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I get 30 Vicodin a year, mostly to use post-injury (as the injuries are inevitable, and unpredictable); it doesn't really help the hip bursitis much, but some nights it's the best I've got.
Last night was the last time I can take acetominophen in any form for a couple weeks: I woke up with a rebound headache this morning and was sick until 11am. Tonight I get to try Naproxen taken with dinner, and see if I can stay asleep on that (it often wears off around 4am); when that and its related NSAIDs muck with my stomach too much I'm stuck with triple-strength Sleepytime Tea for however long it is until it's been two weeks since my last acetominophen, and then the cycle starts over. I don't take any painkillers at all during the day because it just hastens the day when I can't take anything at all until my stomach settles, and that does little to keep me patient and pleasant to be around.
I did order a 40-pair box of handwarmers from
Amazon and keep them in my jeans pockets over the bursitis points which helps with that, but also end up wearing my coat in the house a lot. And it doesn't do much for the knee, which is almost all soft-tissue damage and not even a surgical prospect.
Oh, well, afternoon chores call!
I have been taking Vicodin twice a day now for years. Your right about it not helping much with the bursitis. I have been using Flector patches for the inflammation. i also take 800 mg od Ibuprofen before going to bed, that helps me get at least 4 hours of sleep. I am not a fan of any of the over the counter pain meds. The Ibuprofen causes kidney problems, and the acetaminophen is hard on the liver. But sleep is very important too. The Vicodin has been the most effective pain relief, that I have found to date for the Fibromyalgia. I just wish that I didn't have to take the acetaminophen that is in Vicodin.
I have tried Naproxen, but found it not very effective and way to hard on my kidneys. I have read studies about using narcotics, that say if you are using them for real pain relief that you are often not addicted to narcotics like you would be if you were taking the stuff for recreation. I have found that this has been true for me. I don't have withdrawals if I run out. On the other hand I cry if I run out of Nexium. The heartburn come back very fast and is terrible, and the Nexium seems to be very hard to get off of. The problem with narcotics is that as time goes on I will end up needing a higher and high dosages to get the same pain relief. It never takes away all the pain but it makes the difference between doing something or not. I would rather be doing something than sitting around in a haze of pain.
My husband is on Oxycodone without the Tylenol, and probably will be for life; his back surgery last year helped a lot of structural stuff that would have made him really ill as he aged, but just moved the nerve pain in his lower back from one side to the other. We have a mantra: it's just pain, it doesn't mean you're sick, but, DAYUM: some times it's
unjust pain, especially on the days when I've worked hard and am exhausted and yet cannot sleep even with painkillers.
Naproxen has all sorts of bad sides, but if I take something less ferocious (Ibu or Aspirin in analgesic doseage) then I'm awake at 3am, in pain and in the hour of the wolf, and since I'm not Susan Ivanova I can't take three shots of vodka and go back to sleep. And, again: painkillers at bedtime only does have the upside of delaying the onset of organ damage; it's just hard on my social relationships.
