I am the anti-drug addict

[susandennis]

When the dentist handed me the prescription for percocet, he looked me right in the eye and told me that he doubted I would need it. Tylenol would probably work fine.  I believed him.  Plus, I have the giant fear of drugs.  Plus the pharmacist, when I got the percocet filled, very sternly several times told me it would cause constipation. The third and final time he said it, he also looked right at me with a message that said "you will never ever ever shit again."

So today wears on.  I took Tylenol this morning and again early this afternoon and really I'm not impressed. My face, jaw and the roof of my mouth are all pretty hurty.  Plus. the dentist also told me that Day 4 will hurt the worst.  Depending on how you count it, today is still only Day 2.  arugh.  Finally tonight I decided to take one of the percocet.  The prescription was for 15 pills and honestly the bottle isn't big enough for all the warnings.  I read through them all trying to decide whether to take one tonight.

And then on the bottle I read 'no more than 9 pills a day'... NINE????  And I'm having a heart attack over 1????

I popped that sucker - booyah!  Let's paarrrrtay!  And by party, I mean chew.  Eventually.

Comments

[kinderheldin.livejournal.com]

I wish they had given you Vicodin -- it's so much kinder. Percoset is dissociative. I had a tooth pulled a few years ago. Your experience mirrors my own. (You are on my friend's friends pages -- I've been lurking.)

I say sleep as much as you can. Your body needs to heal. Be good to yourself.
:)

[susandennis]

Oh thank you! I had to look up what dissociative was but very good to know. And, it sounds like the your tooth pull wasn't fatal :) so I'm hopeful. Happily, I have all the time in the world to sleep and so I can and I will. Thank you so much!

[shutterbug.livejournal.com]

You are the anti-addict. People steal that shit.

[galebird.livejournal.com]

I had 9 teeth removed in December (not a typo, my dental phobia is a thing of legend) and yeah. Sounds about right in terms of the pain. Once you hit that Day 4 though, the corner turns quickly and things feel more sane again.

I would have smartmouthed the pharmacist so concerned with my bowel movements. "You say this like I am not full of shit already, man". Also, fiber. It's not world ending stoppage of works in the bowel department here, it's temporary slowing.

[mckavian.livejournal.com]

I had 10 teeth taken out in early January, so I am right there with you on the not wanting to deal with it but getting it done anyway.

I spent the first day and a half hopped up on hydrocodone, so I am not sure if the 4 day rule counted (for me) or not.

[susandennis]

wow. and thanks for the encouragement.

[mckavian.livejournal.com]

Congrats on getting over your fear and getting it done.

Yeah, don't let them scare you on what the percocet does. It's not that big a deal, unless you are not used to it, then it can get you pretty woozy. I'm allergic to it, so I cannot take it. Hydrocodone, on the other hand, I am ok with and the VA has given me lots of.

[susandennis]

Thank you. It really does help to hear of people who have been there.

[mckavian.livejournal.com]

After having a LOT of teeth removed I can tell you that most of the pain is in the anticipation. You expect it to hurt, you don't like pain, so you hurt while avoiding the pain.

As you know, recovery sucks. But not nearly as badly as the anticipation that built before going to the dentist to begin with.

Someone who has not gone through this may say 'Don't you feel silly now?' - no you fucking idiot, it is still a real phobia. I rate these people right up/down there with the morons who say 'Oh, it was just a cat.' after you lost your best friend/child of 15 years.

[susandennis]

The anticipation is truly the killer. That's why I was sooo grateful when they said - after the verdict - that they could do it in an hour. It would have been 20x worse to go home and have to go back another day.

[mckavian.livejournal.com]

Back in January, they said it'd take about an hour to hank all 10 of mine.

I had them knock my ass out because there was no way I was stay awake for that.

To quote Frank Herbert: Fear is the mind killer.

[zyzyly.livejournal.com]

the more warning labels, the more you can sell them for on the street! :)

[susandennis]

Ha!! Excellent to know!

[debrafortune.livejournal.com]

The max warning dosage is regarding the Tylenol that the Percoset contains. If you are already taking Tylenol, please take a look at this JAMA article. This issue has been very under reported.

http://newsatjama.jama.com/2014/01/17/fda-plans-to-reduce-liver-damage-risk-by-asking-physicians-to-stop-prescribing-acetaminophen-products/

[susandennis]

Thank you, yes, I am being careful.I actually saw this on TV a week or so ago. I promise not to overdose.

[debrafortune.livejournal.com]

I'm glad you are aware of it :)

There are more Tylenol overdoses treated in the ER every year than illegal drug overdoses. I can't believe it's still touted as a "safe" pain reliever when there are so many other alternatives.

[badrobot68.livejournal.com]

I saved all my Vicodin and used them for migraines.

[mrdreamjeans.livejournal.com]

I was given a prescription for a painkiller in the aftermath of a procedure I had last year. I took one and boy howdy, the constipation warnings were real.

[timbear.livejournal.com]

Take the painkiller, also take a mild laxative. Problem solved. Why on earth don't the doctors over there tell you that like they do here?