I had a trimalleolar ankle fracture 3 weeks ago.The doctor gave me Norco and i am almost out.What over the counter pain killers work best? Most of the discomfort is at night,but im also taking pain pills during the day like Tylanol and Aleve
Hoping i can be comfortable without Norco! :'(
Hi had my surgery about 6 weeks and I was taking Percocet and my Dr game me a refill at my two week apt which I did not use soon after, I took Motrin 800 along with the prescription med and it helped by week 4 I was just Motrin and now at week 6 Motrin usual later in day. It gets better the pain so hang in there.
Thankyou!! That is encouraging <3
See your Dr for a repeat script I think is safest. Anti inflammatories, and pain meds best prescribed by experts.🌞
Tylenol makes an otc 650mg. Works great. Called arthritis extra strength.
I continuously spoke with my surgeon about use of pain meds. I tracked when and how much I took following surgery in an effort to control with minimal meds. I was prescribed Norco and would combine with 1 regular tylenol which replaced prescription of 2 Norco. My surgeon told me at one visit that during recovery, pain control was objective.
In reading thru this forum, we seem to have different responses to pain and pain management.
If u discover OTC options are not effective, speak with ur surgeon about another prescription. My doc was always willing to provide a new prescription, but would not write for a stronger med. (I was prescribed percocet after 2nd surgery because of poor pain management. 1 fill only.)
Just for what it's worth, I kept a diary of when and what I took, not only to monitor norco, but amount of Tylenol which now has warnings about how much can be taken in 24 hrs. I used timer on my cell phone to let me know when I could take next dose. If pain was controlled, I would set out for another hour. This way, I was able to test out pain over time and how much pain med I needed rather than depend on "as prescribed."
Best wishes on ur recovery!
I was in the hospital trying to refuse pain killers and the nurse said, "Trust me. Trust me on this. It is already the lowest dose." I was so frightened of any sort of dependency.
Since then I realize that pain management is a really big part of recovery - especially the early phase. I now take 1/2 Percocet and 2 Tylenol if I get uncomfortable but I didn't take any today. Tomorrow may be different. If I am uncomfortable and in pain, I will be miserable overall and recovery will seem to take longer even if the pain doesn't prolongue it.
I agree the log I keep you culd see the decline in pain meds and as that happened it made me feel postive about the recovery. The doctor or at least mine was great at helping me with pain meds.
I have been keeping a log on paper
Last pill taken and when i can take the next one.It has helped for sure! Otherwise i'm sure i would have double dosed! Keeping track of it all is so important.
Smart advice!👏
Especially in the first 8-10 weeks. We become more Compos Mentis ( switched on an awake ) after initial shock I think. Hard if you have no one to help to. Lucky in this house, I managed my husband and myself. Different meds at different times. Couldn't have achieved that without making notes.
Codeine was helpful early on, but laxatives to counter act constipation was horrendous. NEVER again!😖
Sometimes Drs need to try different meds to get what suits. We're all different in the way we respond.
I'm a couple weeks ahead of you, but same type of fracture. I had surgery 8 days after I fell. I was taking OxyContin 5 mg prior to surgery and then they gave me Percocet 5 mg after surgery. I had a nerve block too so I didn't take any pain medication when I got home that day. Big mistake. I woke up around 4 am in terrible pain but could not get to my meds until around 7 am when I woke my daughter up. It took almost 24 hours of round the clock Percocet to get in front of the pain. But I stopped all narcotics 48 hours later as I was able to manage it with 600 mg of Advil every 4-6 hours. I will never take another narcotic again (at least not day after day) because the side effects were worse than the pain. Like 4titusanby, the constipation was horrendous. Doctors need to pass out laxatives when they're prescribing narcotics. Anyway, sorry to ramble on so long. I hope you feel better and find relief soon.
I have to say I was lucky. I was prescribed OTC stool softeners Colace and Senokat when I was released from hospital.
Lately I have seen advertisements for medication to treat constipation suffered by people who are constantly on narcotics.
Hmm. They said thats what my med would do. Soften stools. Soften them fr mouth down. I was stuck on loo for almost 12 hours. Felt like a stomach bug. I was sweating, almost passing out, then id come right, get up with sore hip- 2" cutbone graft, and leg with 4.5 " cut. Feeling like my stitches would burst. Then 10 mins later Back again. NEVER AGAIN. Everyone reacts differently. I'm super sensitive.
You may want to call your provider.
I was told tylenol which I take 1000 mgs BID. Not sure it does any good, but I am just wanting to keep inflammation down. I was fortunate as I stopped using the pain meds after a week so still have a lot left- I was afraid of getting addicted to the pain meds- though not sure why anyone would cause they did not do anything except make me sleepy! It is rough being in pain though and you will heal better and faster if your pain is well managed so I would definately suggest calling your provider.
Mirilax is a good laxitive- I was sooo fortunate- did not have any issues w/ constipation with the pain meds- I think all the water I drink and fiber helped. Blueberries are the best!!!!!
This sounds so awful. I really feel for you. Stomach bug symptoms on top of everything else. Hope you are feeling better now.