of this institute, and he felt another doctor there would have better expertise. Just a different department, I have no problems with that change either.

As we speak, my doctor's nurse and the contact person on the other end, are getting all their ducks lined up, to expedite the new appointment. Should know later today.

My wife works with dying and suffering patients every day, so its hard on her not to be able to do anything directly. I woke up Sunday in extreme pain, mostly lower back but went down to my toes. She was having coffee on the back deck when I joined here. She took one look at me, and said what's wrong? I said, I bet you can guess in one word. She said, Pain? Yep.

It usually shows up on my face, kind of hard to hide it. Fortunately, after a rough Saturday and Sunday morning, by 2-3 pm Sunday, it eased off and since then (touch wood), been back to regular chronic pain levels, which are a cinch after the severe pain episodes. At least my meds work for the normal pain.

david
Posted 7/1/2013 5:27 PM (GMT 0)
Hi David, I'm really sorry that your pain has been really bad. Can I make one suggestion? I may be off base, but it is something to consider; remember when you posted that you accidentally took two doses of your BT med but it seemed to help you. Maybe ask your doctor if you can do that on purpose when the pain is out of control? I can understand why you and your doctor are reluctant to give you something stronger at the moment, but that would mean just giving you a few more of the same med your already on. Like I said, if I'm off base, I do apologize, its just a thought I had and figure it couldn't hurt to share it.

Hugs and prayers to you.
Posted 7/1/2013 6:05 PM (GMT 0)
I would never do that again on purpose. My doctor originaly wanted me to have 240 Lortabs per month, but CVS told him they could only legally fill 180. That extra 60 would give me 2 extra per day to make it further into the evening and night. I sure don't want to come up short on pills, and I have been 100% compliant and honest with my doctor on how my meds are used, and want to stay that way, pain or no pain. It's a trust relationship that I literally follow to the "t" of the law.

david
Posted 7/1/2013 6:15 PM (GMT 0)
I don't think Alsoinpain was suggesting you do this without your Drs. knowledge...They were saying to ask your Dr. about taking more.

I would try and call around to other Pharmacies as there isn't any law prohibiting the amount of medication like that so it must be something CVS is doing.

We've seen this a few times on the board where people thought it was an actual law but are just being given information based on an individual Pharmacy or Pharmacist with their own comfort in prescribing, or within a certain corporation. Thankfully others have pushed forward to find the correct info to get the meds they needed. 

So, I would talk to your Dr. about this as well as call around to other Pharmacies because if something is a state law, it will be listed on the Medscape or on the health dept. page of SC.gov and I can't find anything listed.

I would truly hate for you to not get the meds you need if the Dr. chooses to up your Vicodin amount. I can't imagine though that only two more at this point would make a difference with the pains that you describe being up in the 8 and 9 area. I am hoping that your Dr. will prescribe something like the Fentora or Fentanyl suckers but maybe he can just up your Vicodin for daily use.

I am actually prescribed OxyIR 5mg up to 8 a day (240 a month) so that I have a wide range depending on my pain levels. I think that was another thing many of have mentioned to you is being on Acetaminophen for so long and having it in every single pill. Even though you are under the FDA amount...it was never meant for people to take more than a week of that amount. I would hate to see you develop problems with your stomach or liver in addition to all your issues now.

 

Hope you get that Neurologist appt. set in stone today! As well as things go well at your Onco appt. on  Wednesday and he gives you something to help with your pain levels!

Post Edited (Snowbunny21) : 7/1/2013 1:17:24 PM (GMT-6)

Posted 7/1/2013 6:36 PM (GMT 0)
Yes, that's all that I meant, was asking your doctor if it was something to try, that's all. I didn't mean for you to do it without asking first, sorry David, I wasn't trying to upset you.
Posted 7/1/2013 8:42 PM (GMT 0)
also, you didn't upset me at all, appreciate your thoughts. I was just clarifying, that I don't mess around with my pain meds, I take only what I am allowed to take, nothing more, nothing less. and my doctor knows I am very cautious with meds, so I know he's not worried about me "experimenting". I have almost full bottles of other pain meds he had me try, and they are in a locked drawer. I wouldn't consider mixing and matching what I have, be afraid to do that among other things.

snow: cvs told me that DHEC in SC controls the amount of those meds. my doctor, at the time, called the pharmacist at my dvs and talked directly to her. he later told me that there was nothing he could do to get around that pill limit. he's the doctor, I have no reason to doubt him on this.

-----------

hoping this will be the week for getting some answers and some real progress. as far as pain levels go, I only experience 8-9 levels when I am peaking on what I refer to as "serious pain days". on my best days of what I call "regular chronic pain days", the pain level sits around 3-4, with the meds, perhaps with some minor flare ups to higher levels. now when I have the bladder spasms, all bets aree off, most, if not all of them are at 10 without a doubt, and when I have the long ones - lasting up to 3 minutes, its all I can do not to fly apart in total panic, but in the back of my mind, I know that it will finally pass.
Posted 7/1/2013 10:39 PM (GMT 0)
Late last year, had all those CT scans of my back and hips and legs - no orthopedic issues found. Then had a full body bone scan done - nothing unusual found. Then the PET/CT full body scan earlier this year.

The pain may sound similar, but it has evolved over two year period of time. I really don't think there is any apples to apples here. Plus, you obviously didn't have major radiation damage in the areas that I did, which definitely triggered all the pain issues.

Glad you were able to get immediate help at the ER.

david
Posted 7/2/2013 12:53 PM (GMT 0)
Hi David. I was away from the boards for a week and just catching up here. Sorry to see your pain is increasing as I know how it seems to worry you so those bouts take away from your family times.

Sure hoping you get some answers real soon.

Florida limits the amounts of some meds as far as monthly amounts dispensed and always seemed to me to be a kick to the Drs faces. They know the patients circumstances far better then the limit setters.

There is however ways around those limits but takes a little finesse on Drs part. Say he can only write for this many hydro 10s? You still need 2 extra to give you better relief right? He can opt to add a script of hydro 7.5mgs three times a day prn and that would set you within 2.5 mgs of the therapeutic amount your trying to achieve.

Your insurance on the otherhand may not pay but hydrocodone is fairly inexpensive. Just throwing the thought out there for your "keep in mind " box.
Posted 7/2/2013 2:34 PM (GMT 0)
Vickie, good idea. Will add it to my "talk to the doctor" list when I see him in 2 days. And yes, I appreciate that bureaucrats in SC's DHEC get to make medical decisions for me, and can counter what my own oncologist feels is best for his patient. Stuff like that should never happen, or be allowed.

Hope you are doing better these days.

This is the week I am hoping to be on the path to getting some good answers and some help. Trying to stay positive.

david
Posted 7/4/2013 1:29 AM (GMT 0)
How did your Onco appt. go today? Did he end up giving you some stronger BT meds I hope!

And then any luck with the Neruo appt. finally being set up as you mentioned they promised by now.

Just hope that we get to hear some good news for a change:)
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