first and fore most he works for you, make sure you go in there with that attitude, you pay him for his service, you are in a sense his boss, and if you dont speak up for your rights no one will- if he does not want to give you what you need fire him and find one that will,

Most doctors are hesitant to prescribe heavy doses of narcotics. You are probably a new patient of this NS. He did write you the script and will probably write you the next one. If he did not want to write it he would not have or would have delved into it further. He does not know your pain level either.

Be careful with the 'he works for you' attitude. The NS probably has your best interest in mind and a mutual respect is the best course of action. In your own words you said you may have read his reaction wrong. You did not mention whether you had an MRI or not? If you did not then the NS will err on the side of caution when prescribing.

Take me for example. I am 51 and my real back issues started a couple years ago. When I went to the surgeon he told me to take OTC meds for the pain. Once I had an MRI and he saw the extent of my damage he prescribed what I needed for meds until I had my surgeries.

Now I see a pain management doctor and take daily doses of meds. It would be nice to some day stop taking them but I am not counting on it. And it was a couple months after my cervical surgery that the NS released me to the PM doctor because the NS does not prescribe long term narcotics to chronic pain patients.

Again, you will probably find that discussing the issues with the doctor at your next appointment will get you places via respect rather than attitude. By no stretch of the imagination are you his boss!

Also, bring your questions and concerns written down so you don't forget them............Paul

I agree with Paul's comments. Be sure to express to your doctor your level of discomfort. I developed sciatic pain in October of last year and YES it is a BEAR to deal with. I had never experienced such pain in my life. It is just recently that my pain levels have dropped and that's after months of chiro, PT, massage, ice, heat (you name it, I tried it). I take tramadol (non narcotic pain reliever) and lyrica (for nerve pain) and I have oxy (from my primary care physician) for breakthrough pain (levels 8, 9 10, etc.). You might ask the doc about getting on Lyrica or Neurotin along with your percocet or he may offer that to you. It takes a while for the pain to go away. If you've been reading the posts here you know that many people are on high doses of pain relievers, muscle relaxers, etc. so you're not alone.

Your doctor's reaction regarding the amount of pain killers you were taking may have had to do with not realizing HOW MUCH PAIN you were having.

Good luck at your next appointment and just speak frankly with him about your pain issues. I broke down in tears one time in my ortho's office because I was just so miserable (mascara rolling down my face, the whole deal -- not so pretty when you're in your fifties (LOL)).

Take care and hope you feel better soon -- I know how miserable it is to try to get through you day in pain.

Judy

This is not a strange question at all. I felt strange asking for Vicadin refills when I first had disc herniation. I started at 5/500mg and when the pain worsened more my doctor increased it to 10/325. I think back then I took 1 tablet every 4-6 hours but they only gave me a 2 week quantity at a time. How did your doctor write your script?

I agree with Paul that the doctor will prescribe narcotics according to how much damage you have as shown on the MRI. Please be careful with all the tylenol you're ingesting, and let your doctor know how much OTC tylenol you take. I'm sorry you can't take any NSAIDS to help with the inflammation aspect of your pain.

Most of us have to take a combination of medicine to treat our chronic pain such as a long acting narcotic such as morphine, immediate release med (Vicadin), muscle relaxer (Soma, Zanaflex), NSAIDS, nerve pain meds (Lyrica, Neurontin, Cymbalta), and NSAIDS. One medicine doesn't cut it when it comes to dealing with back and sciatica pain.

Just let your doctor know if you're having too much pain, and he should help you find the right medications to manage your pain. He'll probably want you to have an epidural spinal injection to help out. I hope things work out and that you get relief soon. Take care

Your HORRIBLE sciatic pain will not be helped much by any narcotic as it works on a different part of the brain than the part that senses nerve pain. It is for this reason that drugs such as neurontin and lyrica are prescribed for nerve pain.

Sometimes a pain pill will take the edge off, but simply take a larger dosage will not help with nerve pain.

Often applying ice to the lower lumbar area for 10-15 minutes at a time is almost as effective as pain medication.

as to how the script was written. Even though the paperwork I signed with my surgeon last October said they would only handle my pain management for two months, they're still prescribing me my meds - flexiril and hydrocodone. The hydro says 1-2 every 4 hours so it's important that I don't take more than that (I actually take half that amount usually). So what is the dosage on your meds? It shouldn't raise any eyebrows if your are within or below the prescribed dosage.

I agree with the others - you have to develop a trusting relationship with your doc. If he realizes how much pain you're in and what your situtation is, he should be taking care of that. Demanding anything from a doctor will get you out of their door very quickly and on to another doctor to start all over again.

Cath