My hubby just came home from the hopital after having spinal fusion and x stops put in between his vertabrae. His morphine pump went in the middle of the night. I had to pick up a bunch of scripts. He has Lyrica ( a pain med for nerves) oxycontin and lortabs. The label says how many times a day to take them. I was thinking the oxycontin in the morning, the lortabs in between and an oxy at bedtime. The lyrica at noon and 6. He also has baby asprin and tylenol 500 to take. I need to space this out , or he will be a drooling idiot. The rest , antibiotics and celebrex i am not to worried about. Any suggestions?
2007-03-07 05:00:00 · 6 answers · asked by vivib 6 in Health ➔ General Health Care ➔ Pain & Pain Management
He should take the oxycontin twice a day whether he is in pain or not, as it is to keep his baseline pain low. IF he has pain between the oxycontins, he CAN take a Lortab, but if he doesn't need to he doesn't have to take them. I'm on the same regimen for my chronic pain. I take an Oxycontin first thing in the morning, and Oxycontin at bedtime, and OXY IR in the afternoon if I need it. The important thing to remember is that he shoudl ONLY take the Lortab if he needs it, but he should take the Oxycontin twice a day regardless.
2007-03-07 19:19:30 · answer #1 · answered by Mandy VZ 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Once the healing is complete (bone I would give at least 3 months) here is some info to help. I use with a chiropractor and massage therapist.
Much pain is from muscles below is an example of what may help (based on headaches).
Begin with a couple swigs of molasses or a couple of bananas (natural muscle relaxers) daily - magnesium (which regulates many things in the body) and potassium (a needed building block for muscles).
Drink at least 1/2 gallons of water per day. Running a body low on water is like running a car low on oil is the analogy the head of neurology at UCDavis told my husband about 10 years ago.
Now to the cause - muscles - your back, neck shoulders and head have tender spots. They are knots in the fibers of the muscles called trigger points. It makes the muscles tight which makes them press on nerves and other things causing the pain.
The cure - start with a professional massage, (if this does not do it you probably need a chiropractor as well) you will also want to go back over any place you can get to 6-12 times per session up to 6 times per day rubbing (or lightly scratching on your head) every where that is tender until the knots go away. The place where the skull connects to the spine press up under the edge of the skull (to get to those muscles).
For more information read The Trigger Point Therapy Workbook by Davies. It teaches what to do and where the pain comes from.
2007-03-07 13:57:22 · answer #2 · answered by Keko 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Use Oxytocin at night due to it's nausea inducing properties. He'll be better if he's sleeping the queezies off. Also only use it if he's really in need of it, as he feels better. Whenever he can stand the pain you should ease up on the pain meds considering that he can build a tolerance and potentially develop an addiction to them. Lyrica after a light breakfast would be best, because it will give him relief during the day, same suggestion on taking it on an "as needed basis" too b/c these are serious pain killers and should be used sparingly.
Good luck.
2007-03-07 05:13:30 · answer #3 · answered by TJTB 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Sorry to hear all this. Maybe speak to the doc about Neurontin ( also for nerve pain ) and also Dilaudid ( apparently it's 8 times stronger than Morphine, so i was told by my docs ), to be taken at six hour intervals as needed. I was crushed by an 18 wheeler and these meds, among a whole host of others, got me some relief between all the surgeries to piece me back together. I hope your husband gets more relief sooner rather than later- as you know, it's harder to control the pain, than it is to prevent it from getting too bad.
God Bless and Good Luck.
2007-03-07 05:13:36 · answer #4 · answered by 3rd LIFE 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
That is alot of pain meds to be on. Are they on schedule or just as he needs them? If he isn't in alot of pain, he doesn't need the meds, however, he doesn't need to go without if he is. Remember, those meds will cause drowsiness, so giving them in the daytime will cause him to sleep. It is best to give them in the evening so that he can sleep well at night. But, if he needs them in the daytime, he should take them. Be sure to have him eat something before taking any of those because they can cause stomach upset.
Hope he feels better soon.
2007-03-07 05:10:17 · answer #5 · answered by Cherry 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
well all i can say is good luck
2007-03-07 05:10:35 · answer #6 · answered by mountainchowpurple 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋