Is It Okay To Chew A Fentanyl 50mg Pain Patch? (Page 34)

I've been prescribed fentanyl 50mg pain patches and i was just wondering if it's okay to cut one in half an chew on it?

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I have a c-2 fracture of the neck that has calcified into c-3..very painful. Also have degenerative thoracic spine in my mid back.. plus rheumatoid arthritis in my elbows, wrists and shoulder. I cant move in the morning unless I have 35mg/2 patches, aa12 and q25... They don't work for hours...I also have OxyContin 5mg for breakthrough pain. I find I need the oxy to get going..wish I didn't..If I use a 25mg patch it goes away...I see no problem.. Do you think I need a stronger patch so I could avoid the oxycodone?

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I just cut 25mg fentanyl patch in half and put inside my cheek.. ive taking opiods before, oxys, & have a high tolerance to drugs... hope this is a good experience. any way to boost the high?

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Not be sarcastic at all but after reading your lengthy post 2x - I didn't see/get where u listed any ways to make your patch work more quickly/more effectively. Any real suggestions - for pain relief only.. Not to get .. Which would last at least 48hrs if not the whole 72hrs/3 days.. Thanx..

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U really need to get a life - WTF to your post..Did u really take time to write that.. Maybe u should take the stick out of somewhere & not judge ppl or perhaps go to jail yourself before advising others too! What a ridiculous unhelpful & useless post u wrote.. & just lame as well FYI!

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This is the dumbest thing I've ever heard. I chew on half of a 100mcg patch every morning and I don't even nod out or feel high. It just takes my back pain away when I wake up and can't move. If I stuck the patch on my arm it would be 4-6 hours before I felt good enough to get up.

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I am sorry. I think doctors have become drug dealers. If they cared we would NOT be on this but we are and it's numerous doctors gp's to pain mgmt doctors. A rubber stamp for drugs. I'm going away for 3 months, you see 3 months of drugs that I'll consume. it's awful but the doctor's did it to me. They don't want you off drugs as every time I've brought it up I come home with more drugs??? Please explain. It's a mental and physical addiction. Anyone on these longer than 3 months is addicted. I am and there's no euphoria at all. I'm unhappy, have family issues and don't care if I never wake up. I felt this way for years, long before I was on pain killers. Those talking about feeling high I think it's in your head or your doing other things your NOT sharing, I've NEVER been high??? Eventually your body can't do it ANYMORE. Ask PRINCE, ELVIS, MICHAEL JACKSON, ETC. Nobody wants to die but you can't live without them either. PRINCE KNEW HE HAD TO STOP SO HE THOUGHT I'LL HAVE ONE MORE TIME AND IF I DIE SO WHAT. I'm rich I'm aging I'm lonely and I'm so miserable. So you start to need and not to care. It's general unhappiness and drugs don't help but they make me tired so I escape via sleep. Like trying a patch I knew your not to do it but I didn't care. Maybe that sums up an addict you know but don't care. I've No desire to stop. I just don't care. Ask WHITNEY HOUSTON DID SHE CARE? I've No kids or partner, my parents are getting old, my family started this, well chronic headaches started it but all the other issues fuel my need and I don't care. Tried therapy, didn't work. Been to many therapists and it's pointless. I think without a reason or purpose in life it becomes far easier. I'm not on here to judge but saying they make you aroused, intercourse is the last thing you care about. I think you're in the wrong forum. ALL YOU SAYING STOP, SOME DON'T CARE AND WITH THE HEALTHCARE SYSTEM WHERE MIGHT ONE GO TO A GOOD NICE REHAB FACILITY? NOT every addict is poor or a loser or rich enough to pay $50,000 a month. Plus it takes 8 attempts before you get off this, are you kidding me???? There's very little I want to do 8 times and withdrawal is not one of them. Until you know you are an adult you can never understand. PLUS OXY IS AWFUL. IT HAS BEEN AROUND SINCE THE 1930'S. GERMANS MADE IT. We had pain, it was treated differently and no opiate epidemic? Is this deliberate? The same doctors that got you hooked don't want you to get addicted yet they knew and gave us our first pill??? It's a money maker and all the rules in the USA about filling scripts a day early that's insane? We live in sad times. Ask GEORGE MICHAEL? This is everywhere and it's too late. My mum IS a recovering alcoholic for 21 months but now her doctor has her on Effexor and Lorazepam - is this better? To live with yes but they simply changed booze for antidepressants and a benzodiazepine? The circle of insanity. My dad may or may not have early dementia. He's now on klonopin to sleep. My mother's medicated with alcohol and my father NEVER took ANYTHING so this is what they are doing, talk about wrong. You eat them or drink them or pop pills prescribed or illegal. Stuff those feelings down, anything not to feel. How many have back surgery and take meds for a short time frame and then others get addicted, anything not to feel pain. NUMB IS MY FEELING OF CHOICE.

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Use the patch as directed. If they don't work tell your doctor maybe you need a stronger dose or something for break through pain. Best of luck to you

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Wow, no disrespect but your wrong about several things. One being Effexor is not a benzo. It is a mood stabilizer and more than likely it's gonna keep your mom in a mood that's not good. Ativan is lorazepam - its a benzo for anxiety / stress. I was a pill addict for many years. From 21 yrs old till I was 42. Things are different now. If you tell ur Dr u want off the pain meds, they will take u off of them or wean u down to something not as strong. And if u say u still have withdrawal, that's bull, because if it's in the same drug class u shouldn't have withdrawal. I lived on oxycodone 30's for yrs. But I could still take Percocet 10s and they helped. I was well off also, but it will end like everything else. Why go to rehab if u know ur coming out with meds? I know why, cuz your Dr cut you off. Opiates do not cause seizures either and i don't believe u have never been high. The first few times people get that warm fuzzy feeling inside. People get hooked because we didn't take the meds as prescribed and I blame a lot of this on the drs also. But they don't get a kickback for all narcotics they write. Depends on which narcotic company is telling him to write this pill more than this one. Like methadone vs percs. Methadone pills are prescribed for pain, different than the liquid.

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I find it very difficult to believe and even more depressing if it is true that this post was written by someone in the medical profession. Does anyone else ever wonder how in the world people that ignorant are the very ones who are supposed to guide us through our various ailments yet cannot spell even the simplest words? Geeze, no wonder there are so many problems for true chronic pain sufferers. In the immortal words of the wicked witch of the west, "what a world, what a world!" Haha.

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That's cause your a junky plain and simple you all have excuses or lie saying it helps more to chew them for pain relief.you keep telling yourself that.

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Dude just dont do it. I thought it would be a good idea and chewed about 1/2 of a patch and within five mintues i was shaking really bad. I thought for sure "ive done it now. This is going to kill me." Ive never been so scared. Its not worth losing your life over. I just stick with my tramadol now.

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I've been taking Hydrocodone 7.5 mg for 5 years now. I don't ever take more than 15-20 mg a day. Some days, I forget most of my doses. I definitely need the pills for a broken neck but I use the pills 'as directed'. I don't abuse them.

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Was on the 100mcg matrix patch for 5 years every 3 dsys. Then they almost suddenly only lasted for 60 hours, then only 48. It was then that I decided to wean myself off these things that had such a massive control over my life. I started by cutting 2/3rds off (precisely measuring and cutting with a new exacto knife), then placing the 2/3rd piece (66mcg) on every 48 hours. The 33mcg left over would go on with the next 33mcg piece. I did NOT leave the old patch on!! This method still allowed my month supply (10 patches) to last just as long as it would have lasted using the 100mcg patch every 72 hours. It kept my pain under control without that horrible feeling of WD and unbearable pain coming on at 48 hours. It completely stopped the WD's that had become a bad roller coaster ride. I then stepped down to the 75mcg patches. I told my GP and pain specialist what I was doing and they didn't go off at me - in fact they were rapt that I took this step. Anyway, I suggested to my prescriber that I'd cut the 75mcg by 2/3rds and change them every 48 hours (that would be equal to a 50mcg patch every days). My GP said that he'd simply write a script for 15 of the 50mcg patches in order to save me cutting up the 75mcg ones. I've hardly noticed any difference in pain and didn't need anything for breakthrough unless I exerted myself. If and when that happened, I had the old 50mcg patch (still had plenty of Fentanyl in them). I'd simply cut that into 4 equal pieces and stick it to my inner cheek. It gave me relief within half an hour and lasted for a good 3 hours!!
I told my GP and pain specialist that I'd like to go completely off these, but they both said that my spine damage is very severe (it was fractured at the T12-L1, L2 - 3 and L4-5 levels back in 1981. I had 5 operations - fusions and laminctomies using plates and screws. I have a very deep stenosis at the L3-4 level that causes severe burning into my left thigh and knee, with paraesthesia and muscle atrophy in the quadriceps. Being 62, I'd rather not endure another operation.
So I'm going to continue with the 50mcg patches, changed every 48 hours.
I should mention that this cheeking business is kept to myself. This is the only time I shared it because I thought it might be helpful, plus it's on topic for those wanting to know if it's effective; I can state that, without any doubt, the drug does get into the system quickly via the buccal mucosa.
Most importantly, I feel I should suggest that, if you're going to consider doing this, make sure that you dry the inner cheek (adjacent to the upper molars) as well as possible, then quickly insert the small segment of patch then push the outer cheek as to make the patch make as good a contact as possible with the buccal - keep the pressure on for at least one minute (I press for 2 to 3 minutes). As to avoid swallowing, I go to bed and lie on the opposite side of the parch to avoid any spittle to wet the patch. Remember that you only want the Fentanyl to get into the blood stream - not the adhesive. You also don't want to have that entering your digestive tract. Fentanyl is lipophilic (mixes well in fatty liquids). It's bio-availabilty is extremely poor from the stomach down.
Most importantly, use extreme caution with regard to dose! Depending upon your opioid tolerance, you should always start with the lowest amount - everybody is different and Fentanyl is extremely powerful stuff.
If you get a stomach ache, it's because you're swallowing the stuff - and it's not the Fentanyl that's causing this! It's the adhesive and other crap that has no business being in your guts.
Finally, try not to leave it there all night long (in other words, you don't want to swallow it -
or worse - breathe it into your airways - in your sleep). This drug is not alimentary stuff (pun intended). It's dangerous if you are prone to risk taking behaviour. Be careful and stay safe.

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I strongly suggest that you refrain from prejudiced remarks and from labeling everyone a "junkie". If you have something constructive to say, go ahead; be objective about it, but this is not the place for judgmental comments. There are genuine people here in genuine pain seeking answers from others with experience and knowledge.

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Thank you Jimmycan! I also posted a reply that is awaiting approval. Yes, it's offensive and totally out of line.

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My sincere condolences Liz. I truly feel for you. I lost my older brother through OD. He saw only 48 years old. Losing a child impacts on one's life tremendously. I witnessed my mother having a nervous breakdown over my brother's death.

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No!!!! It's people who abuse fentanyl patches to get the medication quicker that just makes it so much harder for the people who truly needed it for pain control. If you need it for pain control and it's not working, it is time to talk to your doctor for a different and or stronger medication. Misusing fentanyl can lead to sudden cardiac arrest.

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Hi. Sorry so late in discussion... But Real quick, do u always put it on ur arm? Is this the best place for it and does it always take 4-6 hours to kick in? Thanx for ur time!

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I'm sorry about your daughter. That is horrible. Sorry for your loss. And as far as the people that sold it to her, they will end up in jail. All dealers do eventually.

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No one makes anyone do anything. No one but the user would be responsible for their own death. Not a stranger that gave bad advice. Stupid liberal trying to point the finger. That's like saying guns kill people. So can a car and a knife, a pencil, pen, shovel and a baseball bat. That's like saying spoons made you fat. It's called free will. If the kid wants to chew it, regardless of what people say, and this person still chews it, this person is doing it on their own free will. Quit pointing fingers. People that commit suicide can't blame anyone but themselves. Bottom line. No one made that person kill them self. That person did it because they wanted to. Get an education.

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