Intermittent meds for non daily nerve pain?

[Rollerblade]

I am waiting (patiently - sort of) for my medicare part B to kick in so I can see a dr about my nerve pain. I am a T12/L1 incomplete para post 11yrs and had nerve pain a lot the first couple of years - though at the time I didn't know what it was and suffered in relative silence - then it all but vanished. Now it is back :confused: I am lucky in that I don't suffer with it daily. I know it sounds silly but it seems to be affected by the weather (?) my stress levels and how tired I am. Then I get a shooting stabbing pain in my left knee and thigh that is like I am being stabbed with an electric cattle prod over and over again every few seconds. A lot of times it occurs in the evening and then I can't sleep that night. Anyway my question is this; I am not a big fan of taking meds and since I can sometimes go a week or two without getting this pain I am hoping there is a med I can take only at the times I need relief. Is this possible? I wish to be well educated in my options in case I end up with a dr that wants to plonk me on daily meds - which I will end up having to refuse. So is there any help for someone like me who wants to avoid daily meds until absolutely necessary?

[arndog]

That is a great question, Rollerblade. I have thought of this too. Here are the problems that I found.
Lyrica - if you take it occasionally on an as needed basis, you always get the intense side effects of grogginess/dopeyness and it won't go away as it does if you take it on a daily basis. I guess if you can cope with that , it would work for NP pain.
The other thing I think about with as needed meds for occasional severe burning pain is sleep meds. When the neuropathic pain is bad, it is too distracting for me to fall asleep. So, that is where Ambien can be helpful. If the NP pain is bad and I take an Ambien, I can fall asleep despite the discomfort and distraction, and the pain is usually gone by the morning, so that is a good thing.
The 3rd med I would like to mention is diazapam, or Valium. When I get a UTI (bladder infection) , I will get electric shocks in my foot that take my breath away. On these occasions (2 or 3 times a year) , I will take diazapam and I can get through it. It doesn't get rid of the shocks as much as it eases the sympathetic output from my reaction to the pain, I think Dejerine alluded to this in a different.
So there are 3 meds that I have considered using on a prn (as needed) basis. But I concluded that I can't do the Lyrica prn due to the side effects. So my plan is to find the lowest dose of Lyrica I can take and still get relief. I am trying to drop from 150 twice a day to 75 twice a day.
Oh, narcs are certainly an option too to use as a prn basis. Any relief from the burning is welcome.
I followed the barometric pressure for a while on the internet to see if there was an influence from it. I couldn't find one. But the last 2 you mentioned - stress level and fatigue are totally correlated to increase NP pain for many people. I discounted that notion when my pain doc mentioned it but I totally believe it now. I will do better if I can get to bed early and get adequate sleep.
So there you go. Lyrica, sleep meds, valium or narcs could be used on an as needed basis. Well, that is my opinion after dealing with this issue over the last 7 years....
Good luck and share with us what you learn and your experience with this. I will be interested in what you find....
Jon

[justadildo]

"I know it sounds silly but it seems to be affected by the weather (?)"

SO NOT SILLY....and don't let anyone convince you otherwise, you can't fight the pain if you listen to others instead of your body..it won't lie to you..try lyrica...i use it during weather change...might work for you, worth a try

[SoFla]

I hate using narcotic drugs, and the side effects that arise. This works for me. Brew a nice hot cup of your favorite herbal tea, laced with your favorite shot of booze. Rum or burbon helps me. Brew the tea in a large mouthed mug. Use a cup large enough that your nose can enjoy the steamy bouquet of both. There is something about the heat, steam, and aroma that is just so very relaxing. It makes the pain tolerable, and my body relaxes.

[TheDuder]

"I know it sounds silly but it seems to be affected by the weather (?)"

SO NOT SILLY....and don't let anyone convince you otherwise, you can't fight the pain if you listen to others instead of your body..it won't lie to you..try lyrica...i use it during weather change...might work for you, worth a try


I agree, cold greatly affects my foot pain. I live in freezing Wisconsin and it doesn't take long with me outside on a cold day for my feet to be on fire from the cold even if i'm not cold anywhere else. When i get home and if my feet are cold/hurting, i turn on my space heater and plop my feet in front on them. My lord the heat feels feels splendid as it starts warming my feet.

I mentioned in another thread that i take Oxycodone, the weird thing that it does usually is it kinda makes my feet feel warm which in turn dulls the pain.

In general though, as each year passes since my injury, my tolerance for cold weather gets lower and lower while i crave warm weather. I used to love the changing seasons of Wisconsin and now i hate them except for when it's summer. I keep the heat on so high in winter that my daughter jokes that i should be 80 years old and i sleep with a heavy sweatshirt on along with being under two comforters. It's ridiculous how easily i get cold now.