Chronic Pain

Since my pain specialist increased my daily dosage of Kadian to 90mg (from 60), my thought processing skills have significantly dimenished. It type much slower than I used to, I continually forget things that my family tells me, and I will be in the middle of a conversation and forget the name of a person that I am referring to or what I am talking about. It is very frustrating. Speech and language problems are a known side effect with this drug and I was wondering if anyone else has this problem. Funning thing is, I am a speech therapist!! It's a shame I can't treat myself isn't it!

SoBlest

Hello, I am new to this site, but I deffently need to be here. I know exactlly what you meam about how the drugs have changed you.
I take Methadone10mg 4 or 5 times daily. Gabapentin (Nourton) 400mg 3daily and my knewest ....Hydromorphone 4mg 3 daily. And I still drive to work daily and have an office job that everyone thinks I am the dummest thing ever walked the earth. I won't tell them what I am taken. My doctor told me I don't have to. I want my job, I retire in 4 years. But luckly for me I just last month recieved an spinal cord stimmusltor. That was hell getting it. But I have it now so next month the Doc. said he will start to wein me off of some of the drugs, which is what I wanted. I anisheated the alternative to the drugs. I just didn't want to take it any longer. Since 2003, My mind feels like a peice of clay. I don't know how I've made it this far. So my advice to you would be get another option if you can. I was lucky my med.insurance aborbed the cost of $30,00.00 just for the equiptment and another 30,000.00 for the operation, had to have a Brain Surgen Oh, 2 each that is. They cut my head open, because I had TOS so the leads had to be placed high, then connected to the brain. Ooooww I'am glad that's over.

Hi, I really used to have this fog problem from my pain meds, I was not used to taking medications and really liked being med free for most of my life. The medication fog only lasted as long as it took for my body to get used to it and after I got into pain mgt, my doc took me off of all the muscle relaxers, neurontin & all my other meds. Then both my docs worked together to focus on getting my pain undercontrol without all the extra garbage. So I'm only an one baseline med, one for BT and Nortriptaline for my nerve pain & any possible depression symptoms. I have Trazadone to help me sleep, but most the time it does not work, so I rarely take it and have better luck with taking benedryl than anything else. I think if my pain meds were still making my groggy, I would try to lower the dosage a bit and try to find a happy medium.

As of now, My brain fog & fatigue is caused from my Fibromyalgia and there's not a lot I can do about that. Some find help with certain types of anphedimines, but I don't want to take those meds or add anything more to my routine. If I still was working it may also bother me more, but as I'm nearly homebound from the pain, fatigue & constant need to lay down and rest a bit as I carefully pace my day. I probably would be bothered more If I had to go into an office and deal with the public or others who don't know about my pain situation.

I really hope your spinal stimulator works well for you. Had you tried a tens unit in the past? I have a tens, but I can only use it on spare occaisions or it wont work at all if I become used to it, so I don't hardly use mine.

Congrads on your upcoming retirement. it's still 4 years, but that's a great acomplishment when your living with pain.

Take Care
Betty

Hi SoBlest,
I'm on slow release medication for constant pain as well. Seeing as my meds are for pain only , I treat my prescription like a speed limit sign. ie. You can't exceed the maximum but that doesn't mean you have to travel at the maximum all the time. ( when the pain's not too bad I miss the occasional dose ) I don't know if your pain levels rise and fall as mine do , but if you are like me I have found this method helpful, especially if I have to drive. It also has the added bonus of decreasing your tolerance a bit. Once again , I don't know your physical condition , but if you're able to exercise , that's a great brain-fog clearer. Water, of course, helps with everything. I've found drugs like XANAX are the worst for causing memory loss , so if you're on anything like that , I'd be blaming it rather than the opiates.