St. Phatty
Active member
In 2004, I met a man named Dan, the ex-husband of a woman friend in San Diego.
Dan lives in Vancouver, and manages a large cooperative apartment building.
Dan lives in a wheelchair. He was paralyzed from the waist down in a car accident in the US.
Dan was unable to receive treatment for his pain, in the US. He tried to commit suicide. Fortunately, that was not successful.
In Canada, Dan's doctor gives him a prescription for Morphine, which he takes - every day.
During the 3 or 4 times we got together for dinner or just to smoke a doob, I could never tell that Dan was consuming morphine.
He had none of the Cheech & Chong-ness associated with morphine use - which may be a TV thing, a Hollywood illusion.
I could also never tell what time of day he took his daily dose or doses of morphine.
He was just clear-minded all the time, and had a happy life, under the circumstances.
His new ex-wife in Vancouver joined us for one dinner, and we walked & rolled around Vancouver.
Question - is Dan Addicted to Morphine ?
I think that basically, it doesn't matter - it depends on the definition of Addiction.
What matters is that he is as healthy as possible, under the circumstances.
And as productive as possible, because like many of us, what makes us feel good is getting work done.
I too live with chronic pain, 2 kinds since my tooth experience started on August 9.
I am taking Tapentadol for the tooth pain. Although 3 dentists are involved in causing or treating the tooth pain (hopefully soon to be 4, as I have asked the 75-year-old family dentist in San Diego to do a telephone consult. with me Thursday morning), none of them has given me an effective medication for treating pain.
Because it is a WHOLE LOT of pain, that is mind-boggling to me.
That leaves me buying the Tapentadol from a neighbor, on the free market.
I asked my brother in San Diego to help me. He is dealing with a transgender child who uses opiates for fun off and on.
So the brother is telling me that I'm a drug addict.
My answer is basically, So What ?
I work hard to be as healthy as I can, under the circumstances, like Dan in Vancouver ( if his legs worked.)
I did a tapered withdrawal from my preferred medication/ drug of choice Tramadol, which is both an opioid mimick and an SNRI anti-depressant, about 3 to 6 months ago.
Got down to nothing, spent 2 days taking no pain meds (except Cannabis), and then started taking the Tapentadol.
I think that both Tapentadol and Tramadol are very complex, powerful molecules, and should not be mixed.
I would like to see the General Public in the US effect changes - by the end of 2019 - so that Dan, if he so chose, could return to the US and, for example, manage an apartment building in Seattle - which would require that he have a doctor to prescribe morphine.
Dan lives in Vancouver, and manages a large cooperative apartment building.
Dan lives in a wheelchair. He was paralyzed from the waist down in a car accident in the US.
Dan was unable to receive treatment for his pain, in the US. He tried to commit suicide. Fortunately, that was not successful.
In Canada, Dan's doctor gives him a prescription for Morphine, which he takes - every day.
During the 3 or 4 times we got together for dinner or just to smoke a doob, I could never tell that Dan was consuming morphine.
He had none of the Cheech & Chong-ness associated with morphine use - which may be a TV thing, a Hollywood illusion.
I could also never tell what time of day he took his daily dose or doses of morphine.
He was just clear-minded all the time, and had a happy life, under the circumstances.
His new ex-wife in Vancouver joined us for one dinner, and we walked & rolled around Vancouver.
Question - is Dan Addicted to Morphine ?
I think that basically, it doesn't matter - it depends on the definition of Addiction.
What matters is that he is as healthy as possible, under the circumstances.
And as productive as possible, because like many of us, what makes us feel good is getting work done.
I too live with chronic pain, 2 kinds since my tooth experience started on August 9.
I am taking Tapentadol for the tooth pain. Although 3 dentists are involved in causing or treating the tooth pain (hopefully soon to be 4, as I have asked the 75-year-old family dentist in San Diego to do a telephone consult. with me Thursday morning), none of them has given me an effective medication for treating pain.
Because it is a WHOLE LOT of pain, that is mind-boggling to me.
That leaves me buying the Tapentadol from a neighbor, on the free market.
I asked my brother in San Diego to help me. He is dealing with a transgender child who uses opiates for fun off and on.
So the brother is telling me that I'm a drug addict.
My answer is basically, So What ?
I work hard to be as healthy as I can, under the circumstances, like Dan in Vancouver ( if his legs worked.)
I did a tapered withdrawal from my preferred medication/ drug of choice Tramadol, which is both an opioid mimick and an SNRI anti-depressant, about 3 to 6 months ago.
Got down to nothing, spent 2 days taking no pain meds (except Cannabis), and then started taking the Tapentadol.
I think that both Tapentadol and Tramadol are very complex, powerful molecules, and should not be mixed.
I would like to see the General Public in the US effect changes - by the end of 2019 - so that Dan, if he so chose, could return to the US and, for example, manage an apartment building in Seattle - which would require that he have a doctor to prescribe morphine.