Endometriosis Support Group
Endometriosis is a common medical condition where the tissue lining the uterus is found outside of the uterus, typically affecting other organs in the pelvis. The condition can lead to serious health problems, primarily pain and infertility. A major symptom of endometriosis is pain, mostly in the lower abdomen, lower back, and pelvic area.
Hey everyone, I wanted to start a discussion about pain relievers. I have a lot of questions about it and I'm curious to hear your ideas about pain medication because they seem to be an unfortunately regular part of our lives and I have been feeling concerned about it lately.
Since I have had strong endo symptoms (starting around 16 or 17, I'm 21 now) I have been a slave to ibuprofen. For about two years of my life I was taking 4-6 200 mg ibuprofen pills 4-6 times a day. I had really severe pain on a regular basis and most days that I didn't have school or work and nights I would take tylenol codeine throughout the day to relieve my pain. When I started to finally feel a bit better after my laparoscopy and pelvic floor therapy I was able to drastically decrease my consumption of pain relievers and I suddenly felt so alarmed by how much I have used them! While I take much less now, I still take some semi regularly, because between endo, pfd and interstitial cystitis, pain just happens, and that's not counting the occassional headaches, injuries, etc.
ANYWAY, do we really know for sure the effects of ibuprofen and other pain relievers on our bodies (kidneys, liver, stomach)? How much is really too much? I feel like my doctors always say to seriously not take that much ibuprofen, but they never say why or how much is actually too much or what the signs are that would show it is causing damage. At this point I just so desperately don't want to cause any more damage to my body, but I also want to live a life of minimal pain!
Since I have had strong endo symptoms (starting around 16 or 17, I'm 21 now) I have been a slave to ibuprofen. For about two years of my life I was taking 4-6 200 mg ibuprofen pills 4-6 times a day. I had really severe pain on a regular basis and most days that I didn't have school or work and nights I would take tylenol codeine throughout the day to relieve my pain. When I started to finally feel a bit better after my laparoscopy and pelvic floor therapy I was able to drastically decrease my consumption of pain relievers and I suddenly felt so alarmed by how much I have used them! While I take much less now, I still take some semi regularly, because between endo, pfd and interstitial cystitis, pain just happens, and that's not counting the occassional headaches, injuries, etc.
ANYWAY, do we really know for sure the effects of ibuprofen and other pain relievers on our bodies (kidneys, liver, stomach)? How much is really too much? I feel like my doctors always say to seriously not take that much ibuprofen, but they never say why or how much is actually too much or what the signs are that would show it is causing damage. At this point I just so desperately don't want to cause any more damage to my body, but I also want to live a life of minimal pain!
That said, I no longer exceed the daily recommended dose which is 2400mg for the whole day. I've had my kidney function tested a few times (along with my liver) and it's always been perfect.
I try to only take meds on the worst of the worst days. I'll take about 2400mg of ibuprofen and up to 40mg of Vicodin (over a 24 hour period - I generally take 800mg ibuprofen every 8 hours and 10mg Vicodin every 6 hours). I'm more worried about developing a tolerance to the narcotics than anything. I take less than I did before my last lap which is good because I was definitely developing a tolerance before that.
I also have Gilbert's Syndrome so my bilirubin is elevated. My doctor says I can take NSAIDs without a problem, but I'm still hesitant about it, especially since I was told it was safe to take an AI in 2008 and now studies are coming out saying it can cause liver damage and I had a weird spot show up on my liver on my last MRI. I've been jaundiced before too when I had strep, mono, and anemia.
So between my psoriasis and my high bilirubin I just try to limit my NSAIDs intake. They never seemed to work for me anyhow.