Posted by Larry Hoover on November 1, 2007, at 14:52:18
In reply to Brief Interuption in Thread. Deplin Back on Soon. » Larry Hoover, posted by Ron Hill on October 31, 2007, at 13:03:34
> > That's just one of the reasons you've been missed, buddy. You 'splain everything.
>
> > Lar
>
> Thanks, Lar.
>
> It's great that you've stuck around here. I need you here to catch my errors and correct me when I say something blatantly false. And second, when I have questions, I can knock on your door.Well, I hope I can live up to your praise.
> You're one of the elite "go to guys" 'round these parts. You da man, Lar. You da man.
Thanks.
> Lar, is your neuropathy pain as bad as it has been in the past?No, but....
I've seen some modest improvement, but the last time I took the McGill Pain Questionnaire, I'm still scoring at the 91st percentile.
> Are you still taking neurontin?
I simply can't tolerate the side effects. They didn't moderate with time, they increased.
> And, weren't you taking tramadol at one point?
Long long time ago, and not for this issue. It pooped out real quickly, in any case, so I used it as a booster, transiently.
> Oxy for the pain?
Well, now there's a story. I developed a serious adverse reaction to the drug. Despite stable dosing of continual release oxycodone, I was suffering from symptoms of withdrawal. I lost ~60 lbs., drenching night sweats, panic attacks, abdominal pain. I had to do a full withdrawal, without any medical support. Long story.
My only true pain treatment, just now, is stellate ganglion nerve blocks, every four weeks or so. They may be responsible for some modest improvement in my symptoms of complex regional pain syndrome.
>
> Do you still have good movement in your elbow and arm?Ya, but.....As everything I do with it hurts, I'm losing muscle mass. I've got $6,000 in guitars, getting dusty. :-/
> If I recall correctly, you made your way through the health care system to the stage where you were allowed to see the specialist, right or wrong?Well, ya, but....Worker's Comp is refusing to pay for ongoing treatment with the nerve blocks, despite my not yet being discharged from treatment. It costs me $300 round trip each treatment for a taxi, but my lawyer says I should be able to get that back, at some point. Considering there's a year wait list to get into this pain clinic, and they're still treating me, I'd expect that the treatments are medically necessary. Worker's Comp is thinking about it.
> If so, are you allowed to see the specialist on an ongoing basis?
I'm still going, but the red tape is a full time job.
> Bring me up to speed with regard to your current condition and your current med cocktail.
Just prior to the opiate withdrawal (and significantly coinciding with it), I was suicidal. Two days before my last opiate dose (self tapered), my dad died. 3 1/2 weeks later, my mom died. I entered a period of significant challenges, with mood problems, cognitive problems, memory problems. I had three serious kitchen incidents, turning on the stove and forgetting all about it. I invented a new way to make tear gas: put a dozen eggs (and water) in a teflon pot, turn on high, and forget about them. After an hour or so, you get teflon degradation products, combined with sulphur compounds and amine derivatives from the carbonizing eggs.
Prozac, 20 mg
Restoril, 30 mg
Surmontil, 25 mgIt's a long story, but I also concluded that my thyroid function was suppressed (opiates and stress can each do this). I got hold of some Armour thyroid, and I've been self-treating. I think, based on how things are going, that I was absolutely correct. I *was* feeling totally burned out. Now, I'm getting some resiliency back. I'm doing a little better, but I have to emphasize, this is relative.
> Maybe we should redirect to a fresh thread on the med page so we can get outta the way here. What say?
>
> -- RonWell, we'll be the Brief Interruption.
Lar
poster:Larry Hoover
thread:791850
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20071027/msgs/792754.html