This is my tale of woe. I am a retired 65 year old male who is acting as a primary caregiver to my 89 year old mother. Everything was normal up to two weeks ago. My mother has had amnesia problems, with her sleep aid. The doctor gave her another drug, which did not work. At the same time, she started feeling pain in her back. She has a herniated disk that flares up at times. This time, it was the worst pain she could remember. Then she told me she was having memory issues and could not do the crossword puzzles any longer. She stopped reading. She was feeling so miserable I took her to the local emergency room. They diagnosed her disc problem and sent her her home with 12 muscle relaxers. They do not work. They instructed her to take Tylenol which also does not work. My mother is curled up in bed trying not to move. It is Saturday evening and I can't do anything until Monday. When I intend to call her doctor and ask for something more potent that Tylenol! I recognize that Doctors are held responsible for the drugs they precribe but this is crazy. At least, they should give Vycodin. Any suggestions?
If your mother is still I pain, take her back to the ER and insist on imaging. She may have broken her pelvis or hip, even without a fall.
I can't offer any solutions for that, but it might provide some insight into when and why the flare-ups occur.
The only things I've found that really help are music, a heating pad, gentle exercise, and dietary changes, specifically, eliminating as much as possible any foods with sodium and sugar, or at least decreasing consumption of those foods. I read that they negatively affect arthritis, which I have. It's perhaps something your mother also has, and complicates the existing disc issues (just a supposition from a nonmedical person).
Has your mother ever been to a orthopedic specialist? I gasped when I read "12 muscle relaxers". To me that seems as if someone really didn't know what to do and just wrote a prescription.
One of the ortho doctors who treated my father is now with a different practice, which provides its own pain management clinic.
I certainly hope someone provides some better treatment for your mother. Pain that crippling is so difficult to tolerate.
I am going to get a heating pad to try and alleviate the pain. Thanks for that suggestion. I am going to ask her doctor for a referral to an ortho- pedic specialist to help her deal with her disc problem. Her doctor has already told her that they prefer not to operate because of her age.
You can try alternating a heating pad and ice packs, but I'd ditch the Tylenol. I call it "The Wonder Drug," because I wonder what it's good for.
Be Careful about giving your mom Ibuprofen (Advil/Motrin) or Naproxen Sodium (Aleve) if she's already taking a blood thinner. If you can find an on-duty pharmacist tonight, you could ask him for advice. (It would be a good idea to have a list of any other medications she is taking in front of you when you call.)
An Ask-A-Nurse line would be another option. If your mom has supplemental health insurance, they might have an 800 line (or chat feature).
Two advil and two tylenol together would knock me out, so I guess it would be good pain relief for me. Maybe it would help your mom rest if it doesn't relieve her pain.
Here's a brief article on treating post-surgical pain with this one-two combination. (Again, I'd try to run this by a nurse or pharmacist if you can't speak to her doc.)
http://www.med.umich.edu/1libr/Surgery/MPOPeducation-ManagingPainWithoutOpioids.pdf#:~:text=not%20present%20%20%2012%3A00%20PM%20%20,200%20mg%29%20%20%201%20more%20rows%20
I'm so sorry your mom is in pain.