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Because Marinol, prescribed by a Dr., is an FDA approved medication and on the DEA (Federal) controlled list as a Schedule III....this is the reason it is legal in all 50 states.
The plant form of marijuana is still illegal (Schedule I) under Federal law but there are some states that have legalized this under their own state law. It still needs to be prescribed by a Dr. but not all Drs. are in agreement about it's use and can cause problems for the patient if they are given a urine test for their job, or in the ER...So someone needs to be very careful and state this up front if they are ever taking this in this form.
Anyway, just wanted to share the difference and why one is ok and the other is not in many states.View Thread

You can easily look at the date of threads both the start date and then quickly look on the last page to see if the person has updated since then....
This way you don't waste time trying to give specific help to someone who is long gone from the boards...
As well as it's quite difficult for many people to read a post that is all one large paragraph. So if you could please break your posts up, that would be very helpful for many of us on here to read...
Thanks..View Thread

Please look at the date of the original threads when posting and take a peek to see if the person has been back to post any updates...if not, then it's best to not bring up an old thread.
It would be good if you would start your own thread to tell us about yourself or ask any questions..
As Beth has mentioned, the information you are giving about Methadone is just not true. It does not block other opiates as there are many people on Methadone as their long acting medication and have a short acting one for breakthrough pain.
Methadone does have a long half life so it does require a slow taper to tirate down or off the medication IF this is needed....but just like any other opiate it should be done with a Drs. supervision and if done slowly, it shouldn't cause any particular problems.View Thread

For me, I could not afford to get a new bed so I bought (At Sam's club) for less than $200 a 3 inch memory foam mattress topper. It has helped tremendously with my pain levels at night.
I still have to change positions every hour or so through the night but that is because I have many spine issues.
I also have a contoured neck pillow and then one that goes between my legs and arms so that when I am on either side, my spine is completely aligned.
The other key is making sure that your room is cool enough..should be 68 degrees or less. And then absolutely dark. No blinking lights from TV, computer, phone.....
When do you have the hip surgery scheduled? If you know that you need this then why wait? I know two peope, a family member and a friend who have had these surgeries done and are doing so much better now.
And congrats on losing the 20 pounds so far....if your weight is one of the reasons for waiting for the surgery then keep pressing forward working with a Physical Therapist as well as nutritionist. It's not like this guarantees that your pain will disappear but being a healthy weight as well as not having any other issues like diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol is something that we should all strive for to better our overall health and make surgery easier on us.
Good luck!View Thread

Treatment for pain is not always about "opiates" and many times things can be resolved without them.View Thread

We just had a HUGE discussion about all these "petitions" going to the White House so please see the other thread about the DEA and petitions....
I won't go into the pages of details as I hope you read the other thread except to quickly say you need to please do more research as it is NOT the DEA and it is NOT anything to do with the Obama administration....
You can't just send vague petitions that don't have any facts in them....
I urge people to go to the DEA website and read for yourself.
The CSA (Controlled Substances Act) was passed in 1970 and the last amendment to it that went through was in October of 2008. So Obama nor anyone in his "administration" has changed a thing to the CSA. I don't think people even know what and who that actually means as it's everyone from the Vice President to senior advisors...etc..they have NOTHING to do with what you are referencing...
Each STATE has their own laws and regulations....
The only Drs. "terrified" of the "DEA" are ones who are doing things illegally....That is the only time the DEA will shut someone down or take their license or throw someone in jail..
This is NOT a true statement to say this is happening to Drs. who easily follow rules and laws and prescribe accordingly.
For the person who is talking about Houston, TX...there are plenty of PM Drs. in that area who treat patients with opiates and other medications along with other modalities.
There is not a law in any state that is telling Drs. that they cannot prescribe opiates to those who need them.
PLEASE look into your individual state's laws and find out what are the things that you and your Dr. must follow.
The only thing that is happening in many states or coming down the pike in others, and possilby an amendment to the CSA later on is that all NON Pain Management Drs. need to take extra classes/training and get more certification if they are going to prescribe any controlled substances or treat someone for "chronic" pain.
You mention that your PCP doesn't want to treat you with pain meds...well..that is not their specialty at all so that makes sense. But it has nothing to do with the DEA.....You need to find an actual Board Certified Pain Management Dr....
It's actual doing MORE harm for these senseless petitions going to the wrong places without having actual facts and figures..
Seriously....all this petition says is a few lines making up that "all" Drs. on some watchlist???
DEA license numbers have been used for a LONG time to track any prescribing that a Dr. does. That has absolutely nothing to do with appropriate Drs. prescribing appropriate pain medications to patients who have solid diagnoses and developing a treatment plan.
Please people......stop with the dozens and dozens of petitions to the wrong places that aren't doing a single thing for chronic pain patients except make us look bad by not actually knowing the difference between state and federal government.
You need to seek out an actual PM Dr. and be open to treatment with all modalities...View Thread
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