How Does the Pain Medicine Fentanyl Effect You, and Can You Still Lead a Fairly Normal Life?
Question by Bonnie W: how does the pain medicine fentanyl effect you, and can you still lead a fairly normal life?
i have chronic pain and am getting ready to try duragesic pain patches for the first time as prescribed by md, please let me know of your experiences or those of loved ones? how do you shower with one on? if it makes you feel worse, how long til it gets out of your system? i have read bad stuff about it, but surely they must do something good to still be on the market? my dose will be 25mcg which i assume is a low level, am wondering if this will make me a zombie, if the pain relief will be different from oxycodone and methadone, and if i can take them off and put them back on here and there to minimize the dosage or avoid addiction, which when you are going to have pain the rest of your life, addiction no longer matters as long as it won’t make me a zombie or turn mean or whatever, and how does it effect your driving? do people walk around in public normally with these patches on? i am just very fearful, hoping for answers to my pain, hoping that this will be a good thing if i do things correctly. please tell me anything you feel like sharing, i appreciate it. -i am a seriously screwed up crippled person in pain, not a druggie here so please no fast attitudes…
just wanted to say i’ve already been brushed off by busy doctors at clinic and pharmacist who said read the enclosures everything will be fine, i am trying to gather as much knowledge as possible…thanks….
Best answer:
Answer by susan
You need to be speaking to your Dr AND pharmacist about this not random people on line. You might want to start with your pharmacist, they have 6 years of schooling and really know what they are talking about and it’s free. They usually have more time than a Dr too.
What do you think? Answer below!
Find More Methadone Uses Information…
Sorry honey- i typed you a huge long answer and yahoo lost it on me!!
So i’m going to have to be brief now-
Some people have a terrible time with fentanytl patches including lots of side effects. More people seem to experience side effects when using “generic”patches as opposed to brand name ones- so please be aware of that. If you feel unwell at any time contact your Dr immediately. Just remeber though that for every medical “horror story”, there are often many more people that have had sucsess with whatever treatment.
Many people with chronic pain say the patches have given them their lives back. I suffer with severe Interstitial Cystitis, which is a condition that affects the bladder and surrounding pelvic area, and for many sufferers causes chronic pain. Many people with severe pain at the IC network use fentanyl patches. The dose you have mentioned 25mg is low and is the usual starting dose. Although it is ALWAYS advisable to wait a few days to see how you react to the meds, many people can drive and go about their daily lives with the patches- noone will know you are wearing one except you.
If you suffer with chronic pain, you need to find a way to manage it that allows you to carry on with your life- for some people, fentanyl patches do just that. But i cannot say whether or not they will work for you.
Speak to your Dr about your concerns. There is nothing wrong with seeing a different Dr for a second opinion if you like- not all Drs have the same amount of knowledge and experience with all treatments- perhaps a different dr would suit you better? Don’t be afraid to switch Drs if yours isn’t working right for you.
You didn’t mention what your chronic pain originates from, but you may find it a good idea to talk to people on forums for chronic pain condtions. I have got all the information i have needed to deal with my condition after i was diagnosed by my doctor from the IC-network, rather than from any Dr. My Dr has been great about working with me to find the best treatments for my pain- my first DR was useless so i found a new one.
Good luck with your new treatment- i hope you’re feeling better soon <3