Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I have a very close friend who is in constant pain from an auto accident that injured her spine. The NSAID's simply are not strong enough to give her the relief she needs and are too hard on her gastrointestinal tract. Previously she got regular prescriptions for hydrocodone that allowed her to have a life without any side effects, at least none near what the NSAID's were doing to her. She took as directed, didn't abuse, never sold them or do anything illegal with them.
Four months ago her PCP gave her a 1-month prescription and told her he would no longer treat patients for pain. He didn't say outright but made it clear to her in veiled language (best as she could explain the conversation to me) that he was terrified of the DEA yanking his license and making an example of him by prosecuting him--he is not a pill-mill doctor, by the way, and mentioned that many of his colleagues are doing the same: getting out of pain treatment because of fear of losing their licenses. He advised her to go to pain management clinics. She did but none would see her. A few mentioned that they would eventually close their doors because of ongoing pressure from the DEA not to prescribe opiates.
I'm hearing this a lot and a definite pattern is emerging: doctors terrified, refusing to treat pain; pharmacies terrified, refusing to fill prescriptions for opiates citing no supply; cutbacks in opiate production at the manufacturing levels--25% in 2017 and 20% in 2018 on orders from the DEA.
What is happening? I cannot get a clear picture of why the DEA is doing this but I definitely know it is not to save 15,000 lives per year from OD's on legal precriptions--most from abuse when kids steal them from their parent's medicine cabinet. Weigh those 15,000 deaths against these statistics for 2015:
1. Deaths from NSAID's: 15,000. How many were from OD because of pain?
Quote:
These drugs are categorized as non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), and they are linked to potentially devastating side effects, particularly in the elderly. In the United States alone, 100,000 people who takes NSAIDs are hospitalized every single year, and approximately 15,000 die.
3. Suicides: 44,000. How many were because of pain?
Quote:
In 2014, nearly 43,000 Americans committed suicide, over twice the number of deaths that have been linked to opioid overdoses. In recent months there have been a growing number of anecdotal reports of pain patients killing themselves because they can no longer get pain medication or find doctors willing to treat them.
In behavior totally out of character with them, Big Pharma has decided not to fight the DEA and is going along with the agency's plan to kill one of their biggest cash cows.
I've read all sorts of conspiratorial theories on the Internet, all which I think are downright silly:
1. the govt. wants to push seniors to commit suicide to relieve some of the burden on Social Security/Medicare
2. the govt. is trying to help the profits of drug rehab clinics and the prison/industrial complex
3. the govt is in cahoots with drug cartels
None of this is making the slightest bit of sense to me.
Can someone--ANYONE help me to understand what is happening inside the FDA/DEA that is causing them to behave this way---without citing the lame excuse they really are trying to save 15,000 people who likely abused these drugs---this against 8x's the number of deaths from alcohol, NSAID's, and suicides to relieve pain which they don't seem to give a fig about, as well as the skyrocketing financial burden NSAID's, failed suicides and alcohol place on our already-overburdened healthcare system ?
I wish the FDA and DEA would both get shut down permanently.
I know we need them, but I simply do not understand their logic with this new opiate drug policy they are pursuing in the face of the statistics I cited. I want to understand. It's driving me crazy not having the slightest clue what's going on.
Like you, OP, I have someone I know (relative) that was involved in a car accident and had significant spinal injuries. This was back in the 1980s. She got permanent disability at age 28 and spent many years on pain killers because she couldn't get relief.
She was never what you would call an "abuser" however, she did become addicted. There was no way for her not to. And after years of taking them, they totally changed her personality and created a person that was not the person we knew. She actually managed to get herself off of them and almost died doing that. She hasn't taken them for years. She is not the same person and her life has been essentially ruined from them.
The drugs rewire the way your brain interprets pain and you ended up, after a time, feeling pain in a different way. Your brain has been messed up.
I know pain needs to be handled, but I am convinced that they should not be used for more than 10 days. I don't know the answer though for people with long-term pain.
Last edited by ChristineVA; 02-16-2018 at 02:38 PM..
I believe it is mostly political. The problem had gotten bad enough for the DEA to act in 2012, which just made the problem worse. Much worse. So bad in fact, that the governor of WV has decided to call in the national guard to help fight the problem. It isn't that calling in the guard will help, but it makes the governor look like he is doing something.
In this case, the public demands that the government do something about the problem, so the government responds with the worst possible course of action. Is anyone surprised?
Quote:
Originally Posted by ChristineVA
I don't know the answer though for people with long-term pain.
The answer is for the government to butt-out of doctor/patient relationships. People can maintain good and productive lives on opioids, believe it or not, as long as they have access to a long-term quality supply of it. That is why the government screwed things up so badly in 2012 when they stuck their big nose into doctor/patient relationships. The sudden interruption in supply implemented by some doctors (cold turkey) has resulted in MANY deaths.
Like you, OP, I have someone I know (relative) that was involved in a car accident and had significant spinal injuries. This was back in the 1980s. She got permanent disability at age 28 and spent many years on pain killers because she couldn't get relief.
She was never what you would call an "abuser" however, she did become addicted. There was no way for her not too. And after years of taking them, they totally changed her personality and created a person that was not the person we knew. She actually managed to get herself off of them and almost died doing that. She hasn't taken them for years. She is not the same person and her life has been essentially ruined from them.
The drugs rewire the way your brain interprets pain and you ended up, after a time, feeling pain in a different way. Your brain has been messed up.
I know pain needs to be handled, but I am convinced that they should not be used for more than 10 days. I don't know the answer though for people with long-term pain.
Yes, I get that they're not a perfect solution, but in many cases they're the only solution to helping a person live close to a normal life--the others being the ones I mentioned: NSAID's, alcohol and suicide. There have been calls by the CDC, pain specialists who are too afraid to prescribe painkillers, and ironically the DEA for other forms of treatment such as exercise, physical therapy, yoga, acupuncture, cognitive behavioral therapy, biofeedback, chiropractic, and relaxation training but good luck with these when pain levels are at a 7-10 on the pain scale. Without painkillers a large percentage of pain patients are confined to bed They do change brain chemistry but in an euqally large percentage of cases people stay on them for decades without deleterious effects.
I still want to know why the DEA is pushing to make opiates completely banned while giving a free pass to alcohol which kills more than 5 x's the number of people that prescription opiates do.
I still want to know why the DEA is pushing to make opiates completely banned while giving a free pass to alcohol which kills more than 5 x's the number of people that prescription opiates do.
Easy answer:
The 21st Amendment to the US Constitution prevents the Federal Government from banning alcohol.
There are patients with chronic pain who use low-dose opioids wisely as needed and don't get addicted. I know people like that. And yes, I know what NSAIDs can do to the digestive system if used often (in some cases if used at all). After some serious year-long digestive problems, my GI doctor treated me and told me not to use NSAIDs on a daily basis, and avoid them as much as possible. Now they're looking into what NSAIDs might cause as far as bone health...it is suggested that they can interfere with reproduction of new bone-building cells. I have very low bone density already. What's left, other than NSAIDs? Opiods and Tylenol. Tylenol, of course, can't be used frequently for another problem: it can cause liver damage. I take a supplement called Curamin (Turmeric & Boswellia), but it helps very little for my back pain and arthritis pain. I take Glucosamine Chondroitin...don't even notice it helping at all. I rarely ever touch alcohol...I know too many people whose lives were ruined by over-use or alcoholism. I know the medical researchers are looking for new pain-killers, but that could take decades, if they ever produce anything less problematic. Pain already limits my activities...can only get worse at my age.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
They do change brain chemistry but in an euqally large percentage of cases people stay on them for decades without deleterious effects. 
