What do you use for serious long term pain relief?

Nov 28, 2015

I need long-term pain relief--unrelated to WLS. I have cervical spinal stenosis (a narrowing of the spine which pinches nerves), arthritis and a number of other pain issues. Right now I am in the middle of a major attack where I am quite honestly at a 9 on the pain scale. (I generally save 10s for pain I have yet to experience) Today is quite bad; I was in tears not 20 min ago over the pain. I have had surgery on my neck where the stenosis is, and a series of cortisone injections and rhiziotomies and lots of physical therapy. This pain has gone on intermittently for 4+ years now. Today is a bad day. My physical medicine MD wants me to take less oxycontin and similar drugs.  I use ice on my neck regulalry, so much so I have given myself ice-burns. I find that when I take these fairly serious drugs I 'burn" through them in about less than half the time they should last in my system. That "burn through" means I use them up a more often than I should to keep the pain at bay. I never feel high or zoned from them--just the stopping of the pain. This is not about anything other than ending pain. Tylenol does not touch this level of pain; Naproxen is not recommended post gastric by-pass. Friends have recommended a medical marijuana script, but I have never used pot and don’t really want to start smoking now. An ulcer keeps me from using too much aspirin. What do you take? What do your MDs recommend? Any one else out there who has these challenges? Suggestions? Many thanks in advance.

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