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I am prescribing a strong medication for your pain, based on what you have told me about it, location and severity, and the overall effect your pain has on your life. This medication is restricted or controlled by the US Government. When prescribed by a Medical Doctor who has knowledge and experience in the use of controlled mediations, as I do, they can be very effective. I believe this medicine will improve the overall quality of your life or I would not be recommending it for you. We usually prescribe this medication on a schedule by the clock. This is so your pain does not get too severe for you to handle. If you are given this medication for maintenance, you should take it on time, even if your pain is not severe, in order to prevent the severe pain rather than treat it.
Problems are very uncommon in patients with pain who are prescribed controlled drugs (narcotics or sedatives) and take them exactly according to instructions: the right medication, at the right dose and at the right time.
Even so, you should think of this medication as a dangerous drug. This medication can be fatal if given to or found accidentally by small child, small adult or anyone who is not used to (tolerant of) narcotic medications.
When you start or increase your pain medication, have someone watch for repeated sighing, yawning or slow breathing for a few days. If you are very hard to wake up or cannot stay awake for at least some of the time, you should skip a dose and call for a dosage change. Respiratory depression—dangerously slow breathing--may occur when narcotics are taken in doses higher than prescribed, when they are taken with sedatives, tranquillizers or sleeping pills, or with alcohol. The effects of each medication change the way the other medications are processed by your body, usually resulting in a summation of all of them. This can be used to your advantage, but because the results are unpredictable, should always be with a doctor’s knowledge and supervision, and a prescription. Breathing difficulty may occur very quickly and without warning when oral medications are chewed, inhaled or injected--in other words when they are abused. The potential for people to abuse this and other similar medicine is one of the reasons for restrictions.
Never share your medication with others or take someone else’s medication.
Withdrawal or abstinence symptoms may occur if you stop this medicine abruptly. Taper this medication should you or your doctor decide to discontinue it. Symptoms of abstinence include agitation, irritability, nervousness, rapid heart rate, nausea and abdominal pain, and shakes or tremors. All controlled substances should be tapered gradually. Constipation is one side effect of this medication that you may have. It is the one side effect that will not improve over time. Increase fiber, fluids and fruit to decrease this. You may need to take Senna with a stool softer on a regular schedule.
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