I am a little worried as I am scheduled for a tonsillectomy on Tuesday and I have quite a few oral meds and supplements (I've finally made it down to only two IV meds ). How in the world am I supposed to take them?
I admit it took me awhile before I realized I probably won't be able to swallow my pills, but I've had a lot going on and now I'm stressing about the logistics of this whole thing. I have a hard enough time swallowing my pills now.
The oral meds (well, at least the pills) I am currently on are: Flagyl Ketek Septra Diflucan (to try to keep Thrush under control - OTC treatments don't cut it)
The supplements are: Artemisinin Omega 3s Quercetin/Bromelain Complex Alpha Lipoic Acid Centrum Pancreatin (which really helps me with Celiac Disease symptoms) B-Complex COQ10 Caltrate Fibroplex (helps with general tenderness) Vitamin E (which can be opened and mixed with juice). Probiotics (which can be opened and dumped in to juice)
The other meds I am on I can live without - most of them treat my neuropathies, one helps with Narcolepsy, and the another helps with my malfunctioning reticulocytes. It's not optimal to skip these things, but if it means not inflicting pain upon myself I'm alright with that.
Anyone have any suggestions for how to handle this whole situation? I've googled some of the drugs to see if they're available in IV form, but I got tired of weeding through the veterinary pages.
I have this strange feeling that I should add some sort of disclaimer to this post (I usually try to avoid speaking about the specfics of my treatment)...
This treatment took a couple years to figure out and build up to. It works for me, and what works for one person may not work for another. I am under the care of two LLMDs who monitor my blood frequently. Though I am doing really well on the regimen I am on, at this point, I would most definitely not suggest anyone else go down the same road I am traveling down - keep in mind, I require a good deal of strong drugs to prevent a recurrence of Lyme Meningitis and Encephalitis. I am also allergic to most of the traditional medications used to treat Lyme/Babs/Bart....
-------------------- Sometimes when I say �Oh, I�m fine� I want someone to look me in the eyes & say �tell the truth�
Aniek
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 5374
posted
Here's my suggestion.
Call your pharmacist and find out if all of your medications can be taken crushed or, if in capsule form, if the capsule can be opened up. If anything is time released, this won't be possible.
If this is possible, then buy a pill crusher at the pharmacy, and crush your pills and open your capsules and mix them in with soft food or beverage that you can eat after your procedure.
Call your LLMDs to ask the same question about the supplements, or call each supplement manufacturer.
-------------------- "When there is pain, there are no words." - Toni Morrison Posts: 4711 | From Washington, DC | Registered: Mar 2004
| IP: Logged |
Carol in PA
Frequent Contributor (5K+ posts)
Member # 5338
posted
You will have to be "NPO" or "nothing by mouth" for a certain period of time before the surgery. The surgeon doesn't want anything in your stomach, in case you vomit.
After the surgery, you'll have a really terrible sore throat. Once you can swallow something like pudding or apple sauce, you may be able to take the meds with that.
Some of your supplements you should be able to omit for several days without problems. For example, the Centrum, B Complex, CoQ10, Omega-3's, alpha lipoic acid.
They do this one day a week in some nursing homes, calling it a "drug holiday." (And no, that doesn't mean you go on vacation and abuse drugs.)
There is a method to swallow pills that I learned from one of the nursing magazines.
Put the pill in your mouth, positioning it toward the back of your tongue. Take a sip of water, put the tip of your tongue right behind your front teeth, and swallow.
This methods keeps the back of the tongue from riding up and trapping the pill against the roof of the mouth, which leads to that panic sensation of "Oh no, I can't swallow it!"
I had to take antibiotics when I was about six, which led to problems swallowing pills for many years. When I learned the above method, I was able to retrain myself.
I was able to teach it to some of my patients who also had trouble swallowing pills.
Good luck with your surgery. Carol
Posts: 6950 | From Lancaster, PA | Registered: Feb 2004
| IP: Logged |
I had my tonsils out a few years ago, and I won't lie, it hurt like heck. But as I recall, I did manage to take my most needed meds.
If you can tolerate it, try drinking some ice water first, and then take the pills as quick as you can with more ice water. Not fun, but doable for me. Though I don't have trouble taking pills generally (as I know some do).
Good luck!!
monkeyshines
Posts: 343 | From Northern VA | Registered: Oct 2004
| IP: Logged |
The Lyme Disease Network is a non-profit organization funded by individual donations. If you would like to support the Network and the LymeNet system of Web services, please send your donations to:
The
Lyme Disease Network of New Jersey 907 Pebble Creek Court,
Pennington,
NJ08534USA http://www.lymenet.org/
UBBFriend: Email this page to someone!
![[Smile]](smile.gif)
). How in the world am I supposed to take them? 
Printer-friendly view of this topic