Important. What is a good pain medication?

Question

A few months ago I was in a car accident and a piece of glass sliced my wrist open. My median nerve and tendon were cut. My orthopedic doctor prescribed me Vicidon 5-500. I still have really bad pain and all the Vicidon does is makes me feel sick and grumpy even if I eat something with it. I am going to my family doctor today and want to get it switched. Does anyone know of any pain meds that work really well but don't make you feel so sick or drowsy? And tylenol or advil will not work with the pain I go through at home and at therapy because believe me I tried!

Answer 1

It is a very common reaction for people to feel nauseous when taking opioid pain medications.  The key here is to eat food with them or drink milk when you take them.  If you take them on an empty, especially if you are not used to taking them, then you most likely will feel some nausea.

You should also talk with your family doctor and see if he can prescribe you something different if you continue to get sick from Vicodin.  There are a lot of other pain relief options out there.  You injuries are pretty severe so I would think that he will try to prescribe you a similar drug to the Vicodin.  Tramadol is an option that is non-narcotic but is less effective for some people than Vicodin is.  He could also try Percocet or another oxycodone drug.

I hope you get to feeling better and that your pain is adequately treated.  Good luck!

Answer 2

There are many different anti-inflammatory meds that may work.  A new one that seems effective is the Flector patch.  Like a nicotine patch, it's applied to the skin, directly at the site of the pain, so won't upset your stomach the way pills can.  

You may have some binding scar tissue besides the tendon problem and nerve damage.  There are other analgesics that he can prescribe, such as Tramadol (a non-narcotic) that's somewhat effective, though weaker than Vicodin (hydrocodone), Darvon, which is slightly stronger, but still weaker than a narcotic, or he may try a narcotic in a controlled-release form if the pain is constant.  Though similar, different narcotics (codeine, hydrocodone, oxycodone) have different effects in each person, so he's got some options, and a very wide range of dosages to work with.  A good doctor will spend some time targeting the right med in terms of dose, duration, side effects and your own tolerance.  (I've had some very serious injuries and gone through many MDs.  I've had some that were very good and some that were indifferent, assembly line workers)

Good luck and feel better.  Ice is always a last resort