Pain Medications & Addiction

[Fluffykiwi]

Hi Everyone,

I guess after my introduction, this is my first 'real' post on the forum. I'm having a great time reading everyone's posts and the interesting information. After last week, I've officially decided that I must have some little black cloud of bad luck following me around.

Since the last time I posted on the site, I've been into hospital twice. One for being dehydrated on dialysis again (will they ever get it right) and secondly from a car accident. Some lady drove into the back of us, my husband was driving. I hurt my back and neck. We pulled over to the side of the road and my husband got out and told her he had to call an ambulance and the police. When he mentioned the police, she got in her car and just made off!! Can you believe it! Anyhow, so I was taken to hospital by ambulance, they had to cut my uniform off me. I got out yesterday so today is the first opportunity I've had to really check out the site properly.

Anyhow, that's not what my real question is about. When I got my fistula and started using it for the first time, and don't get me wrong, it's a really good fistula and works very well. However, I'm not overweight at all, but each time they used my fistula I'd get really severe pain in my arm. Sometimes it was so bad that I'd yell out. For six long months they treated it with Fentanyl (I'm sure most renal patients are aware of this drug). They then started to treat it with a drug called Gapapentin because they thought it might be a neuropathic type of pain. I think that the 6 months of treating me with really strong narcotics must have caused some level of addiction. The doctors no longer permit me to have it and when I've been for surgery and they've had no alternative but to use it, it has no affect.

Has anyone every experience something similar and if so, what have you done to fix this? Can it be fixed? 

[lizabee]

I have been in the hospital on Dilaudid a couple times this year and I haven't gotten addicted but I could see how someone could.  I'm not sure if all pain meds are addictive, sorry I can't be more help....I can't beleive that the person that hit you just took off at the mention of the police, hope you are feeling better soon

[pamster42000]

A person can become addicted to pain medications so Dr.s are usually very careful on perscribing it for a long period of time.

In your case it sounds like your body built up a tolerance to the medication and no longer works.  When a person takes medication for a long time sometimes it isn't effective anymore. Example:  Sarah took sleeping pills because she had insomnia and over a period of time it no longer worked.

Don't quote me...... but I think a higher dosage could be given ( I wouldn't like that option ) or a different type of pain killer  with different ingredients. Good question to ask your Dr.

[glitter]

My husband was addicted to fentanyl- he took it for un-dialysis related bone pain from an accident. One thing I remember is all over the boxes it came in- he was on the patch- it said "Not for surgical pain"
They did use it for that sometimes-  just added morphine to his mix.
    Did the gapepentan give you any relief? Can you tolerate any other meds? My husband could not tolerate anything else.

[Restorer]

I think it was specifically the patch that shouldn't be used for surgical pain. It's too long-lasting and doesn't  take effect as quickly as IV fentanyl. Every time I've had surgery, fentanyl was what they gave me immediately after I woke up to relieve the pain. I've heard it's also the go-to drug for pain relief during anesthesia for surgery.

There are other options for pain relief during surgery that take effect as quickly as fentanyl, but I think they're all similar, so your tolerance might include them too. There are others that are more commonly used after surgery that you might not have tolerance to. particularly morphine and Dilaudid.

The next time you have surgery, let the anesthesiologist know you might have developed tolerance for fentanyl, and they'll adjust their drug choices for you.

[*kana*]

Hi and welcome to the forum!
Sorry to hear of all the things that you have had to deal with. 

 

[Fluffykiwi]

Hi Everyone,

Thank you to everyone who responded. You have all raised some very interesting points. I think the point being made about the possibility that I've built up a tolerance to the drug makes a lot of sense.

I'm limited to the range of pain meds I'm allowed because of my residual kidney function.

They usually give me IV Fentanyl but I think they are aware of my tolerance to it. It's an awful drug, I hate what it's done to me. I never in my whole life thought getting addicted to a medication could happen so easily, worse yet, through no fault of my own. Before dialysis, I didn't even take paracetamol!!