I know that OxyContin contains oxycodone, which is a very strong narcotic pain reliever similar to morphine. OxyContin is designed so that the oxycodone is slowly released over time, allowing it to be used twice daily, this is info I found out of my friend. He told me I should never break, chew, or crush the OxyContin tablet. This sound like treatening, so I would like to know which usual dosage of OxyContin is. I would like to hear anything you could find useful, because I started to use this drug.
Problem with breaking OxyContin tablets is that causes a large amount of Oxycodone to be released from the tablet all at once. This might potentially result in a dangerous or fatal drug overdose. Only a physician can determine if OxyContin is a good choice to manage your pain. If you have pain every day that lasts for a large part of the day, and the pain is moderate or severe in intensity, OxyContin may be a good choice for you. However, since you started with OxyContin therapy, I believe you already have spoken with your physician. Taking OxyContin daily can result in physical dependence, a condition in which the body shows signs of narcotic withdrawal. That is a condition body reacts if the OxyContin is stopped suddenly. Withdrawal is not the same thing as addiction, which represents a situation where people obtain and take narcotics because of a psychological need. Physical dependence can be treated by slowly under the advice of a physician by slowing decreasing the OxyContin dose. It should be done once, when it is no longer needed for the treatment of pain. Concerns of addiction should not prevent patients with appropriate pain conditions from using OxyContin. The controlled-release nature of the formulation allows OxyContin to be effectively administered every 12 hours, so this could tell you enough about usual dosage of OxyContin.
Oxycontin is a brand name for the generic oxycodone.
They come in 10, 20 40 and 80 mg, I believe.
Your friend is right about not crushing or cutting in half the drug.
Your doctor should recommend the proper amount, the less the better naturally.
I do 40mg a day, and have been doing so for over two years.
So far, I have not experienced any problems of any kind, except my pain is under control.
Luck,
longknife
I am writing as I saw your were taking this medication - my mother has it prescribed it today but she is afraid it will affect to her mobility. She has been taking Adolonta and then the oncologist prescribed her the Matrifen in patches. After the second she decided not to use them as they would leave her sleepy and with not energy.
How oxycontin is doing to you?
Many thanks,
Juan
I found cannabis and noni Juice were what handled my pain the best. I'd been on Morphine and oxicodone for several years, finally arriving at the point I could no longer face taking either med. They were making me itch and I was getting sores from scratching. I was also constipated for all that time, and that was adding to the toxic load on my body.
I've been away from everything now for more than two years, and am glad to have escaped. Oh, I took a fall and did a 70% compression fracture of my L1 vertebra, so there was some serious pain involved. noni aloha.com noni is the kind. Some of the others are not so hot.
My best wishes for healing!!! May everyone be pain free!!
i have lived in severe chronic pain for 23 years. 10 years ago i went to recommended pain clinic, and was treated by a pain dr. thee(was an anaesthetist). Even though i am a nurse i was not familiar with this drug(though i have since learned it didn't come out till 1996(?), and no long term studies were done, as to just how addictive it is, or how difficult to get off of it. I then also learned it was 21/2 times stronger than morphine-i would never have taken it, if had known this. i went to the clinic because i thought he would keep me out of 'harms way'.
He started me on 20 mg. tid(3 times a day), but10 years later i was on 89mg, tid. I asked him to take me off it, so he titrated it down from 80 to 60mg. It is the most horrific experience i've ever had, and at 2 months there was no sign of it slowing down. He ended putting me back on the 80mg., but i remained in withdrawl for another 5 weeks. i never, ever want to go through that again. However, i was weaned off oxycontin in hospital, and was out withdrawl completely within 2 weeks. they say this is the same drug, but it acts much differently in my body. less pain control, since i started i have felt short of breath, other drugs like trazadone my sleeping drug not only no longer work, but make me feel like i was run over by a mac truck.
Lastly, i was going to be hospitalized by an addiction centre, but they refused as i am so ill, and because the pain dr. doesn't have a clue what to put me on..apparently he knows little on withdrawl. a gp sugested methadone.
Any help, support or whatever would be appreciated.
sincerely
pinkrainbow
Personally I suggest you find a way other than methadone for your pain. Perhaps, wean yourself down so that the medicine you are taking can work again for you. Methadone has been a nightmare for me. Methadone is long acting naturally. It has a long half life. Years ago stopped taking it cold turkey. Hot and cold chills, diarrhea, vomiting, being tired all of the time yet not able to sleep, soaking my sheets every four hours, kicking of my legs, blurred vision, inability to think normally, insecurity, constant running nose, sneezing, aches,and not sleeping for three weeks, are symptoms I experienced. To make matters worse, my pain increased. Later on, I found out that the increase in pain is most common in methadone withdrawal. OxyContin and oxycodone are not nearly as strong as methadone. So taking methadone, you eventually run into the same tolerance issues as with the OxyContin, only with a much more extensive painful withdrawal. Not to mention all of the stigma attached to methadone because it is also used for opiate withdrawal.
My heart goes out to you. Hang in there. 8-|
I think that, after reading these posts, it's important to make a distinction between "addiction" and "dependence". Addiction is dependency upon a substance accompanied by some behavioral patterns and thought patterns. Addiction implies an obsession with the drug, getting more of it, and doing whatever is necessary to keep the supply going. A physical dependency means that the body has adapted to administration of a drug and that withdrawal symptoms may occur if the drug is discontinued. Physical dependency is not accompanied by obsession, cravings, constantly thinking about the drug, using the drug for non-medical purposes or to get high, etc.
Most people who use opioid/opiate pain medications will not become addicted. However, physical dependency and the development of tolerance are pretty much inevitable if the drug is taken for any length of time. The receptor sites in the brain that enable opioids/opiates to relieve pain just become less sensitive to the drug. So, sometimes a higher dose of the drug is needed. Alternatives to raising the dose include adding non-narcotic pain relievers, natural pain relief methods like heat or ice, physical therapy (which should be tried PRIOR to getting a long-standing prescription for narcotic pain meds), TENS units, etc. Sometimes adding these to an existing medication regimin provides pain relief without raising the dose of the narcotic.
Stopping these medications should be done with medical supervision and support. In the case of OxyContin, the manufacturer recommends a gradual decrease in dosage to avoid withdrawal symptoms. Substitution with methadone or morphine isn't necessary.
Hope your better I just wanted to tell you I've been on Oxicontin for about 4 years and it works very well I'm not abusing them I take them as prescribed and they have kept me from going CRAZY so you should start out on a low dose 20 or 40 mg and see how it works. I'm not a doctor so I'm just guessing on the dosage but your doctor will know how to prescribe it.
Good Luck God Bless