Having lost an arm an eye and other bits in Iraq i am on heroic doses of tramadol what other options would you recomend

OMG! sounds so painful, apart from giving you these drugs are you getting any other treatment to reduce your pain ?

Wow! I'm sorry to hear that you're suffering. I'm not sure where your pain is, but I have pain in my entire spine, my arms and legs have neuropathy. I'm on 100 of fentanyl patches, Oxy for breakthrough pain and Baclofen for muscle spasms. What has worked best for me is I have a spinal cord stimulator implanted in my back. It's from a company called Medtronic. My neurosurgeon put it in. This one covers the pain in my lower back and legs. I'm waiting for the second implant to control the pain in my upper back, neck and arms. Then I will be able to decrease the pain Meds again. I hope you find something that works for you

Hi Mark,  I'm very sorry for what you've gone through but I admire you for your courage. 

I have nerve damage in my left leg and have had several conversations about the stimulator implants. I've heard very good results but I haven't done it yet. They can let you "try" it for a few days first to see if it's going to work for you. TENS also works for me. I also increased gabepentin to 2700 mg per day before my first hip surgery. The neurologist said I could safely go up to 3600 but I didn't need to. Pain clinic doctors usually have access to a lot of things other doctors don't so if your pain is not under control, make sure they know and insist that they help until you're comfortable. 

I wish you the best. 

Hiya,

I am so sorry for everything you are suffering! I got hit by a car 5 years ago and because of the severity of my injuries I have been on most medications. Tramadol is not the most effective thing you could be on nor is the bupronorphine patch and the patch is very sensitive to sunlight so that adds it's own complications. Oramorph is liquid morphine that is used for breakthrough pain. You can take it every 2 hours and you have some freedom over how much you take dependant on the pain and zomorph is morphine pills that you take every 12 hours. These things have worked incredibly well for me. You can also top off these meds with paracetemol and an anti-inflamatory.There are also lidocaine plasters to put on specific areas which numbs the pain for 12 hours. For non medication ways to deal with things try hydrotherapy. Because the weight is removed the pain is greatly reduced while letting you exercise and improve function and pain. There is also things like CBT and TENS machines to help with pain but you need to speak to someone in pain management as to what's the best option for you. If you need to chat to someone ever I'm here :-) Keep smiling!!