Severe nerve pain after ALIF

[Eastex]

I wish I could take Lyrica instead of Neurontin. My wife would definitely be out the door if I got back on it. We are going through tough times and the Lyrica made me a monster last time. I may ask them about cymbalta. The surgeon did allow me to start taking anti-inflammatory medications now. Aleve seems to stop the pain a little for a short amount of time. The directions just limit you on the amount you can take. When I urinate now, the pain doesn't get worse. It was just a few times and the pain wasn't anywhere else besides the nerve in my leg. The other function down there seems to be working fine. We tested that last night! Just something simple with no weight or movement on my part. My bowel movements aren't great either. I started taking mineral oil last night, and nothing yet. I will update on what the nurse says. I wonder if something else should of been done other than an xray last week. Something more detailed.

[dshobbies]

After my surgery, both my legs felt like they were on fire. Even a breeze hitting them was excruciating. I was on Dilaudid for 6 months. I couldn't drive during this time but this pain overshadowed all else. I'm glad that my pm realized the severity of this pain and knew that controlling it was first. I was also on a very large dose on Neuontin during this time which did little to control this specific pain.

A little tip - if instructions call for pain meds every 4(6) hours, I would take 1/2 every 2(3) hours so it was never out of my system. The hour that it takes to enter your system plus the last 1/2 hour when it begins to wear off is no longer an issue. My pm liked this idea so much he now recommends it for controlling severe pain.

[Terry Allen Blackburn]

Originally Posted by Eastex

I wish I could take Lyrica instead of Neurontin. My wife would definitely be out the door if I got back on it. We are going through tough times and the Lyrica made me a monster last time. I may ask them about cymbalta. The surgeon did allow me to start taking anti-inflammatory medications now. Aleve seems to stop the pain a little for a short amount of time. The directions just limit you on the amount you can take. When I urinate now, the pain doesn't get worse. It was just a few times and the pain wasn't anywhere else besides the nerve in my leg. The other function down there seems to be working fine. We tested that last night! Just something simple with no weight or movement on my part. My bowel movements aren't great either. I started taking mineral oil last night, and nothing yet. I will update on what the nurse says. I wonder if something else should of been done other than an xray last week. Something more detailed.

I recommended this on your other post before seeing this one. I know there are side effects reported for Neurontin and Lyrica. I have never heard of somone turning in to the Green-Eyed Monster from it. I will take your word for it. There are other alternatives. I was on Cymbalta for a short period. I couldn't stop yawning and had to force myself to eat. It completely took away my appetite which was great for weight loss.

Talk to your primary care physician for alternatives. Hang in there.

Terry Newton