Naproxen Withdrawal (Aleve)

[CaptTom]

Coincidentally, I stopped taking Naproxen because my back was feeling better about a week ago. I didn't last more than a few days (and three snowstorms of shoveling) before I was nearly immobilized with pain. No withdrawal symptoms, just a swift return to the lower back pain which caused me to start the Naproxen in the first place.

NSAIDs are the only alternative to surgery which has worked for me so far. Acetaminophen does nothing. Ditto Aspirin. Ibuprofen is shorter-lasting so I'd need to take more. I've found one 220mg Naproxen daily seems to keep the inflammation at bay and allow normal activities. If I'm doing a lot of "real" work, I'll take two a day.

Recovery from a bad episode like the one I'm just starting to come out of now requires four a day, two morning and two evening. Basically, a prescription-level dose. Hopefully only for a couple or a few days.

Yeah, the side effects scare the crap out of me. But there's not much point in living if I can't move. Doc says after 60 my vertebrae will start to fuse, and I might be able to avoid surgery altogether. Meanwhile, my tests come back OK and I'm able to function.

Sometimes life is a compromise, and you have to pick your priorities.

[LOL!]

Acetaminophen: You don't want to take too much and damage your liver:
https://www.fda.gov/consumers/consum...g-liver-injury

[JoeWras]

Liver. Kidneys. Which do you want more?

All of these OTC drugs need to be used with care.

I avoided Tylenol like the plague after reading a newspaper article relaying a story of a young lady who popped 4 before going drinking to avoid a hangover the next day. Instead, she ended up on the liver transplant list.

But kidney disease is no fun either, and NSAIDs are hard on the kidneys.

So... moderation.

[audreyh1]

Quote:

Originally Posted by davebarnes 1. I take naproxen sporadically. Sometimes after walking a lot on vacation. Sometimes if I have bad leg cramp at night. I also take aspirin sporadically. 2. I never take ibuprofen, acetaminophen as alcohol is dangerous with them. P.S. Aspirin, regular ordinary aspirin, requires a pharmacist to dispense/sell it in España.

Bad leg cramps - isn’t that a mineral deficiency? Like you need magnesium?

[tmm99]

I'm glad I don't have to worry about Tylenol as I don't drink, but if I did, I would probably refrain from taking Tylenol.

[aaronc879]

Quote:

Originally Posted by frayne I recently had back surgery (double fusion L4,5 & S1) two months ago and my back Dr. said NO NSAIDs whatsoever, it is thought to be detrimental to bone growth and healing. Tylenol is ok but nothing like Aleve or anything along those lines. Just FWIW.

When I had my hip replacement I was told no NSAIDs for the first 6 weeks because they can hinder the process of the bone fusing to the implant. When Work Comp sent me back to work at 7 weeks I had no choice but to start taking a lot of NSAIDs since they took me off the Oxy and I was still in too much pain to be at work all day with no pain relief. I took at least 6 Ibuprofen every day for many months.

[Sunset]

Quote:

Originally Posted by bmcgonig Here in Ireland Naproxen is not available either OTC. However there's Nurofen Plus, which is ibuprofen+codeine! They work really well together [emoji3] You can get it from the pharmacy and they give you a little lecture about not taking it for more than three days etc.

Canada has behind the counter (pharmacist approval) Acetaminophen 300mg + codeine 8mg + caffeine 25mg (legal requirement of 3 things).

Otherwise Naproxen is good.

But I avoid all these things when possible.

[Blueskies123]

Quote:

Originally Posted by JoeWras Liver. Kidneys. Which do you want more? All of these OTC drugs need to be used with care. I avoided Tylenol like the plague after reading a newspaper article relaying a story of a young lady who popped 4 before going drinking to avoid a hangover the next day. Instead, she ended up on the liver transplant list. But kidney disease is no fun either, and NSAIDs are hard on the kidneys. So... moderation.

The liver can repair itself but the kidneys cannot. Do people not read the warning labels. It says not to drink and take Tylenol. There must be more to the story because doing this just once will not kill your liver unless you are doing it all the time or you have some other complications.

[RobbieB]

For me;

asprin works but does tear up my stomach
I could eat a jar of tylenol and not notice any improvement. But dead from liver damage eh?
I love ibuprofen it works with only 1 (200 mg) hit
naproxen doesn't work for me either

[JoeWras]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Blueskies123 The liver can repair itself but the kidneys cannot. Do people not read the warning labels. It says not to drink and take Tylenol. There must be more to the story because doing this just once will not kill your liver unless you are doing it all the time or you have some other complications.

I agree. 2 grams plus a drinking binge shouldn't be enough to completely go to liver failure. I suspect she isn't telling the whole story, i.e., she probably drank a lot and had previous liver damage.

In any case, Tylenol will affect the liver and it is well documented. Keep it moderate.

[davebarnes]

Quote:

Originally Posted by audreyh1 Bad leg cramps - isn’t that a mineral deficiency? Like you need magnesium?

Which I take daily.
My leg cramps have been greatly reduced. But, about once every 6 weeks I reach for the naproxen.

[Winemaker]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rianne Great information. I cannot take NSAID's. They're very bad for the kidneys. I stopped taking them a few years back. Over the counter pain meds have just as many side effects as prescription drugs. So many people think they're safe because they're over the counter available.

At my recent annual physical, my doctor said my blood work shows some kidney damage due to NSAID usage. Boy, was I pissed as she, and several orthopedes have advised me to take for back pain, and pre rotator cuff surgeries. Tylenol, never touched my pain, and since I imbibe on a daily basis, I don't ever take it.

[JoeWras]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Winemaker At my recent annual physical, my doctor said my blood work shows some kidney damage due to NSAID damage. Boy, was I pissed as she, and several orthopedes have advised me to take for back pain, and pre rotator cuff surgeries. Tylenol, never touched my pain, and since I imbibe on a daily basis, I don't ever take it.

Really sorry to hear that, Winemaker.

I actually learned about NSAIDs and kidney issues years ago on another thread from our forum, right here on ER.org. This place is always a great resource. I was not paying attention to my intake until reading a few threads years ago.

With the so called "war" on opioids in force, we're going to soon have a whole population looking for kidneys. People are in pain out there. Once again a subset of the population ruins it for everyone.

[Athena61]

Joe, I could not get the link to work for the forum you mentioned. Would you repost it again, please? Thanks.

[triangle]

I do wish there was a concise write-up, maybe something like an "over-the-counter medication for dummies" or semi-technical white paper to help explain the spectrum of pain medicine, their side effects, how they can be substituted for each other or not, etc..

My brief personal story: I almost never took an any pain medicine until I hurt my knee. (it is fine now but took 3-4 years of slow recovery). When I saw my doctor he first told me to take Aleve and see how it goes for a week or so before taking additional steps. By the time I got to the store I recalled it as Advil (I had filed it in my brain under the very common pain medicine that started with the letter 'A'). The Advil did nothing and I went back for a follow-up visit in even more pain. The doctor corrected me to start Aleve and later physical therapy. I was astonished at how well the pill worked. When I take it I can almost sense it engaging in real time about 20 minutes later. Over the many months of recovery I was able to reduce the frequency and dosage.

Now I only take Aleve infrequently, and usually only a half pill. I might encourage anyone to try half-dosages since the drug is quite strong and effective. A half pill doesn't last as long but can be enough to get to sleep or get over the immediate pain hump.

[JoeWras]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Athena61 Joe, I could not get the link to work for the forum you mentioned. Would you repost it again, please? Thanks.

Sorry, what I wrote was confusing. I edited it to this:

I actually learned about NSAIDs and kidney issues years ago on another thread from our forum, right here on ER.org.

[Lsbcal]

I have always used Aleve as the label recommends. One every 8 hours.

I never use it for more then 48 hours. Usually this clears up any lower back pain as it reduces inflammation.

I record it in my exercise log and I take it only rarely. Better to use good habits and gym exercise to reduce my issues.

Regarding aspirin, for some years I was taking one baby aspirin every other day. But recently stopped it. I was getting "easy bruising" on the arms and this convinced me to stop. The easy bruising has gone away now.

[imoldernu]

An estimated up to 6 million adults have AFIB... not all diagnosed, and the chances for those over 65 having it, is fairly high. The first thing the doctor insists on, is withdrawal from NSAIDs is because this type of blood thinner can be very dangerous.

[Athena61]

Thanks, Joe.

[Chuckanut]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Alan Yes, Nurofen Plus is available OTC here as well, behind the desk at pharmacies. Even Miralax (Movicol here) is behind the counter so you have to get the little lecture each time you buy it.

But you folks can tubes of Votaren OTC with no lecture. Right?