Be very careful with OTC NSAIDS

This is probably already something everyone knows. I heard it all the time too and yet here I am today with other health issues because of it.

About 2 years ago, I started experiencing migraines everyday. I had a 3 month streak at one point. I was in and out of my GP and the ER. ALL EVERYONE WOULD GIVE ME TO TAKE IS PRESCRIBED IBROPROPHEN OR ACETAMINOPHEN AT THE ER!!!!!! I was taking high doses of both (with food), when I was directed to do so. I tried to cut down and less frequently. Every time I would see a doctor they’d say something like “do you take OTC pain meds for the migraines?”, and I’d say something along the lines of “I’m trying not to take too much all the time, I’ve been taking about 400mg ibroprophen”, and they’d instantly always recommend I take both together and take more than my OTC bottle recommends me.

Fast forward, my migraines finally become somewhat manageable. I fully just stopped taking OTC pain meds all together unless I had a reallllyyyyyy bad one. But then I started getting cyst pain from my ovaries and guess what they tell you to do for that? Take both ibroprophen and Tylenol together. I was in constant pain. I went on a trip with my family and could barely walk so I was taking both again. Later on, my OBGYN asked me if I’m taking OTC pain meds for the pain. I said I physically can’t anymore, I’m raw dogging it, because I had been having gastro issues and awful acid reflux with bile and regurgitating my food. The doctor tells me “try to take at least one or two ibroprophen if you can with food just to help with some of the pain”!

Anyways long story short, I feel like that was all preventable and now I’m on a PPI to keep myself from regurgitating my food right after eating or constantly spitting up bile:’)!!! I’m mad at the medical industry as a whole. As a woman I’ve never felt my pain being taken seriously. Instead of trying to help me solve the problems or look into them, I was always thrown ibroprophen or Tylenol… Now neither of those health issues I originally had, migraines and cysts, are gone! But now I also have all these other health issues! Yay! Don’t be like me and blindly take a bunch of shit per doctors orders. They all encouraged me to keep taking heavy doses for long periods of time. Remember folks, they can’t cure people that aren’t sick!