[DoughtyOne]

If I have a tooth ache, the kind that hurts from my jaw to the crown of my head, and my ear as well, there is only one thing that stops it.

Vicodin

Oxycodone and Acetominophen

I have tried:

Aspirin
Tylenol
Motrin
Excedrin
Tylenol #3

Nothing even lessens my pain, other than Vicodin.

I take one tablet and within ten minutes my pain is gone.

I suffer no other sensation.

I do not get euphoric. I do no sense any type of altered state.

There is no high. There is no giddiness. I observe nothing out of the ordinary.

Without it, I would remain in excruciating pain.

I would not go to this E.R., if I could avoid it.

I have used Vicodin 5 to 10 times in my life. Each time I used it for a short period of time when I needed it, and stopped when The pain was gone with no ill effects whatsoever.

I have had several situations arise where morphine was necessary. It was the only thing that gave me relief. I was given a pump that allowed me to take it as needed.

I have a propensity to develop blood clots. Twice in my life I had massive clotting. In one of the instances my lungs were about 75% involved. My abdomen down to my feet were involved.

This and complications led to excruciating pain. For several days my nerves seemed to extend beyond my body, off the bed, down to the floor and out into the hallway under the door.

If someone walked by outside the door, I could feel it almost like someone was touching me. it literally hurt. I could feel it, my nerves were that raw. The Morphine pump was the only thing that helped. They tried Demerol and it did nothing.

I mention this because it is important for people to understand the pain others feel.

Some physicians having never felt something like this in their lives, can’t identify with the need for relief. They cannot fathom this type of pain.

They believe they are operating at a higher moral level if they avoid certain meds. They are wrong. Certain meds are the only things that bring relief, and patients deserve that relief.

After experiencing this level of pain, and finally getting the relief I desperately needed, one physician asked how I was doing. I responded much better. He responded with a snide comment referencing my enjoyment of the high from the Morphine.

He was completely unaware of the level of pain I had experienced, and that the Morphine was the only thing that got me through it.

The Morphine also caused me to hallucinate. My wife explained to me that I was seeing spiders all over the walls and ceiling. I don’t remember that. All I remember is that the pain was gone.

When your body is ravaged by that much pain, you are in an agitated state. It is impossible to relax, to relieve the tension, and I believe to heal. That medication was as important as the blood thinners and antibiotics.

Pain management is very important. It cannot be overlooked, but I know for a fact that physicians hold off certain meds while their patients are in excruciating pain. They shouldn’t.

My use of the Morphine pump was warranted, effective, and stopped the moment the pain subsided, in a subconscious normal manner with no ill effects.

And that is exactly what I needed.

I might not be here if It weren’t for that.

[Jim Noble]

If the trend among politicians and regulators in their "fighting heroin" crusade continues for a few more months, no one will be treated with morphine or morphine derivatives for pain.

I don't prescribe opioids very often (like twice a year), and I've decided to stop because the bureaucratic impositions are too much to deal with.

But if I were a surgeon, especially a bone and joint surgeon, or if I treated chronic pain (I don't), life would already have become completely unmanageable.

[Fundamentally Fair]

The use of these pain killers swings wildly between two extremes. In the early 90’s, when I had SEVERE back troubles, the pain killers were given out like they were gold bars.

Then, around 2005, “pain management” became the big thing. The idea was that only the patient could decide what pain was. If they said they were in pain, they were in pain. Consequently, pills were handed out like candy.

The fact is, sometimes you need strong pain killers and other times you do not.

I have to think that it's obvious when some is just seeking pills.

[Harmless Teddy Bear]

“In 2012, there were enough opioid prescriptions issued - nearly 260 million - to give every man, woman and child in the country their own bottle of pills,” said U.S. Senator Bob Menendez

That is because honey child you have put regulations in place that make it necessary to get a new prescription every time you need a refill.

I was on Norco for several months. When they finally got around to fixing the problem (torn tendon) I stopped taking the pills.

I am sorry for the people that are "addicted" but I have to wonder, how many are "addicted" to the pills and how many are in serious pain and "addicted" to not feeling like a limb is being removed with a pry bar?

[sargon]

What a bunch of hand-wringing hysteria.

Individuals should be responsible for their own actions, and there's no substitute for effective pain relief.

I'd choose a different ER, because it's always good to have the most options.

What works, works.

[cherry]

finally the recognition that human beings do not always act responsibly and that drugs, even legal ones, are a menace....