Methadone And Generic Drugs

Hello! If anyone out there can relate to this, please post some advice back or send me an email!

I have been taking methadone for about 6 months for chronic pain caused by having a metal plate and 8 screws in my right femur, along with knee and hip problems, and scoliosis. Methadone is the only thing that has actually taken my pain away to the point where I can go to work and function normally. Other than feeling a little "lightheaded" once and a while, I seem to be able to tolerate it fine.

Last week, when it was time for my refill, I signed for my medicine, paid for it, and as always I checked the label to make sure it was the correct thing. The label on the bag said "methadone". When I got home and opened the bag I was upset to find that they had labeled the bag "methadone", and the bottle - but on the bottle they had crossed it out and wrote in "methadose" underneath.

Methadose is a generic form of methadone. The pills are about 3 times the size of the normal methadone that I take, although they are the same dose. The problem is that they really make me nausiated and give me a horrible headache that nothing will take away. When I called the pharmacy to complain they acted like there was no way that a generic drug could act that much differently on my - and my doctor acted the same way. I understand that methadone is a very heavy narcotic - and because of that you can not return them once they have left the pharmacy. I even offered to bring them right to my doctor so that he could destroy them himself, and hopefully write me another prescription, but he wouldn't.

So now I am stuck with this medication that makes me vomit daily, and I have a headache so bad I just want to lay in bed all day. Should I really have to feel like this? My medication is supposed to take my pain away so that I can work and live as normal of life as possible, and it is just making me sick instead!!!

I did a little research, and found out that different drug companies have different ways of processing their medication. Sometimes there are dirrerent impurities in one drug than you would find in another of the same name. Also just the fact that these methadose are 3 times as big as my methadones that I usually get kind of makes me wonder if there is like a "filler" in them that just doesn't agree with me???

If anyone knows anything more about this please contact me. Also, I have tried taking acid reducers for the nausea - but nothing seems to work. And I have tried several different things for the headache, but I just can't kick it. Sorry for making this so long!

Any help or advice would be greatly appreciated. Thank you!!! :d