needing to get off of fentany

Hello can l ask a couple of questions =

 why your Dr has stopped prescribing pain killers to you?

why do you think a new Dr would not prescibe them to you?

That is a lot of Fentanyl they just cannot stop that, and surely you must need that or something to be prescribed that in the 1st place. Can l ask why you are on it and how do you feel health wise or about taking it? l myself am on 75mcg for my spinal problems and am having thoughts about the treatment hence me looking on this site. regards

I too have been on Fentynal patches for 10 years. I was on 100mcg but had to drop down to 75s whilst pregnant. Theyre just not lasting 3 days,im fed up with trying to tape them on my arm to keep them on, Ive got nothing for breakthrough pain, & just not coping at all.

Due to increase in Opiate abuse by druggies, medical proffessionals world wide are trying to remove all patients off of Fentynal..Even War vets.

Ive heard great reports of other people like me,who have gone from the patches onto Targin,with oxytontin for break through pain,with minimal withdrawals suffered in the exchange.

The withdrawal symptoms coming off patches is are very cruel. My OBGYN took me off the 100mcg straight down to 25mcg and I thought I was going to die.! I wanted to die. He jumped down way too fast. It was suggested to me by my rheumatologist to go to hospital for a week on a drip or join the methadone junkie queue to wean off the patches..most insulting. It seems that once you have been on Fentynal patches for some time you are regarded as a drug addict...Umm..my body may have become tolerant but i certainly dont hang out for a fix (new patch). Due to the stigma attached to Methadone,despite reports that it helps with pain, I think I will try Targin first. Im seeing a new rhuemy tomorrow. Good luck to you.

I have Ankylosing spondylitis, Fibromylgia,sacroellitis,osteoarthritis and Trochanteric bursitis...I just want a cure for AS and Fibro and be rid of opiates all together. Its no life. Just a painful existence.

Hi Kathy! I'm concerned after reading your post. First, let me disclose that I'm in the US and I'm aware there are different rules for patients covered by NHS

In my case, I have chronic bone pain which I've suffered all of my life. Initially, I was prescribed MS Contin and MSIR for  breakthrough. I made the mistake of agreeing to undergoing C5-C6 fusion (which was just ONE problematic area). Surgery didn't go as planned. I can't say it made me any worse, it just didn't make me better.

The neurosurgeon wanted to immediately cut off the pain meds about a week post-op. I requested a referral to a pain clinic which continued the Morphine, but being on that was like being on a roller coaster. From the start, my pharmacist had suggested I ask about a Fentanyl patch, but the docs declined. I was "too active and too young". 

Long story short, I fell and sustained a really serious fracture. The orthopedic surgeon ordered a consult with a new group of pain doctors who ordered the Fentanyl patch. That was almost ten years ago. I lost more than 100 pounds, getting down to the weight I was in college. Basically, I went from being bed bound to getting my life back. 

My point is this: don't allow yourself to be intimidated into a decision that could result in a disaster. If you are stable and capable of working on your medication protocol, ask your doctor for a pain clinic referral.  They are very comfortable prescribing the oral meds you are worried about. 

Doctors are becoming unwilling to prescribe opiods because police and prosecutors are making examples of them. It's popular with the public to paint patients with debilitating pain as malingerers. Much of this is fueled by conservative attitudes and a media that plays on public fear. The problem is that people who have legitimate pain end up suffering. I've known people with chronic pain who have taken their lives bc death is preferable to a life in unending pain. But there is a small percentage of people who divert the meds prescribed in order to sell them on the street. Further, teens aren't stupid and many aren't above stealing opiates from patient's medicine cabinets. (Which ends up being the fault of the patient and not the thief!) 

Further, since the 1980's, many people have made lots of money on the so-called "war on drugs". It's responsible for the appalling incarceration rate in the US. The DEA is not above presenting false medical records to entrap doctors into prescribing opiates for agents pretending to have chronic pain. All of this is used by the media to whip up an anti-drug frenzy. As arrests for drugs like marijuana drop, the police and prosecutors have simply switched to other low hanging fruit: patients with chronic pain. 

ONLY YOU can evaluate whether or not you need the Fentanyl. I didn't mention that I'm a nurse, a lawyer, and a chronic pain patient. Yet, despite all that, I live in fear that public paranoia will lead to another wave of prohibition: this time making opiates out of reach for those who legitimately need them. Already, some states now prohibit Medicaid (medical coverage for the destitute) from covering opiates for non-cancer pain for longer than a post-operative period.  

Fentanyl gave me back my life; my heart goes out to anyone being forced to agree to something that is going to harm them.  My motto is: If it ain't broke, don't fix it. If your doctor is simply worried about his medical license, sending you to pain professionals will relieve him of that burdern. 

 

Kathy, coming off Fentanyl is brutal but well worth it depending on your pain issues. It is highly adactive and once you body buils a depenence on it you will have a a rough time coming off. On the upside you happiness will not be linked to dosage but will return to a response to the events in your life, compulsive behaviour and mood swings will cease and your addiction will stop giving you compelling reasons why not to stop. If you think quitting is right for you visit your local drugs charity and ask for support with a lofexodine detox. It will limit the brutality of first 2 weeks and then you just got to cope with a month or 2 of fatigue. After this it feels fantastic to have your life back..... I came off 6 months ago after 3 years on fent lozengers and nasal spray.