I took Vicodin once. It took the edge off my pain (I had a herniated cervical disc pinching a nerve). It made me very, very sleepy. That was a good thing at the time because I had been in too much pain to sleep. It actually let me get 6 hours of solid sleep. I only took it once because I was on vacation and a friend gave it to me. I couldn't take it home with me. ;-)

Depending on how severe your pain is, Toradol might be an option for the daytime. It didn't work for me when I was in mind-numbing pain during the first few months after I herniated the disk. I took it for a while when I started to get better, though, and for moderate pain (worse than a headache but not bad enough to make you cry or wail) it was effective without making me sleepy. I didn't feel sedated at all on Toradol. If I remember correctly, it's not recommended for long-term use, though.

My doctor prescribed Dilaudid for my pinched nerve pain. I read about its effects and that it's 5x more addictive than morphine, though, so I decided not to take it. I threw it away without taking even one pill. I wanted the pain to go away, but I didn't want to be high as a kite and risk a powerful addiction. So, I just suffered through the pain for 3 months. I don't think that's a good option for day OR night.

The only other pain killer I've tried is Tylenol 3 (with codeine). I know it makes some people sleepy, but it doesn't have that effect on me. Unfortunately, it doesn't affect my pain much either. For me, it seemed less effective than Advil. I know some people who have found it helpful, though.

I find that Klonopin, which I take for anxiety, actually takes the edge off moderate pain for me. It doesn't totally kill the pain, but it makes it more tolerable. I don't know if it's ever prescribed for pain, but it has that positive effect for me. I only take 0.5 mg in the day, so it only makes me slightly drowsy. I'm still alert enough to focus on my work and get things done. 1mg will make me sleepy and get a good night's sleep.

I hope you find something that works for you. Keep us posted. Good luck!