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I have several chronic conditions that cause me to have chronic pain.  I am currently on Ultram ER 300 mg once a day and Norco 10 up to 4 a day.  I was just recently tried on Oxycontin extended release at 20 mg twice a day, but they made me so sleepy that I could not function.  My doctor highly recommends that I try to go on the Fentynl (sp) or Duragesic patch.  I have been reluctant due to the fact that I have small children that I'm afraid will somehow or another touch the patch either on me or in the garbage and get sick.  Also, I'm worried that they will not work well for the full time period they are supposed to and then I'll be stuck with nothing on that last day or whatever.  Can y'all please tell me what your opinion is of the patchs if you have personally tried them or know someone who has?  Are my fears realistic about the children getting ahold of them somehow or am I just being a paranoid mom?

Before anyone states "your kids could get the other meds you are on too", let me just say that all of my medications are locked in a combination safe to avoid that problem.

Thanks in advance for your advice!

I am currently on the 75mcg/hr patches and they are a godsend. I can only use the Mylan brand because of the adhesive on the Sandoz brand makes me break out so bad my skin bleeds. The Mylan brand are REALLY small compared to the other. The Mylan's don't have that gel in the patches that the other brands do. I also had trouble with the Sandoz brand not sticking. The patches come in 12.5, 25, 50, 75 & 100mcg/hr. Seeing as you are already taking Norco your doc might start you out on the 25's. I'm just guessing, though. You said the Oxy's made you sleepy. The patches might make you sleepy as well until you get use to them. To be honest, the patches hype me up for some reason. Maybe it's b/c I'm pain free!! It's so nice to not have to worry about accidentally missing a dose, no Rx bottles to keep up with and waking up pain free! As far as the kids getting ahold of them, I use to watch a friend of mine's kids ages 2, 4 & 5 and I never had a problem with them getting at my patches. They would have to literally sit there and pick at the edges until the patch came off. I never had a problem with my own kids, either. I wear mine on my upper arm. I think you are being a "paranoid mom" as we all can be at times!  Give them a try and if they aren't for you, there are alot of other options. Also, when you put the patch on for the first time, they take 6-10 hours before they start to work so be sure you have a backup med until the patch kicks in.

Good luck & let us know what you decided.

KK

They had been applied for approx 43-45hrs and they are to be changed every 48. WORSE IMAGINABLE FEELING IN THE WORLD.

Yes, you must be VERY cautious with the used patches.     One of my friend's mother had a small dog who would always get into the trash.   I of course did not know this at the time.     Anyways, I was spending a few days with them and was on Duragesic at the time.    I needed to replace one of my patches at not thinking anything of it I threw the used one away in the trash.       

A few moments later I noticed that the dog was acting odd and looked like it had something in it's mouth.  At that point the dog just fell down with it's eyes rolled backwards.     

My friend's  mother who was now freaking out checked the dog's mouth where she discovered to my horror the used patch. 

Apparently the dog was able to open the trash bin and got a hold of the used patch.   

 We rushed the dog to the local Vet and thankfully she recovered.  

 I would have never thought that an animal would even want to fool around with these patches but according to the veterinarian  Fentanyl patches taste sweet and they can be a big problem if not thrown away properly (flushed down the toilet)

So when they say to keep your pets and small children away from them it's for a good reason.