The Progeny
Please Explain
So, I am literally counting down the minutes until I can take two more Excedrin Migraine geltabs, figuring I have about 30 more minutes until the 6 hour point, and I think to myself,
(Ma? When was the last time you read the dosage instructions on that bottle?)
And so I read the label, which they've conveniently printed so smallish that I have to take off my glasses...
"Take 2 geltabs with water. Do not take more than 2 geltabs in 24 hours unless directed by a doctor."
(Whoa! These babies must be strong ! Let's see...I took two at 9:00 p.m. before bed, and again at 4:00 a.m. when that crazy little kid wanted me to "fix" his blanket...so now I am officially a junkie, I guess...I'd better see how many milligrams I've been downing so I can inform the ER right before they put me under for a liver transplant...)
"Each geltab contains:
-Acetaminophen 250 mg.
-Aspirin 250 mg.
-Caffeine 65 mg."
(Now wait a minute, I know the extra-strength acetaminophen is 500 EACH....)
*checks labels on Acetaminophen and Aspirin*
"Acetaminophen--each caplet contains 500 mg. Take 2 caplets every 6 hours. Do not take more than 8 caplets in 24 hours."
"Aspirin--325 mg. per tablet. Take one to two tablets every four hours, as needed, up to 12 tablets per 24 hours."
(Well, maybe there is some type of drug interaction I wasn't aware of....*googles "drug interactions"*....Nope. Just each with alcohol, not with each other)
WHAT GIVES!?!
I could theoretically take 4000 mg of Acetaminophen in 24 hours, or 3900 mg of Aspirin in 24 hours.
And yet with Excedrin Migraine I can only take 500 mg. of Acetaminophen and 500 mg. of Aspirin in 24 hours? Do they really think puny amounts of pain reliever will last for 24 hours? Is that supposed to help my throbbing head, weepy eye and nauseous stomach?
Ma is miffed.
Ma is also taking more.
Tweet
(Ma? When was the last time you read the dosage instructions on that bottle?)
And so I read the label, which they've conveniently printed so smallish that I have to take off my glasses...
"Take 2 geltabs with water. Do not take more than 2 geltabs in 24 hours unless directed by a doctor."
(Whoa! These babies must be strong ! Let's see...I took two at 9:00 p.m. before bed, and again at 4:00 a.m. when that crazy little kid wanted me to "fix" his blanket...so now I am officially a junkie, I guess...I'd better see how many milligrams I've been downing so I can inform the ER right before they put me under for a liver transplant...)
"Each geltab contains:
-Acetaminophen 250 mg.
-Aspirin 250 mg.
-Caffeine 65 mg."
(Now wait a minute, I know the extra-strength acetaminophen is 500 EACH....)
*checks labels on Acetaminophen and Aspirin*
"Acetaminophen--each caplet contains 500 mg. Take 2 caplets every 6 hours. Do not take more than 8 caplets in 24 hours."
"Aspirin--325 mg. per tablet. Take one to two tablets every four hours, as needed, up to 12 tablets per 24 hours."
(Well, maybe there is some type of drug interaction I wasn't aware of....*googles "drug interactions"*....Nope. Just each with alcohol, not with each other)
WHAT GIVES!?!
I could theoretically take 4000 mg of Acetaminophen in 24 hours, or 3900 mg of Aspirin in 24 hours.
And yet with Excedrin Migraine I can only take 500 mg. of Acetaminophen and 500 mg. of Aspirin in 24 hours? Do they really think puny amounts of pain reliever will last for 24 hours? Is that supposed to help my throbbing head, weepy eye and nauseous stomach?
Ma is miffed.
Ma is also taking more.
Tweet
posted by Ma Hoyt | 9:25 AM
4 Comments:
They don't want to get sued. Neither do I, so I won't actually say I'm advising you, but I will say that acetaminophen is metabolized by your liver, and aspirin is metabolized by your kidneys, so they aren't likely to interact. You are probably fine.
That said, I would be careful about large doses of either of these drugs. Acetaminophen toxicity is really scary, and can be fatal, and I've actually seen and treated a guy who put himself into renal failure with motrin, which is metabolized similarly to aspirin.
Best of luck treating that headache though.
I will keep that in mind. Thank you Nathan.
Speaking of Motrin, I took Extra Strength Motrin twice in my life and got hives both times. After that I flushed it down the toilet.
Which is funny, since generic ibuprofen doesn't bother me...
One of my daughters suggested going off chocolate, but somehow, that seems a fate worse than death...but I may have to consider it.
Becky,
I always hate reading that you are having those migranes again. After years of Galen suffering with migranes he finally mentioned it to his neurologist and he was able to prescribe something that finally gave him relief. You might want to check this out with your Doctor.
Large amounts of Acetaminophen scare me!
Elizabeth
Yes, they would scare me too. What I am taking is not that much, really.
But I've just scheduled my yearly exam for next month so I'll probably bring it up then.
Post a Comment
<< Home