Tramadol not doing anything ??

[vacay]

I've been prescribed for back pain, I'm currently in Cyprus and posted yesterday as my back is absolutely fucked. Anyway, I've woken up again with a really stiff painful back, sciatica going down both legs, had a tramadol and it hasn't done a thing ?? Had it over an hour ago now but I'm still in pain !! Anyone know why this might be ? Do I need to take another ?

Don’t take more tramadol than you’ve been prescribed. Stick the the dose your dr told you to have. It’s an opiate. Don’t fuck around with it.

What else did your dr say would help sciatica pain? Were you given stretches to do?

I've been prescribed Tramadol, codeine and oxycodone. None of which did anything for me at all. I ended up with oramorph which just made me sleep for hours.

Tramadol is a powerful painkiller but it isn't a miracle worker.

It doesn't work at all on some people (have you had it before?)

It doesn't work very well on nerve pain which sciatica is. Normally for bad nerve pain something like amytriptyline or gabapentin would be prescribed.

Also it takes time to work.

I find it works best in conjunction with anti inflammatories for back pain. That said, I have to take maximum dose all day to feel an impact.

I find very little painkillers work when my back spasms. It's such intense pain nothing helps.
Tramadol just made me woozy .

At home I am prescribed codeine and also diazepam when needed. I have been offered gabapentin and amytryptiline but I have two young babies so I'm reluctant to take those incase I'm knocked out.

Here the doctor was going to inject tramadol but I told him I already had taken 2 diazepam so instead he injected diclofenec?? It worked wonders, totally pain free all day but this morning I'm back to how I was yesterday.

Tramadol has done absolutely nothing, I get more relief from codeine.

I was on 17 painkillers a day at one point for back, hip and pelvic pain, and none of them did anything at all. Meanwhile no one was interested in finding out what was causing the pain in the first place. Once I found a doctor who helped with that, I then spent 18 months being weaned off all them.
My advice, if the painkillers aren't killing pain, don't take them. Tramadol is horrendously addictive. Find a doctor or possibly a physio in your case who can actually deal with the cause.

Tramadol gets a mixed response IME. Some people swear by it and some people hate it. What dose are you prescribed? I can’t take it because 50mg does naff all and 100mg makes me feel horrible (spaced out, fuzzy headed). If it diclofenac helped, it might be worth asking for Naproxen instead (and a stomach protector like Omeprazole).

50mg tramadol
Codeine works much better imo
The diazepam 2mg helps take the edge off

I was taking tramadol for chronic pain but it didn't deal with the pain, just made everything sparkly.

Assuming there are other adults around to look after the dc? Call the doctor back and get some other painkillers.

I bloody wish it would make things sparkly !!
Yeah all the family are here luckily to help out, we go home tomorrow night so I'm just going to hold out until then and I'll have some codeine. I did bring some with me but not enough annoyingly

It's easing off a tiny bit now, that's after a tramadol, x2 diazepam, and x2 cocodamol though !!

I was taking tramadol for chronic pain but it didn't deal with the pain, just made everything sparkly.

That's because it isn't technically a painkiller in the sense most of us mean by that word – it fools your brain and nervous system into thinking you aren't in pain. As PP have said, it doesn't work well for sciatica.

Honestly, OP if it isn't helping anyway, don't take it! As @DelilahBucket it's horrendously addictive and some people have to be weaned off it rather than just stop taking it.