How many Vicodins can I take in 24 hrs?

[Im_in_pain]

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The ER doc gave me tylenol 3 for my excruciating pain.....and it does nothing. I tried my grandpa's Vicodin, and they help....but they wear off in 3-4 hours. It says only take Vicodin "twice every 12 hours as needed". Is it dangerous to take one ever 4 hours???

Btw, I've only taken 2 Vicodin (ever)......I just discovered them last night. I'm in pain. 🙁

 

[banner]

The ER doc gave me tylenol 3 for my excruciating pain.....and it does nothing. I tried my grandpa's Vicodin, and they help....but they wear off in 3-4 hours. It says only take Vicodin "twice every 12 hours as needed". Is it dangerous to take one ever 4 hours???

Btw, I've only taken 2 Vicodin (ever)......I just discovered them last night. I'm in pain. 🙁

Great idea! Take medication that you obviously know nothing about that wasn't perscribed to you.

Why don't you try asking your doctor?
But I guess you could see what else you could scrape up from grandpa's medicine cabinet.

 

[Im_in_pain]

^^^I don't have a doctor.

Can someone please give me a helpful answer, instead of a sarcastic one??? Geesh, have some compassion, I'm in alot of pain right now. I will call the nurses station if I have too, but they will just tell me not to take it. And right now its the only hope I have.... *cries*


eta: I was really hoping to get intelligent responses in here. This first one sorely dissapoints me. Even if you don't know the answer, you could be alot nicer about it. You don't know me or my situation. 🙁

 

[San_Juan_Sun]

[/QUOTE]=Im_in_pain You don't know me or my situation. 🙁[/QUOTE]

That's a big part of the problem. Nobody is going to give you medical advice when:

1. Most of us aren't liscenced docs.
2. The rest here won't ever dispense advice to a person they've never done an H&P on, much less over the Internet.
3. You've demonsrated that you won't take medical advice anyways, so why bother?

I certainly hope your pain gets better. Your best bet is to get a doc, get an exam, and follow the advice they give you.

 

[Im_in_pain]

Thanks, you're right. Well, I'm 27, and the only med I'm taking right now is antibiotics. I have never had surgery, illness/disease, or any other prior relevant history. I'm not allergic to anything. I just wanna know "how many is too many"......just give a general answer considering I'm a normal person with NO past medical problems. My problem now is I have some physical wounds that are healing.


Isn't this a forum for residents??? You don't have to be a licensed doctor to answer my question.

But nevermind now. I just talked to my friend who's an ex-football player, and he's VERY familiar with taking vicodin, lol.

I'm still gonna ask the nurses when I get to the hospital later. Hell, I may even ask one of the docs, but I really don't want anyone in my business like that.

 

[raptor5]

I do not think anyone is going to tell you anything useful, b/c it is against the law to take controlled substances that were not prescribed to you. First you have not told anyone what is causing your pain and second you have not told anyone the dosage. Vicodin is a combo of hydrocodone and acetaminophen. As per Tarascon Pharmacopoeia 5/500 8 tabs per day, 7.5/750 5 per day, and 10/660 6 tabs per day (do not know what the normal formulations out there are.). That is what the book says but without knowing your health history it is hard to say what your max is as I know very little being a first year med student and you apparently know even less.

My advice is do not take any meds that were not prescribed to you.

 

[The White Coat Investor]

Helpful forum, isn't it. Most vicodin prescriptions are for the 5/500 variety. (Check yours.) Assuming you can tolerate the hydrocodone (you probably can) your concern is the tylenol (the 500 part.) The max dose of tylenol is 4000 mg per day, or eight 5/500 Vicodin.

Your doctor gave you T3s thinking that would be sufficient. If it isn't, perhaps your doctor ought to reevaluate you to make sure something else isn't going on. By the way, what are you going to do when your grandpa's vicodin runs out?

P.S. If you take advice from someone you don't know on the internet it's your own fault if it sucks.

P.P.S. Don't take the T3s with the Vicodin, they both have tylenol and you'll kill your liver, a painful way to go. And consider using ibuprofen (600 mg every 6 hours) along with whatever else you're taking. You'll find some added benefit.

 

[VienneseWaltz]

Thanks, you're right. Well, I'm 27, and the only med I'm taking right now is antibiotics. I have never had surgery, illness/disease, or any other prior relevant history. I'm not allergic to anything. I just wanna know "how many is too many"......just give a general answer considering I'm a normal person with NO past medical problems. My problem now is I have some physical wounds that are healing.

Well that's not really an adequate history. There's a reason that doctors run the history and not patients.

Isn't this a forum for residents??? You don't have to be a licensed doctor to answer my question.

It's not a forum for dispensing medical advice, which is what you're looking for. An online forum is not a suitable means of assessing a patient, and given that a doctor can be sued for giving bad medical advice in any form, you are unlikely to find a good doctor who will treat you over the Internet.

But nevermind now. I just talked to my friend who's an ex-football player, and he's VERY familiar with taking vicodin, lol.

I'm still gonna ask the nurses when I get to the hospital later. Hell, I may even ask one of the docs, but I really don't want anyone in my business like that.

Am I getting this right? You are willing to take pharmcological advice from anonymous people on the Internet, your non-medical friends, maybe a nurse, and definitely not a doctor?

If you are really in pain, a doctor can help you. The very fact that you don't want a doctor "in [your] business like that" suggests that you're seeking.

 

[Im_in_pain]

P.P.S. Don't take the T3s with the Vicodin, they both have tylenol and you'll kill your liver, a painful way to go. And consider using ibuprofen (600 mg every 6 hours) along with whatever else you're taking. You'll find some added benefit.

Oh shoot, that's exactly what I did: I took 1 vicodin and 2 T3's....and I feel really high right now. And the pain is at a minimum. 😛 But I won't do that anymore, don't wanna kill my liver. 🙁 But I ran out of T3's for today anyway.

I actually went back to the ER this afternoon, and I told the doc that since the T3's weren't strong enough, I was taking my grandpa's vicodin (lol). They didn't seem to care. I begged for something stronger than T3, and he gave me a prescription for Naproxen (500 mg). So if the naproxen doesnt work, I'll go back to t3. Thanks for the help, deperado. 😍



Btw, my diagnosis is "acute vaginal tears". (it won't be funny later when the drugs wear off)

 

[kchan99]

Maybe you should go to OB-GYN...just a thought

 

[NinerNiner999]

Sniff, sniff.... I smell a troll.

 

[unk_fxn]

This is the best thread ever.

If I had pain that T3 didnt get rid of, I would take a Black and Decker power drill with a 1/2 inch bit, revv that bad boy up, and run a hole through my left foot that I could see through. I would also make .wav and .mpg files to share with the group.

Is this an example of gate theory?

Discuss.

 

[unk_fxn]

OOooooh, almost forgot.

The best part about this therapy is that the effects are titratible with progressively larger drill bits.

Makes we wish I had a migraine so I could get to it right now.

 

[Halcyon]

OOooooh, almost forgot.

The best part about this therapy is that the effects are titratible with progressively larger drill bits.

Makes we wish I had a migraine so I could get to it right now.

what a fantastic thread...to relieve the monotony of everday life 😀

 

[Im_in_pain]

UPDATE:

The Naproxen seems to be working. Though the pain stopped when I took the Vico/T3 combo early yesterday....and after that wore off, is when I started the Naproxen. So all's well for now. 👍

Well, this'll be my last post, since I've gotten everything under control. You guys should really study more, you don't seem to know much. Hopefully I will never come across any of you in the ER. 😱

Thanks again Despy! 😀

 

[jazz]

UPDATE:

The Naproxen seems to be working. Though the pain stopped when I took the Vico/T3 combo early yesterday....and after that wore off, is when I started the Naproxen. So all's well for now. 👍

Well, this'll be my last post, since I've gotten everything under control. You guys should really study more, you don't seem to know much. Hopefully I will never come across any of you in the ER. 😱

Thanks again Despy! 😀

on the off chance that you return to this thread --

if you are ever in enough pain to require narcotics, you should probably see a doctor. most of us know the answer but don't want to give you an answer since it depends on a lot of things including your age, weight, medical problems, drug allergies, list of other medications, reason for needing pain medications, etc.

if you were a doctor, you would know how ridiculous it is to sign on to an online message board and ask and expect answers to medical questions.

you asked for medical advice in an improper forum. your quote that "you guys should really study more, you don't seem to know much. Hopefully I will never come across any of you in the ER" shows that you're probably a jerk. but don't worry if you ever come to the ER and require medical attention, you will get it becuase we treat all individuals no matter how unpleasant they are.

 

[Sessamoid]

I am 100% certain that my malpractice insurance doesn't cover problems from advice given over the internet. If you're a resident, I'm almost as certain that yours doesn't cover it either. So the poster (assuming she isn't trolling) is asking for free medical advice for which I can be sued but which my insurance won't cover me if something goes wrong. You'll understand if I and the rest of my colleagues and soon-to-be colleagues decline the invitation to disaster.

 

[Jeff698]

I'm having chest pain?

I have a bunch of other medical problems and even take some drugs. I may or may not be allergic to some other drugs.

I don't really like ERs and have this fear of doctors. I have some relatives who have some medicines that I might take.

What should I do?

Thanks!

 

[NinerNiner999]

Talk to "I'm in Pain's" grandpa - he'll hook you up. I need to study now - can't figure out the whole chest pain thing...

 

[unk_fxn]

I'm having chest pain?

I have a bunch of other medical problems and even take some drugs. I may or may not be allergic to some other drugs.

I don't really like ERs and have this fear of doctors. I have some relatives who have some medicines that I might take.

What should I do?

Thanks!

This type of syndrome can be easily managed using a belt sander.

 

[ERMudPhud]

Are you all to dense to recognize the sig "despy" Nice joke Desperado.

 

[VentdependenT]

Keep the acetaminophen under 4gm's Q 24 to save a' you a' livah'. Norco is acutally a better bet secondary to decreased acetaminophen. I always slap in a little wiff of ultram.

If that no work its off to PCA pump land and a heavy bowel regimine of senakot-s.

 

[mamadoc]

Just in case the OP comes back, I want to know, are you stealing drugs from your poor ailing hurting Grandpa? Leaving him to suffer in pain needlessly because you took his Vicodin? For shame!

And while I'm at it, let me point out that if you did in fact have a recent 'medical procedure,' the doctor who performed it would probably like to know that you are having such intractable pain. That physician is in a far better position to figure out how to best treat you than either the ED docs or all of us heartless internet docs who obviously don't give a damn about you, since we're not willing to risk our licenses or DEA numbers to answer your question. 😛