Why do a few of my doctors look at me wierd and say "your taking Ultram ER and Vicodin ES?

Question

I take them for pain. Does one make the other useless or something?

Answer 1

You don't give any background about what condition you are taking these meds for but, I am guessing you have a chronic pain condition such as arthritis or fibromyalgia.

The Ultram ER is an extended release med, meaning that it dissolves slowly in your system to give you pain relief all day.

The Vicodin ES is a shorter acting med intended to give you a stronger faster dose of pain relief.

The typical use of these two meds would be to take the Ultram ER every day and the Vicodin ES only when you have breakthrough pain.

You cannot take Vicodin long term because it is a narcotic, is addictive, and contains tylenol which is toxic to your liver.

Ultram is not a narcotic and is not addictive.

Answer 2

You can take the two medicines together, but it may not be the best thing to do. I am assuming that the same doctor prescribed both medicines to you. If not, you need to tell them both, so they know and can adjust to get the right medicine at the right dosage for you.

Now most people who take both medicines, don't take them together, they take one at certain times, then the other when needed. The good thing about taking both, is you can stretch your pain medicine a lot longer.

Ultram is more speedy and Vicodin more sedating. So many people take the Ultram during the day when they don't want to be taking something that might make them sleepy and then the Vicodin at night to help them sleep.

Now, if you are in so much pain that you are needing both medicines at the same time, you should speak with the doctor who prescribed them both and talk about taking more of the one that works better for you instead of taking both at the same time

Vicodin is a opioid and Ultram works like an opioid, but can work against opioids and make the Vicodin not work as well. So yes, they can interact or they might make one too loopy together. While others who take both these meds together, find this a perfect combination, so, go figure?

If they are working well for you while taking them together, you may want to stay with it. We're all different and if you've found a combination that makes you comfortable and keeps you out of pain, you may not want to change.

It's really between you and your doctor and what works best for you. As long as you are taking them under the supervision of a doctor you should be fine.

Answer 3

Ultram® was administered to 550 patients during the double-blind or open-label extension periods in U.S. studies of chronic nonmalignant pain. Of these patients, 375 were 65 years old or older. Table 2 reports the cumulative incidence rate of adverse reactions by 7, 30 and 90 days for the most frequent reactions (5% or more by 7 days). The most frequently reported events were in the central nervous system and gastrointestinal system. Although the reactions listed in the table are felt to be probably related to Ultram administration, the reported rates also include some events that may have been due to underlying disease or concomitant medication. The overall incidence rates of adverse experiences in these trials were similar for Ultram and the active control groups, TYLENOL® with Codeine #3 (acetaminophen 300 mg with codeine phosphate 30 mg), and aspirin 325 mg with codeine phosphate 30 mg, however, the rates of withdrawals due to adverse events appeared to be higher in the Ultram groups.

Answer 4

no. they both are for pain....
they are looking at you funny because really you arent suppose to mix the two (because its bad for your liver, so they say)
but dont worry about it....keep doing what you are doing...let them look.

...ultram is not a narcotic...