I am relatively new in recovery and I'm in a master's degree counseling program. I am scheduled to have two surgeries before August 18th, when my health insurance expires. Pain pills were definitely my thing. Now, I have been told that having surgery at this time would be very dangerous. However, the realities of managed care dictate that if I don't have these two very expensive orthopedic procedures I may never be able to run or lift weights again. I only have to pay $100 each (copay). Now if I don't do it, I looked at preexisting conditions and the best case scenario is that I would have to wait two years or longer with a new insurance policy. My plan is to fly back home and have the surgeries and come back after a couple of days and leave the narcotics behind. I know recovery comes first.... I will tell the doctors I'm an addict.
Dante, that's all that you can do. Don't forget to pray and ask your higher power to go into surgery with you and look after you when you get out. I had a couple of liver biopsies and they insisted on using opiates for those. I had 3 years clean at that time and it screwed my brain up for a few days. I was talking to people on the phone and thought that I was talking to other people. Pretty embarassing especially in business. Once I explained that I just had surgery and was a little groggy everyone understood. I went to like 3 meetings a day for the next few days and then I returned to "normal" I guess. Thankfully I didn't feel like using at all. Good luck.
hey dante, I was put in that situation a few months back... I had to have this surgery and opiates was definitly one of my many drugs of choice. This is what i had to do... I told the doctors repeatively... and i told every doctor i saw. I got them to put an allergy braclet on me and mark my file with a major allergy warning... that way even the nurses would investagate and see my warning.... cause my drug of choice was one of the drugs they kinda wanted to use....... I talked to my sponsor, I prayed and I had people close to me with me after the surgery. Now i'm not a NA solider, and opiates had to be used , there was no avoiding it. I even had to have a pain pump with my drug of choice in it. What I had to do was stay concious on the reasons i was pressing that button....lol i didn't want to push it , and the nurses and doctors ended up pushing it for me. I prayed not to enjoy the feeling of the drug in my system and boy did my higher power pull through. My HP showed me that 1 i had a complication due to the medication and my breathing got fucked up, and 2 i was sick as a dog....so absolutly no enjoyment and i learned that if i go back out i will probably die cause my tolerance is not were it used to be.......
now that was the hopsital prep stuff when i got home with some pain pills i didn't keep them in my possesion... i stayed at my moms house and gave her the pills and she gave me them as directed.... i ended just using advil after a couple of days because they keep making me sick....
that's my experiance... hope that helps
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people who mind don't matter, and people who matter don't mind- Dr. Seuss
Three years ago I was in for a shock,,I had stones in my gall bladder that I knew nothing about. Then came the time when it began paining like hell and then I went into shock. I asked my mother to rush me to hospital,,,as an opium,smack and morphibe addict (among other drugs), I knew by info I got in NA literature and meetings that I was in a very critical position. I then told the doctor who wanted to shoot me with morphine not to,,,I was surprised that when Id said "Im allergic to narcotics" he'd replied "Oh,,thats not so strange,, good y0u told me though.I will use a non narcotic pain killer".
My NA friends followed me there and kept me company for the next 15 days as I went thru gall clearing and then gall bladder removal surgry..
I cannot imagine what id have done without NA friends,my little girl, my ma and other family and friends. Then my sponsor also appreciated the fact that it was upto us to inform our doctors about the nature of the disease and then also not feel too ashamed about prescribed medications.... And then I remembered,,in the times i was alone in the hospital that this too shall pass. Thank Godness that the nurses and doctors were excellent too, I was safe and secure in that expert atention.
The 12 Steps were my Guiding Light in those dark days ,,,,
-- Edited by Raman on Monday 4th of May 2009 04:54:01 PM
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Raman an addict clean and serene just for today in NA Worldwide ; live to love and love to live the NA Way !!!
It is so great that nurse/physicians' training in pain management, specialized for recovering addicts(especially re: surgery), is available and applied by so many docs and nurses today. Instead of creating aproblem, now they can be of real help in getting us through those situations where going without pain meds is just impossible.
The strategies like being completely honest with the medical personnel , having someone else keep the meds, and having NA friends very closely involved are imperative. With medical costs being thousands and thousands of dollars, being able to use your insurance while you still have it is a real blessing. I always ask my health practicioners what their training & experience is for working with "clean" addicts. I've even had docs tell me they really don't know that much and then go way out of their way to make sure they find me someone (or a whole team!) who does. Be sure to set up NA contacts where you are going BEFORE you go there.
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From dying and surviving to living and thriving. LeeU
