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Pain Management Physicians


Zeb

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I've looked through the forum for some comments and have located some names and some with phone numbers. I'd like to know if some of these speak English and if they have an e-mail address so appointments can be made without a phone call as we are not in the area.

I checked the web and most comes up in Spanish, so I'm a bit stuck at the moment.

These are the sources I have found so far:

Insitution Jaliscense de Alivo al Dolor Cuidados Paliativos - I'm assuming there must be several at this organiztion, however, don't have any names.

Alfonso Maytorena - evidently he comes to Dr. Valera's office

Juan Pablos Loza Mendez

Guillermo Archiga Ornelas

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Chapala Med has 3 different Pain Management Specialists who all will be seeing patients in Chapala with a prior appointment.

Pain Management & Anesthesiology – Dr. Celina Avelarde (Ortoplus)
(Focuses on Pain management for Trauma & Ortho patients)

Pain Management & Anesthesiology – Dra. Beatriz de Alba Cortes (ONCO de Occidente)

(Specialized in CANCER pain management)

Pain Management & Anesthesiology – Dr. Evelyn Rodriguez

(Specializes in Bariatric & Cardiac Anesthesia & Thoracic pain management)

All three have been successful in managing the pain of quite a few patients of mine when their pain management was beyond the scope of my training and certification.

Office no.: 376.765.7777

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I had a pain management guy in Ajijic who unfortunately was compassionate, but not helpful. He also charged me an extra 1,000 pesos for my monthly supply of controlled substances meds and did not follow the very strict laws about giving me my two copies of the prescription. This could have gotten me into a lot of trouble. Instead of giving me a script to fill myself, he insisted on buying it on his own and reselling it to me at a highly inflated price. (US $460 a month) which ensured a fat profit for him.

I have been seeing dr Sam Thelin in chapala for eight months and am VERY pleased. His background may not be specifically in pain management (at least that I know of). but he is highly knowledgeable, compassionate, and taught me many things I did not know (agonists v antagonists, and how taking certain painkillers at the same time can cancel out or reduce their efficacy). He also follows all the laws and charges much, much less. He will take all the time you need in discussing every aspect of your care. I saw pain management "specialists" trained at Stanford hospital, and several other highly reputable hospitals over the last 13 years and Dr Thelin's knowledge far surpasses their knowledge.

Dr Sam has been one of the best. Give him a try.

EDIT: NOPE!!! Do not see this guy. In April of 2015 Dr Sam Thelin injected me with a medication that is well known to cause a horrible reaction with the medication already in my system and that he prescribed to me. He mixed an antagonist with an agonist. He knows I have methadone in my system as he prescribes it every month, and I take it as he prescribes it. I requested if there was an injectable med (as I knew I had exhausted all pill forms) for breakthrough pain for horrible flareups that would enable me avoid a trip to the ER. He did a bit of reading on WebMD (I was right there and witnessed it) and he selected "nubain" (a partial agonist/antagonist that should never, ever be given to people with methadone in their system). He should've known this off the bat, but he didn't, and he didn't bother to cross check the nubain with the methadone already in my system to check for interactions.

Within five minutes of him injecting me (I could've injected myself at home alone, but I didn't know how, so I brought the vial to his office) I entered the gates of hell and experienced the most terrifying and horrible experience of my life. The original thread on this matter was deleted for unrelated reasons. Had I injected myself alone at home, I likely would have commit suicide. For 8 hours I was left on his tile floor, in and out of consciousness, screaming at the top of my lungs in unbearable pain, hallucinating, absolutely convinced I was going to die.

Not a single time did he check my vitals. Even when I was soaked in sweat, fainting and telling him my heart was racing. Or comfort me. Instead he accused of me taking other drugs (I did not) or of abusing my prescription methadone (I do not).

He refused to call the ambulance I repeatedly begged and sobbed for, for over two hours, mostly likely to hide the fact that he royally screwed up. Only after disappearing into his office while I was either screaming, or unconscious on his bathroom floor (I recall passing out at least three times, screaming at full lung capacity which was completely out of my control), did he come out and announce to me that the medicine he injected me with was causing me to go into withdrawal.

When I asked him, "why did you inject me with this medicine?" he was quite defensive and rude and kept repeating, "Because YOU asked me to." Was it not obvious that I meant, why did you SELECT this medicine when I asked for something for bad flare ups I get several times a year?

It was the most terrifying experience of my life. For several hours I was 100% certain I was going to die, in his nasty office, and he was going to lie to my loved ones about what really happened. His nurse witnessed it all. I remember his nurse holding my hands, assuring me I would not die, and she turned to him (he simply stood over me, looking uncomfortable, and told him, "I've seen this before, you need to comfort her, she is terrified". He did nothing.

Nor did he get me a blanket, jacket or pillow when I was freezing and in unbearable pain for those 8 hours on the floor. I was unable to sit on his hard metal chair.

At about 11pm or so, I was able to walk outside to my car, where I crawled into the backseat and rested for another 30 minutes, which was far more comfortable than the tile floor. He watched me from inside his own car. He didn't offer to drive me home, but he did ask if I was ok to drive. I told him yes, I was. But, why not do me the service of driving me the several miles after 7 hours of hell? Too much to ask, I suppose.

Later, when I asked him why he selected that medicine when its known to never combine the two (just google "nubain and methadone" and read what happens) he insisted the combination is safe, that he's used it on two separate patients, and my body was just "sensitive". That is absolutely not true, and any MD who has not slept through Pharmacology 101 knows you do not combine those two meds. First responders like EMTs know this, and many police keep a med called narcan, which is similar, but not the same, as nubain, on hand to save the lives of people suffering opiate overdoses. For all practical purposes, nubain will have the same effect on a person who has methadone or another opiate in their system and is NOT suffering an overdose. It will cause instant withdrawal and it will be pure hell that will take at least 8 hours for the worst to pass.

He has refused to take responsibility for making a catastrophic and elementary error. He has no business prescribing opiates because he does not understand how different opiates interact. And to have him accuse me of taking other drugs or abusing my meds (which I do not do) while I was literally on the floor, in and out of consciousness, soaked in sweat, banging my head and hands uncontrollably on the floor and walls, sobbing for an ambulance to take me to a hospital where I could've been given sedatives to make the process of waiting for the nubain to leave my system, was just horrible.

I will never forgive him for such incompetence, and for him refusing to call an ambulance just to hide his mistake. He told me later he didn't call the ambulance because "they would not have helped me".

It was the absolute worst experience of my life. I've never felt such a level of pain (like I was set on fire internally and externally) and the prolonged terror of imminent death has traumatized me. 30 minutes into it, he actually stood over me and asked if he could call me a taxi to take me home because he had things to do. I couldn't even speak, walk, stand, or remember my own name, and was screaming the loudest and longest I have ever screamed in my life, falling in and out of consciousness, in severe medical distress, sobbing for help, yet he wanted to dump me in a taxi while I had at least another 8 hours before the nubain left my system. Yes, he wanted to get rid of me because he created a situation that put my life at risk and could not be bothered to take care of the situation like a responsible medical professional.

See him at your own risk.

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A few weeks ago there was an interesting programe on Canadain TVO regarding Prescription drug addiction

Quote ;It seems that Prescription drug addiction is a major problem in Ontario. Prescriptions are one of the most problematic drugs available today. Oxycontin alone counts for four hundred deaths in Ontario over the last five years. Rehab centers are seeing a significant rise in the admissions due to prescription drugs, which at a surface glance is good, however for every person that was admitted, there are two out there (at least) that are addicted and unwilling, or unable to get help.

Residents of Ontario have been complaining that Oxycontin is too easy of a prescription to get, and some are even angered that it is paid for by the provincial health program. It is a very addictive drug, similar to heroin when addicts crush the pills and snort, or mix the powder with water to inject it. This type of prescription drug addiction is treated very similar to that of a street drug addiction, it is that severe.

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I did not think Oxycontin was available in Mexico, regardless of a Dr's Rx. Would someone set me clear on this? NOT that I am looking for it, but knowing how pain can be treated in Mexico is important.

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I did not think Oxycontin was available in Mexico, regardless of a Dr's Rx. Would someone set me clear on this? NOT that I am looking for it, but knowing how pain can be treated in Mexico is important.

Check with a local doctor for sure but several years ago, no way.

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Different topic. This addiction issue has been drummed into the population. Notice how the flip side of the story is seldom shown--that there is so much suffering that pain patients are committing suicide because they can take no more. I think if you want to get into that you should start a different topic.

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Dr Juan Pablo Loza's email:

dr.jploza@hotmail.com

And his local phone is 376-765-5477.

This number is different from the previous poster's number. Is that a different location (if so, which one?). I left my US number at the 5477 number. Do you know if he will return a call from that type of number. I also e-mailed, but received no reply.

I am having a hard time setting up appointments.

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Zeb, thank you for your comment regarding the biased reporting and hysteria about people who abuse prescription drugs. Those painkillers literally save the lives of people suffering from severe chronic pain. After my spine was destroyed from a tumor, there was NO way I would have survived without opiate painkillers. And i have a very high pain tolerance and can handle quite a bit of pain before using meds.

People are very judgmental (and so was I, shamefully so, before I experienced severe, chronic spine pain) on this issue. Using prescription drugs responsibly helps people live worthwhile lives. It is not easy to get such prescriptions, and often patients are treated like they are drug addicts faking their pain to simply refill a script. It is a horrible thing to go through.

Many suicides occur because of lack of access for meds to help tolerate chronic pain. The abusers and the few irresponsible doctors ruin it for the rest of us who legitimately need them.

So for anyone that thinks posting a random article that simply cites to overdoses by people who abused the drug and likely never needed it in the first place, perhaps remind yourself that you are not doing anything helpful for the people who are struggling to obtain these legal medications that allow chronic pain sufferers to have a decent quality of life. Nor are you helping deter the abusers who recreationally use the drug, as they know the risk, and an article won't stop their conduct.

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I did not think Oxycontin was available in Mexico, regardless of a Dr's Rx. Would someone set me clear on this? NOT that I am looking for it, but knowing how pain can be treated in Mexico is important.

I had severe back pain about 6-7 years ago from 2 fractured lower vertebrae due to a slip and fall on wet concrete. I went to Dr. Lystra who was a very compassionate doctor. He did sell me the equivalent of Oxycontin and it helped a great deal, although it was pretty expensive. But when you're in pain, almost no price is too high. I have no problem getting it in Ontario and it's really cheap. But I'm very disciplined when and how I use it. I use a low dosage of 5/325 when needed.

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Btw, that article posted above is completely misleading. Heroin and OxyContin are two separate and distinct drugs, and the addictiveness of heroin compared to OxyContin is not the "same" as stated in that article. I took OxyContin for years, but it didn't help much and I moved to a different painkiller. That article is a load of BS. It is misinformation like that which makes it all the more difficult for people with legitimate pain needs to get their legal medication. And why shouldn't the Canadian health care system pay for legally prescribed pain killers? I am writing this with hope that this misinformation is, at least on this thread, stopped being casually tossed out. Back to the OPs original question.

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Zeb and Serenity, thank you for the gentle reminders that there are legitimate needs for pain medications. It is important to remain aware of the potential for their overuse and abuse. It is just as important to remember that some people need powerful pain relievers just to live a normal life.

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Zeb, something Arjay mentioned I'd like to add to: expect the prices for opiates here to be much, much higher than NOB. My opiate med in the US (with no insurance) is about US$70 a month. Here, it is US$300 a month. Try and get as much as possible NOB and bring it here with all your paperwork so you have no issues with customs.

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As to the original topic, obtaining pain management & prescriptions:

As I am sure you know, trying to get as much as possible, is impossible. You get your monthly allotment, which is usually insufficient due to paranoia and government restrictions, so trying to save up a few extras is a nightmare.

Nonetheless, when you say bring all your paperwork, what do you recommend we bring? We, of course, have the bottles the pills come in with all the usual information. Here, they do not give you duplicate copies of the prescriptions as they do in Mexico.

We can also bring medical records.

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Btw, that article posted above is completely misleading. Heroin and OxyContin are two separate and distinct drugs, and the addictiveness of heroin compared to OxyContin is not the "same" as stated in that article. I took OxyContin for years, but it didn't help much and I moved to a different painkiller. That article is a load of BS. It is misinformation like that which makes it all the more difficult for people with legitimate pain needs to get their legal medication. And why shouldn't the Canadian health care system pay for legally prescribed pain killers? I am writing this with hope that this misinformation is, at least on this thread, stopped being casually tossed out. Back to the OPs original question.

I need a 4 level lumbar fusion and I already have a 4 level cervical fusion. I need stronger pain killers than the OTC I take but I don't have the patience to deal with multiple doctor appointments and traveling all over the place.

I always heard that you cannot become addicted to a drug that only relieves the pain. It is when you take more than the amount to relieve pain and become euphoric that you can become addicted. I think if I took enough to become euphoric my heart would have a;ready stopped beating from an overdose before that happened.

My U.S. neurologists and orthos told me that people heal faster if pain is controlled. Being in pain is very unhealthy for your body. It isn't good for your disposition either.

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I think being addicted is probably better than being in miserable pain. We already have a lot of chemicals dumped on us without our knowledge or approval. I don't want to segue (I checked spelling on this one) into another arena as I want to stick to the topic.

No one should judge another. And it needs to be personal choice. Quality of life is what it's all about.

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