Nerve Pain Is Different

In the beginning it was hard for me to distinguish my pain because I experience pain in the joints, muscle, and nerves. All I knew was I was in pain and I wanted it to stop. Now that I know how to distinguish my pain, I know what pain medication works for me which is Cymbalta for my nerve pain and the Duragesic patch for my joint and muscle pain.

The following is an article from the National Multiple Sclerosis Society Mid South Chapter newsletter called the Connection. It is about nerve pain and I can vouch for Cymbalta when it comes to nerve pain it is also an anti-depressant. That’s one capsule that attacks two symptoms of MS and I highly recommend it over Neurontin. Why take three Neurontins a day that only helps with nerve pain when you can take one Cymbalta that helps with nerve pain and depression?

All pain is transmitted by nerves, but nerve pain is different. "Phantom limb pain" is a vivid example of "neuropathic" or nerve pain. This type of pain originates in the central nervous system in injured nerve pathways, not in the bones or muscles. A person with phantom limb pain feels pain in a body part that was amputated in the past.

MS lesions can injure nerve pathways and produce neuropathic pain - or unpleasant sensations called dysethesias (or "di-es-THESE-ee-ahs"). The burning, aching, stabbing, prickling, or itching may start and stop or drag on. MS lesions may also cause "allodynia" (Al-oh-DIN-ee-ah") - which is pain from something that shouldn't be painful. A soft touch, the weight of bed covers; even a cool breeze can be the trigger.

Neuropathic pain is not soothed by the over-the-counter medications that work on muscle pain. Even powerful prescription medications such as Percocet, Lortab, Oxycontin, or Darvocet are not effective for this kind of pain.

Instead, physicians need to prescribe medications that work on nerves. They may be anti-convulsants (such as Tegretol, Dilantin, or Neurontin), antidepressants (such as Elavil), or new drugs approved for diabetic pain (such as Lyrica or Cymbalta). It's not uncommon to try out several drugs to find what works best.

Here I Go Again...

Until Montel Williams,advocate organizations and average citizens continue to help support the passage of bill H.R 1717 (Truth and Trials Act) passed and help get Tennessee twin medicinal marijuana bills H.B.0486and S.B. 0641 passed. I and many others have no choice but to continue to take man made prescription pain medication with unbearable side effects that can be potentially deadly to get relief from the severe pain while living with a chronic illness with no cure.

I thought the Duragesic morphine patch was my answer to be rid of the pain and nerve tingles. I told you what happened while wearing the patch. Today I am to start taking Kadian 20mg which is a morphine capsule. My doctor logic is the patch was dispensing morphine in my body 24/7 and it became too much for my body to handle. By taking the morphine capsule I can skip a day or two between dosages to keep the severe pain away.

I am not looking forward to ingesting morphine again, but I will if my pain return to this point in my life again. For the moment I believe I still have enough morphine in my system where I can control the intensity of the pain with Lortab. I am hoping once I start the Tsyabri infusion in September, there would be no need for me to take morphine. I am hearing good things about Tsyabri; I hope it works for me. If it don’t I guess I will be back to injecting myself with Copaxoneeveryday to slow the progression of lesions in my brain that is slowing destroying my central nervous system.