Pain relief

Midlandtiler

Hi , is anyone on morphine for o.a and can you tell me about the side affects and how affective is this for you ,, kind regards

tillytop

Hello and welcome to the forum.

Is it liquid oromorph (morphine sulphate solution) you are taking? I take oromorph and I do find it a help (I have rheumatoid, rather than osteo arthritis and, although the oromorph was initially prescribed for a condition unrelated to RA, I do now use it for the arthritis too). Pain relief wise, I haven't found it to be as effective as co-codamol 30/500, which I had to stop because it gave me horrible stomach problems.

In terms of side effects, on the positive side it is much easier on my stomach than the co-codamol I took previously (although it still causes constipation). On the downside, although I am pretty used to it by now, it sometimes makes me feel pretty spaced out and I wouldn't like to try to drive or make important work decisions whilst taking it. Also, because I take it regularly I am aware that I am now needing a higher dose to have the same effect (which is a known problem with analgesics I think).

I know there are other forum members who take morphine and I am sure you will get some other replies in due course.

I really hope that you find it helps you.

Tilly xxx

Midlandtiler

Hi Tilly !! Thank you for your reply 'n I'm not on it yet ,, but I'm afraid it's going to have to be my next step as what I'm on now does not work for pain only get all the side affects / tramadol/ naproxen !! Gabapentin !! Kind regards jay

stickywicket

Hello Midlandtiler. I see you are new to the forum so welcome.

I've always regarded morphine as something that helps with post-op pain. For daily life I want as few paindullers as possible because none of them will actually take the pain away and I prefer to be alert with more pain than doped up with less. Many years ago I did stronger ones but found I had to keep upping the dose to get the same effect so I decided to opt for as few as I could get away with. That way I always have something in reserve for the tough times.

I hope you can find soething that works for you.

Soretoe2

Hi, I take MST Continuous ( 12 hour slow release morphine sulphate), sometimes I take codeine or tramadol as back up.
Until recently I also had a Butrans patch. Unfortunately for me the patch gave me terrible blistering, coupled with intense itching so I reluctantly gave it up. It was a very good painduller while it lasted.
Many people use the transdermal patches with no problems, so if you are offered one to try, give it a go.
Usually on morphine you start on a very low dose, which often does nothing for pain control. However you have to titrate up slowly until you find the dose that is right for you. Usually you can then stay on that dose for a couple of years before having to raise it again.
The downside is that one day you will have to have a break from it when you reach the highest dose you can tolerate.
Morphine is actually one of the safest long term medication to take and is relatively better than most for your organs in the long run.
As to side effects, itching and constipation are the worst. Some people who take it in the long term find it affects their teeth but this does not happen to everyone.
I find it does not actually reduce my pain that much, it is more of a detached feeling of comfort. Not quite the dopey and foggy feeling you get with Gabapentin/Pregabalin/Amitryptyline and related meds though and I prefer it to them.
I have both RA and OA, the OA being in my whole spine,elbows, wrists, fingers and feet.
I have tried for many years not to take too many of anything but in the end if I want to see my family or go shopping I have to take something.
The only thing you can do is to take it and see how you feel about any side effects you may experience. Think about how it is compared to other meds you have tried and if you're not happy then go back to the doc and see if there's anything else you can try.
Although there are different types of pain medicatiions available, the list is not as long as you would imagine. It depends on your level of pain, how it affects you and if you can tolerate the side effects they all come with.
Hope this post is not too long winded and helps a bit. Joy

barbara12

Hi and welcome to the forum
I see that soretoe has given you lots of advice, I have been offered it by my pain clinic, but I just dont want to go there yet, the reason is I think if I get to the highest does where do we go from there.
But like soretoe said you must give it a go to how effective it is, please let us know if you do, and how you are getting on with it xx

Midlandtiler

Thanks joy and Barbara for your replys !! The g.p is very reluctant now to put me on morphine and are trying me on the nx level up to gabapentin.. You mentioned the name but I can't recall it at the moment there in the car. Ha ha !! And have to stick with tramadol, naproxen and parac.! Until I see the surgeon in two weeks . To see what he thinks and to see how I got on with the new ones

frogmorton

Is it pregablin AKA Lyrica Midlantiler?

Just spoke to you on 'say hello'

Love

Toni xx

Midlandtiler

Yes tilly it is pregabalin !! Omg .. There are strange ,, had one last night at 4.30 was asleep at 5.30 got up at 10 got half an hour then bk to sleep till 7 !! Now I feel really strange balance is dodgy and feel like I've got a hangover,, I dare not take one this morning, got things too do ,, they are different to gabapentin and I was taking 3 x gabas 3x a day !! As always I now have to chose between pain and narcotic indused disablement ,,

Midlandtiler

Sorry ,, I meant to write Toni ,, not Tilly !! My mistake

dreamdaisy

Pregabalin can do this to people, you're not the first to find this out. I remember someone could see a singing tree - deeply unsettling methinks. Better and longer-lasting pain relief comes at a cost (as you are finding) whcih is why I haven't gone down that route. I work as a private tutor and I need to be reasonably alert. It's a tough choice but a necessary one for me. Good luck with the preg, you may get used to it in time. DD

stickywicket

Midlandtiler wrote:

I now have to chose between pain and narcotic indused disablement ,,

I love the phrase, Midlandtiler. yes, that's the arthritic tightrope we all walk.

Midlandtiler

stickywicket wrote:

Midlandtiler wrote:

I now have to chose between pain and narcotic indused disablement ,,

I love the phrase, Midlandtiler. yes, that's the arthritic tightrope we all walk.

Ha ha thanks , and yeh I know !!

bubbadog

Hi Midlandtiler, I asume that means you live in the Midlands like myself, Where abouts are you in the midlands? I live in Sunny Redditch! Anyway back to the post, I have Osteo-porosis and now been testing for Inflammatory Arthritis, I take 70mg of M.S.T and can take a further 15mls of Oromorph when I have a flare up. I also take several different pain relief tablets as I'm on pain managment. My M.S.T has been increased and decreased when I've asked my G.P depending on the serverity of my pain. It helps to have a good relationship with your G.P. If you want to ask me anything about morphine please feel free to do so.

frogmorton

Midlandtiler wrote:

Sorry ,, I meant to write Toni ,, not Tilly !! My mistake

Not to worry - it was a compliment
Toni xxx

skezier

Hi Midlandtiler,

Here comes the late comer... dragging its feet at that had a bad week but

Been on the pregabs for 3 years and have 300 2x a day.... It was me that spent the night with a singing tree but actually it was good.... except for its choice of song, I hate musicals as a general

I have had 3 hallucination on the pregabs but only when they combined with another hideous treatment and to be honest I forgive the pregabs anything as they work so well for me.

The oddness initially can be both off putting and ( I have word failure today but its a bit like off putting)

I started on 75's and slowly made my way to 150 ..... Then 200 and finally the 300 and this bit about doing it over 3 weeks was wrong for me for sure!

What I am trying to say is they are a very good drug if you can take them and the side effects do ware off in time..... that's the bit that make them difficult but they are a chemical thing that blocks the pain receptors in your brain so they are messing with your head I guess and in my case I went through a bit of messing cus they helped me so much.... Its a hard choice though.

How long do they take to work.. for me the pregabs helped the second i took them and I felt them in my head.....

they added in oxycotin and oxynorms to mine and they also work quite quick but as the rumo says I am on a fair hit of pain relief and well for me its worth it an I really don;t spend the day zonked and out of it.....

I might just be lucky though....

You an do a lot of self hep via meditation and relaxation as well.. The AC courses can help you to learn ways of doing that but I had a head start on it cus been doing it for years.

Have a look in the in your area bit and see if they have any course for challenge pain and another one I just can;t remember the name of but both courses help you to cope better.

Hang in there and I hope you will find something that helps for you soon. Cris x

frogmorton

skezier wrote:

Hi Midlandtiler,

Here comes the late comer... dragging its feet at that had a bad week but

Have a look in the in your area bit and see if they have any course for challenge pain and another one I just can;t remember the name of but both courses help you to cope better.

Hang in there and I hope you will find something that helps for you soon. Cris x

Cris - I am in the Midlands

l did one this time last year in Staffordshire Midlandtiler - it was called 'Manage your long-term condition' and very informative it was

Toni xx

Midlandtiler

frogmorton wrote:

skezier wrote:

Hi Midlandtiler,

Here comes the late comer... dragging its feet at that had a bad week but

Have a look in the in your area bit and see if they have any course for challenge pain and another one I just can;t remember the name of but both courses help you to cope better.

Hang in there and I hope you will find something that helps for you soon. Cris x

Cris - I am in the Midlands

l did one this time last year in Staffordshire Midlandtiler - it was called 'Manage your long-term condition' and very informative it was

Toni xx

Hi thanks !! Very busy at work ,, doing 10 hrs a day , have 12 bathrooms to tile at a disabled school !! I will have a look when work slows down !!