Picked up a bottle of Tylenol Arthritis Pain caplets (650mg acetaminophen). Docs say I can take up to 4000mg of acetaminophen a day safely and for a limited period of time. I am weighing taking 2 of these at bedtime vs. taking one Tylenol PM (500mg acetaminophen + 25mg diphenhydramine HCI). The effect of the TAP caps was not entirely what I had hoped. At first they did dull the knee pain but then another layer of pain emerged as though revealed by the lack of the first.
I had switched from the Aleve (220mg naproxen) on doctors orders. The things they had me stop at 10 days before surgery in addition to the Aleve; Fish Oil, Flaxseed Oil and the Glucosamine patch. Vitamins, minerals and RX drugs are okay up until the day before.
I don't know if there is a break-in period for a new pain killer...I had more or less successfully been managing the pain with generic extra strength acetaminophen (500mg) three times per day.
Moving around pain control is always different from the quiet time of going to sleep. I had experimented with using Tylenol PM on alternate nights because the pain makes me continually move my legs around to find a comfortable position and I was getting little sleep (not to mention keeping my husband unsettled all night).
An ongoing experiment for now. Next week I'll have the heavy drugs and I'll probably be sleeping all the time.
1 comment:
Sounds mighty uncomfortable. Fortunately, when the surgery is done, the time will come when this pain-management struggle is just a memory. The page will turn!
Charlie
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