[BLOG] Using House as a model for taking drugs....
GnomeQueen
The Lulz QueenMountain Dew Mouth Icrontian
I was awakened this morning by a lot of pain. This is the sort of pain that I get about once a month, but normally it's not this bad.
Normally when I have it, I take two ibuprofens and go about my business, but when it's this bad, I take three, and then rock in a corner or play Team Fortress 2 or read until the painkillers kick in. Since I wasn't at school though, I didn't have access to my gigantic bottle of advil, and had to take what my mom had- extra strength tylenol-instead. I took two.
It took an hour and a half of reading before the medicine had kicked in enough to let me sleep. Then, when I got up again, it was wearing off, so I took two more. Later on during the day, I had to resist the urge to pop as many tylenol as I would ibuprofen (about two every four hours) and tried to take only one. I was still in pain, but it was tolerable.
It's now midnight, and I took 8 tylenol today. In addition to that for my fall allergies I took three benedryl, one protonix for acid reflux, and an errin- the mini pill. Normally I just take a lot of drugs and I don't think about what I'm doing, since I figure that the actual prescription of amounts that you're supposed to take on the bottle is really conservative, but today I realized- I took a lot of pills, and that could be really bad for me.
This isn't a normal day. There are often days, when it isn't fall and I'm not in pain that all I would have to take is the protonix and errin..oh, and perhaps a no doz. Did I mention that I started taking those? I know it's just the amount of caffeine in one cup of coffee, but perhaps I shouldn't be using those either...
But even if this isn't normally how many pills I'm taking, is it still bad for me to do it even occasionally? I guess I should look at each pill individually.
Tylenol/Ibuprofen- I know that Ibuprofen isn't as bad as tylenol, but it's still not spectacular for me to take it 8 times in one day, which every once in a while I do. How much damage am I actually doing to myself? I know that Ibuprofen is an nsaid (anti inflammatory) which could be giving me acid reflux, which is why I may need the protonix, but I don't think that I take it often enough that it should really cause that. I know that tylenol can cause liver problems, but am I taking enough to cause that? And what should I do instead? Ask the doc for stronger pain pills, or just cope with the pain when I do have it? I know that there are some remedies that work against it- working out is supposed to help with some types of pain, caffeine can help with headaches, and that heating pads work for some kinds of pain too, but I don't always have time to go work out or pop home for a heating pad- popping the pills is much, much easier on my life and my schedule- which is probably the problem.
And benedryl- is it bad for me to be taking it so much? I'm not taking it that much anymore since it's built up in my system now, but when the allergy season started back in august I would take one every four hours like clockwork, or be miserable. My mom claims that it's bad for me to be taking so much- that it's not meant for everyday use. My doctor told me that it was fine. My mom is a nurse though, and doctors don't know everything. She thinks that I should go back to the doc and try a once a day allergy pill. I've already been on these before- I used to use zrytek, but it wasn't strong enough, and claritin gives me headaches, and allegra D made me sleepy. I could still try Allegra, but I guess I just feel like it won't be strong enough. But would it be better for me in the long run if I did use a weaker one and was sniffly and miserable for a lot of autumn? On the benedryl, I almost feel like I don't have allergies at all. On the zyrtek, I feel pretty miserable. On nothing, I used to get bronchitis, so I know that I need something.
And what does benedryl + tylenol/ibuprofen do to me? Is that really really bad for me? It doesn't happen that often, but could it still be really hurting my liver? I just don't know. If I have, say, 30 days when I'm taking four or five benedryl a day a year, 5 when I take benedryl plus 8 ibuprofens, 10 where I just take 8 ibuprofens, on top of the days when I take just a few ibuprofens and a few benedryls, could I really be harming myself?
I know that anyone reading this here isn't a medical professional, and that the best person to put these questions to is a doctor. But I guess I just wanted to think about what I'm doing to myself in a clear way, and writing it down was the best way for me to do that. And furthermore, what does my treatment of myself have to say about all Americans? I think that in general, we are a pill popping culture. If a pill can solve it, we generally go for it, which often isn't the answer. It's why we have problems like drug resistent bugs, and allergies, and potentially even autism (though the reasons for that are still largely unknown, vaccines are being considered as a cause). Do we all need to take a step back and try to find more natual solutions to our problems? Should I try taking one pill a day for my allergies, and deal with feeling yucky for three months? Do I need to try to take less pain pills and work out more when I am in pain? Should I really try to in depth examine my diet and figure out what foods give me acid reflux and avoid them? I know that overall working out would probably make me feel better too. Furthermore, how do I find the motivation to do all of these things, when half of the time I'm at class half the day and then I work and go to rehearsal, and when I have a minute to breath I just want to relax and sleep?
There's certainly no easy answer...
edit
So, in retrospect, I think I actually only took 6-7 tylenols today, though I would have taken more Ibuprofen than that. I think that the above concerns still apply, though.
Normally when I have it, I take two ibuprofens and go about my business, but when it's this bad, I take three, and then rock in a corner or play Team Fortress 2 or read until the painkillers kick in. Since I wasn't at school though, I didn't have access to my gigantic bottle of advil, and had to take what my mom had- extra strength tylenol-instead. I took two.
It took an hour and a half of reading before the medicine had kicked in enough to let me sleep. Then, when I got up again, it was wearing off, so I took two more. Later on during the day, I had to resist the urge to pop as many tylenol as I would ibuprofen (about two every four hours) and tried to take only one. I was still in pain, but it was tolerable.
It's now midnight, and I took 8 tylenol today. In addition to that for my fall allergies I took three benedryl, one protonix for acid reflux, and an errin- the mini pill. Normally I just take a lot of drugs and I don't think about what I'm doing, since I figure that the actual prescription of amounts that you're supposed to take on the bottle is really conservative, but today I realized- I took a lot of pills, and that could be really bad for me.
This isn't a normal day. There are often days, when it isn't fall and I'm not in pain that all I would have to take is the protonix and errin..oh, and perhaps a no doz. Did I mention that I started taking those? I know it's just the amount of caffeine in one cup of coffee, but perhaps I shouldn't be using those either...
But even if this isn't normally how many pills I'm taking, is it still bad for me to do it even occasionally? I guess I should look at each pill individually.
Tylenol/Ibuprofen- I know that Ibuprofen isn't as bad as tylenol, but it's still not spectacular for me to take it 8 times in one day, which every once in a while I do. How much damage am I actually doing to myself? I know that Ibuprofen is an nsaid (anti inflammatory) which could be giving me acid reflux, which is why I may need the protonix, but I don't think that I take it often enough that it should really cause that. I know that tylenol can cause liver problems, but am I taking enough to cause that? And what should I do instead? Ask the doc for stronger pain pills, or just cope with the pain when I do have it? I know that there are some remedies that work against it- working out is supposed to help with some types of pain, caffeine can help with headaches, and that heating pads work for some kinds of pain too, but I don't always have time to go work out or pop home for a heating pad- popping the pills is much, much easier on my life and my schedule- which is probably the problem.
And benedryl- is it bad for me to be taking it so much? I'm not taking it that much anymore since it's built up in my system now, but when the allergy season started back in august I would take one every four hours like clockwork, or be miserable. My mom claims that it's bad for me to be taking so much- that it's not meant for everyday use. My doctor told me that it was fine. My mom is a nurse though, and doctors don't know everything. She thinks that I should go back to the doc and try a once a day allergy pill. I've already been on these before- I used to use zrytek, but it wasn't strong enough, and claritin gives me headaches, and allegra D made me sleepy. I could still try Allegra, but I guess I just feel like it won't be strong enough. But would it be better for me in the long run if I did use a weaker one and was sniffly and miserable for a lot of autumn? On the benedryl, I almost feel like I don't have allergies at all. On the zyrtek, I feel pretty miserable. On nothing, I used to get bronchitis, so I know that I need something.
And what does benedryl + tylenol/ibuprofen do to me? Is that really really bad for me? It doesn't happen that often, but could it still be really hurting my liver? I just don't know. If I have, say, 30 days when I'm taking four or five benedryl a day a year, 5 when I take benedryl plus 8 ibuprofens, 10 where I just take 8 ibuprofens, on top of the days when I take just a few ibuprofens and a few benedryls, could I really be harming myself?
I know that anyone reading this here isn't a medical professional, and that the best person to put these questions to is a doctor. But I guess I just wanted to think about what I'm doing to myself in a clear way, and writing it down was the best way for me to do that. And furthermore, what does my treatment of myself have to say about all Americans? I think that in general, we are a pill popping culture. If a pill can solve it, we generally go for it, which often isn't the answer. It's why we have problems like drug resistent bugs, and allergies, and potentially even autism (though the reasons for that are still largely unknown, vaccines are being considered as a cause). Do we all need to take a step back and try to find more natual solutions to our problems? Should I try taking one pill a day for my allergies, and deal with feeling yucky for three months? Do I need to try to take less pain pills and work out more when I am in pain? Should I really try to in depth examine my diet and figure out what foods give me acid reflux and avoid them? I know that overall working out would probably make me feel better too. Furthermore, how do I find the motivation to do all of these things, when half of the time I'm at class half the day and then I work and go to rehearsal, and when I have a minute to breath I just want to relax and sleep?
There's certainly no easy answer...
edit
So, in retrospect, I think I actually only took 6-7 tylenols today, though I would have taken more Ibuprofen than that. I think that the above concerns still apply, though.
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Comments
Tylenol: Tylenol is one of the most widely accepted pain-pills in America and for a good reason too. When administered correctly in recommended doses it is safe to take. Lets look at why. Tylenol is broken down by two main metabolic pathways, to oversimplify we will call one pathway X and the other pathway Z. Pathway X is the pathway that is being used when you take Tylenol in recommended doses. When you start to take in more and more Tylenol pathway X will slowly get full. As soon as this happens a pathway Z is used as a precaution to circumvent all the excess Tylenol. When pathway Z is in use it creates a harmful byproduct known as a free radical. The free radicals can damage your liver tissue over time and cause liver failure. Keep in mind that pathway Z is a naturally occurring process. Free radicals won't destroy your liver in a day, a week, or a month. You would have to be overdosing on Tylenol very often or you would have to have an already compromised liver function.
Ibuprofen: I have trouble oversimplifying Ibuprofen since it has a more complex mechanism. But Ibuprofen has more of a chance to cause kidney / stomache damage instead of liver damage. Its breakdown mechanism relies on inhibiting Cyclooxygenase or COX (lol cocks). Ibuprofen will inhibit the 2 pathways (COX-1 and COX-2) of Cyclooxygenase which in turn will inhibit Prostaglandin synthesis. Think of Prostaglandin's as supervisors. They signal other cells what to do. Now generally speaking, the COX-2 is responsible for your positive effects such as the anti-inflammatory effect, whereas COX-1 is responsible for your negative side effects such as gastric damage. Simply put, follow instructions when taking Ibuprofen.
TLDR: Eggy's "just like Mom advice" Always eat a meal at least 30 min before consumption of either Tylenol or Ibuprofen. Take pills with copious amount of water. Don't take either pain meds in conjunction with high citric acid (lemonade, OJ, vinegar?). Don't take airbourne or other vitamin C shots alongside your pain meds. Wait about 30 min to 1 hour before you take each one. Avoid taking pills in large amounts. Don't take 4 pills when 2 or 3 would have worked. Remember that the more you take the higher your resistances will build up which in turn will increase the pills you take.
Score one for paying attention in Toxicology class.