Have you ever risked your life....

... to stop M pain?

I think I slightly did it a few times.

I simply couldn't remember when was the last time I took my painkillers, and frankly at one point I didn't care anymore.
The pain was so effing unbearable I didn't care if I was going to live or die - all I cared about was for the pain to STOP.
But I wasn't totally careless - I know my doses of painkiller are not the highest, there are 2.5mg 5mg and 10 and mine are just 5mg
so I knew if take quadruple nothing terrible will happen.. it will be like taking two of 10mg pills at the worst.

But for some time now I am trying very hard to keep the track of my pill intake.
For instance, I have always two separate pill containers - one for the entire Rx-ed amount and the smaller one with just
a few singled out for the next day which I keep at the bed.
This way, looking inside how many are left at least I know how many I took and can approximate when could that have happened.

Say I have set aside 8 pills before going to bed for the next day.
If I see only 4 left, and I do remember I took the first dose sometime at 7 pm and is noon now,
then I know I had to take the next two sometime close to noon, so I better wait one more hr.
And I make a strong mental note of what time it is when I take the current dose.

Better this than nothing.

For a while I tried to write down the time, but it didn't pan out. A lot of times it was too dark to write (I sleep in the same room as my hubby), I was too out of it to write clearly, and anyway I couldn't see clearly what I wrote in a haze of pain,
and searching for pen and paper was .. well pain in the butt. I had enough pain going on on the other spectrum...

I wonder what would be the easiest way to see the time we took the last dose?

An old clock w/o protective glass on the face??? we could just set its hands..?
A magnetic board? but w/o a light, we can't see it in the dark anyway...?
Any ideas?


Risa

Unfortunately, yes I have. And not because I've forgotten WHEN I took it, but because it didn't stop the pain and I took more. It's very irresponsible of me, but sometimes the pain gets so bad that I just keep throwing stop at it to make it stop.

I also run in to trouble when I've been vomiting. I have no idea how much has absorbed and how much hasn't.

You know, if ERs were more understanding about M's I wouldn't overmedicate. If I knew that the once or twice a year where the pain is absolutely unbearable that I could go there and get relief...well, it would be a big help.

But even though I've never gone to the ER more than twice in one year for a migraine, I am treated so horribly that I just medicate at home. And I do fear that I may have a terrible accident some day.

However, I don't keep any of my meds by my bed. I'd rather have to get up and walk to the kitchen so that I'll be more cognizant when I take the meds.

I think the pill box route is the best route to take. Good luck, Kitty.

I too, admit am aware of the fact that this is irresponsible. But, like you when the pain comes to the point when it becomes simply unbearable, honestly, who can withstand that?

Who didn't wrestle with self-preservation, responsibility and 'whatever gonna happen' at one point or the other?

And I am 100% behind you one the ER subject. I too was treated horribly many times,
and since they secretly suspected me of faking in being in so much pain and gave me bupkies for it,
I anyway ended w/o relief at all quite a few times and sent home still in raging pain.
That's another reason why I avoid going to ER like plague.

Only I am so much luckier than you, you poor Charlotte, in this aspect that triptans most of the times work for me
pretty well (knock on the wood three times) so I haven't been to ER in many many years - THANKS GOD!

re: vomiting - I think it takes roughly 20 min for the pills to "take in" in the stomach...?
I mean, at least that long it takes for them to dissolve in there...

I admire you for being strong willed and getting up while in severe pain to get to your pills - I won't even get up
to the bathroom until the very, very "last whistle" was blown!


Risa

In all honesty, I am pretty sure we have all gotten to the point of over use. Whether we realize it or not. That is the scariest part, "did I take my meds? If I did shouldn't I feel a little bit better? Maybe I didn't. Hmmm... should I take more? Maybe I just thought I took my dose. WHY ISN'T THIS WORKING??????" Yes. I have done it. It took me probably an hour of having that paranoid, did I or didn't I conversation in my head, but then I took them. Who know if I took it the first time or not?