To think with the amount of pills I'm stuffing down my throat I should have some pain relief. .

[Vintagecakeisstillnice]

I have a slipped disc, at L5/S1.

Was in hospital as it was initially thought I had Cauda Equina, have had a specific single nerve block which got rid of the electric shocky pain. I do feel I was discharged too soon.

But the remaining pain, oh my God, I can even stand long enough to fill the kettle, my OH has to help me dress. I keep getting told it will get better, keep taking the meds.

I'm fecking rattling with pills, morphine, gabapentine, tramadol, diclofenac, paracetamol and of course senna .

That's also with TENs machine.

It's getting silly now.

AIBU to expect to at least have a reduction in pain??

Are you sure its safe to take that number of pills? I realise that you are incredible pain. but that is a hell of a cocktail you have taken.

No idea but sending healing calming thoughts.

Are these the pills you have been prescribed or are you taking anything and everything in the hope they'll work? You are taking a cocktail there.

I am assuming OP that you haven't taken all of those at once. You have my sympathies as I have spent the summer suffering from sciatica and apart from the actual pain, it is so tiring thinking about when the pain is going to come again, how you can possibly manage to do a bit more, with a bit less discomfort etc. How long have you been in this much pain?

Oh all prescribed. .

Hate taking pills and really have to force myself to do it.

Am under the pain team but feel that my 'cheery' can do disposition is going against me. . .

So much so that OH is now insisting on coming to my OPAs to stop me saying no no I'm fine.

I'm not getting any 'high' from them as I am in so much pain. Sitting in a position to type this has me in a cold sweat.

I'm not sleeping more that an hour or so as when I move I wake with pain, so even if I don't wake fully I'm still disturbed.

I do feel that they're just adding more or increasing dosages but I need investigation. Now I'm a qualified Nurse, though no longer practice, so I know who to push etc I feel sorry for anyone who doesn't know the system.

Oh yes taking all of them. . .
10 pills 3 times a day, only 5 at supper time. . .

Plus anti- emetic as needed and oramorph for breakthrough pain.

And still in pain. . .

How much oramorph are you taking? Does your MST need increasing?
On max dose gabapentin? Nerve pain is terrible.

2years ago I had the same thing. It's tiring, boring and very painful. Be careful you don't accidentally overdose, tramadol can make you a bit woooh...

Pain is so complex. I really feel for you. Can you describe the pain in words.... Burn, ache, electric shock etc??

The reason I ask is that you are only on one drug for nerve pain which is the gabapentin. You might need a muscle relaxant or amitryptiline

Was about to say it's a lot, then cottoned that my equivalent is Codeine, Paracetamol, Naproxen and Amitriptyline. Slightly milder, but just as numerous.

Concerned about morphine and tramadol, mind. There's a wee bit of overlap in mode of action, there. It might be worth you talking to a pharmacist about how you can narrow down the range of what you take, or else use them together at their most effective.

Also, for sleep, might be worth you reviewing your mattress. My sleep really improved when i invested in a memory foam mattress topper. I no longer woke myself up every time i tried to move in my sleep (I have HMS, so always have some joints, somewhere, screaming at me)

No advice for you, but lots of sympathy. My DH had a slipped disc L5/S1 & was in agony with it. The worst of the pain was not in his back but referred pain from the sciatic nerve.

He was taking Tramadol, Pregabilin, Diazepam, Diclofenac, Naproxen, Amitriptyline, Co-Codamol. Used a TENS machine, back supports & deep heat max strength. My DH found the epidural and nerve root block injections totally ineffective.

His consultant said that the majority of slipped discs resolve by themselves, but in his case after suffering for 2 years in increasing pain, he opted for microdiscectomy which has been life changing.

He does not take any medication now related to his back (but is on other drugs for another condition!!). He does occasionally feel twinges down his left side (original issue was on right) & it may become necessary in the future to have further surgery on the other side of the disc.

I do hope that your back issue resolves by itself and your pain levels start to decrease.

Best wishes and

I have utmost sympathy for you - my friend is currently housebound with the same (like chocolatelimes DH, her pain is from the sciatic nerve) and in the same situation of rattling with all the pills but getting minimal pain relief She's counting down the days to her consultant appointment and is then going to pay for surgery because she can't wait the 12+ weeks for an NHS surgical appointment to come up both because of the pain and because she's self-employed and currently finds it almost impossible to work.

Thanks everyone I needed to vent. I eventually got some sleep which helped.
I think I'm going to end up going the surgical route. My consultant appointment is in a few weeks but I'll be seeing the pain team before that.

It's just all so draining. And then you feel like a prat for moaning about it.

Op feel your pain. Im on tramadol diclofenac and paracetmol
But im debating my bottle of morphine right now!
Doesnt take all the fucking pain away tho!

I wish surgery was an option

Chocolatelime could he take cocodamol and tramadol at same time? Used to take covodamol but stopped as it wouldnt touch my back, however only thing that helped when i have a migraine

you are nt a prat for moaning you are in pain and a lot by the sound of it and all those tablets you really should be flying and in no pain

I found out when I was in A & E and the pain-killers they'd given me weren't working that if you have low blood-sugar they won't work. It was only after they'd asked me what and when I'd eaten, that they realised my blood sugar must be low and as soon as they gave me something sweet to eat (biscuits I think) the painkillers worked.

Thanks and I'll try that too.

kali110 I actually can't remember about tramadol & co-codamol. He used to take the latter to ease his side effects for yet another medication he needed to take for another condition!

He found the diclofenac suppositories very effective to help ease the pain at night time. Although, in truth, nothing ever took the pain away - no matter how many things he was taking. They never prescribed him morphine though.

Sciatic pain is horrific, you have my utmost sympathy. After my DH's surgery it took weeks to 'withdraw' from all the medications that he had been taking for so long. We took a huge carrier bag of the things back to the chemist once the withdrawal process was complete. That was a good day!

Surely you shouldn't take tramadol/ morphine, tramadol/co-codamol at the same time as they're all from the opiate group?

I'm saying this as a HCP, if someone could enlighten me..?

As far as I'm aware pobble your absolutely correct about cocodamol and tramadol as both on same "step" of the analgesic ladder.

I think tramadol can be used as breakthrough with morphine but the more usual choice is oramorph

A&e said i could take morphine when pain was real bad and im in tramadol, but they never said dosage etc so iv never taken it. I just want something to take for my fucking migraines!honestly thought that when they gave me tramadol for my back and knees that it would help with migraines.ahhh sciatic pain is a bitch, had that last weekend n i couldnt move my leg