21st August 2007
Hi Leanne,
I am on Day 5, which is by far the worst day for pain for me. I consider myself to have a high tolerance for pain and wasn't totally worried up front about having enough pain medicine, but I was smart enough to realize that I better have all of my options covered. Most doctors think of this, too, but some get so routine with their procedures you have to be careful.
I had my prescriptions filled the day before surgery -
I got two antibiotics - one liquid amoxicillin and the other a "pack" which you take all at once - both to prevent infection, thrush, etc... (make sure you get either a pro-biotic pill or something else to replace the healthy bacteria in your body as these will kill all bacteria and either give you diarrhea as some people have posted or leave you prone to further infections i.e. UTI) and trust me you won't want to eat yogurt to do this (just the idea of yogurt makes me sick - you will understand, its a mucus thing)
I got one bottle of Liquid Hydrocodone (generic for Lortab) which was for 1 TBSP every 4 hours (it only lasts for 2 hours, by the way) and I was half way done with the bottle on Saturday afternoon (surgery was on Friday) and started freaking out. I had my husband call on Sunday morning to get it in because I knew I wouldn't make it thru the night and he had to "negotiate" with the doctor (not my ENT - the on-call one) who said they normally don't fill prescriptions over the weekend. My ENT was the one who gave me the 2 day supply over the weekend - not a good idea - this ENT said he always give at least a 4 day!! :( So, he called it in and I got another 2 day supply of this time Liquid Lortab with Guaifenesin (ask for this one - the hydro numbs the pain and the guaif is an expectorant which helps coat the throat but not in the annoying mucus kind of way - after taking this one - I was able to sleep for 3 full hours (not like the average of 45 minutes to an hour before)
I also got a prescription for Promethazine - this is for the nausea/vomiting. I have only taken this one three times. One right after I got home from the hospital (I think the car ride made me sick), and the other two times were after force feeding myself in the morning in order to take the other pills.
I also asked for Liquid Lidocaine to gargle with after surgery. My ENT said that this only works for 1/2 of the people and I thought why not give it a shot. I have to tell you that there were a couple of times that this has helped, but it is really challenging to gargle because it is so thick and if you swallow it, you can't eat or drink anything for 30 minutes after so you have to be super careful.
Leanne, here are the things that I think really saved my butt. ;)
Similisan Children's Earache Relief ear drops - these are safe to use with antibiotics and when your ears go haywire like dry sockets this was the only thing that made me a nice person again. I bought them at Rite Aid and they are considered homeopathic, so at least its not "another" drug in your body.
Ice Packs - this one sounds so basic, I know, but let me tell you that it feels so good to have one draped across your throat or tucked on one side if you are sleeping - it helps with the ears, the throat and your general sanity.
Chloraseptic/Cepacol - this is a really good one. When you just can't take it anymore and it feels like swallowing broken glass, give yourself 10 sprays of this baby, gargle it as long as you can, spit it out and rinse with water, and you will get about 10 minutes of relief, which is long enough to get some water, food and pills down.
I have not had any vomiting or bleeding issues, so far, thank goodness, which is what scared me. The pain is rough, but it can be managed. I just keep thinking, this is my one last painful tonsillitis/strep throat attack and after this, there will be no more.:angel:
I am on Day 5, which is by far the worst day for pain for me. I consider myself to have a high tolerance for pain and wasn't totally worried up front about having enough pain medicine, but I was smart enough to realize that I better have all of my options covered. Most doctors think of this, too, but some get so routine with their procedures you have to be careful.
I had my prescriptions filled the day before surgery -
I got two antibiotics - one liquid amoxicillin and the other a "pack" which you take all at once - both to prevent infection, thrush, etc... (make sure you get either a pro-biotic pill or something else to replace the healthy bacteria in your body as these will kill all bacteria and either give you diarrhea as some people have posted or leave you prone to further infections i.e. UTI) and trust me you won't want to eat yogurt to do this (just the idea of yogurt makes me sick - you will understand, its a mucus thing)
I got one bottle of Liquid Hydrocodone (generic for Lortab) which was for 1 TBSP every 4 hours (it only lasts for 2 hours, by the way) and I was half way done with the bottle on Saturday afternoon (surgery was on Friday) and started freaking out. I had my husband call on Sunday morning to get it in because I knew I wouldn't make it thru the night and he had to "negotiate" with the doctor (not my ENT - the on-call one) who said they normally don't fill prescriptions over the weekend. My ENT was the one who gave me the 2 day supply over the weekend - not a good idea - this ENT said he always give at least a 4 day!! :( So, he called it in and I got another 2 day supply of this time Liquid Lortab with Guaifenesin (ask for this one - the hydro numbs the pain and the guaif is an expectorant which helps coat the throat but not in the annoying mucus kind of way - after taking this one - I was able to sleep for 3 full hours (not like the average of 45 minutes to an hour before)
I also got a prescription for Promethazine - this is for the nausea/vomiting. I have only taken this one three times. One right after I got home from the hospital (I think the car ride made me sick), and the other two times were after force feeding myself in the morning in order to take the other pills.
I also asked for Liquid Lidocaine to gargle with after surgery. My ENT said that this only works for 1/2 of the people and I thought why not give it a shot. I have to tell you that there were a couple of times that this has helped, but it is really challenging to gargle because it is so thick and if you swallow it, you can't eat or drink anything for 30 minutes after so you have to be super careful.
Leanne, here are the things that I think really saved my butt. ;)
Similisan Children's Earache Relief ear drops - these are safe to use with antibiotics and when your ears go haywire like dry sockets this was the only thing that made me a nice person again. I bought them at Rite Aid and they are considered homeopathic, so at least its not "another" drug in your body.
Ice Packs - this one sounds so basic, I know, but let me tell you that it feels so good to have one draped across your throat or tucked on one side if you are sleeping - it helps with the ears, the throat and your general sanity.
Chloraseptic/Cepacol - this is a really good one. When you just can't take it anymore and it feels like swallowing broken glass, give yourself 10 sprays of this baby, gargle it as long as you can, spit it out and rinse with water, and you will get about 10 minutes of relief, which is long enough to get some water, food and pills down.
I have not had any vomiting or bleeding issues, so far, thank goodness, which is what scared me. The pain is rough, but it can be managed. I just keep thinking, this is my one last painful tonsillitis/strep throat attack and after this, there will be no more.:angel: