To think he's taken an overdose?

[worriedddddddddddd]

My boyfriend is refusing to go to the hospital.
He's got a bad toothache (abscess, been receiving treatment for last 3 weeks)
Today he's been in so much pain he's taken 20+ (won't tell me how many) paracetamol/codeine.
Has a really bad stomach ache.
I'm not with him right now. What do I do?

Call 999 for him. Tell them you're concerned and that your boyfriend won't seek medical help. They probably deal with situations like this all the time.

OP what are you still doing here? Paracetamol overdose is fatal. Please call an ambulance.

Oh goodness.

Doesn't look like op is going to call 999. Ring NHS direct, they can advise you ring 999 for you

If you haven't already, phone 999. I cannot stress enough how important it is that he seeks IMMEDIATE medical attention.

Taking that much paracetamol needs A&E now.

indole, the reason that children are actually sometimes allowed more paracetamol than on the bottle is because the dose will have worked out by weight, whereas the bottle has to go for something safe based on age ranges.

The safe range for paracetamol in adults is surprisingly close to 8 tablets (24 tablets can be fatal), and he has taken a proper overdose and very possibly needs treatment asap to prevent further damage to his liver.

Paracetomol overdoes is a terrible way to go, and by the time his organs start failing it will probably be to late to save him, if that's what he's done.

People have overdosed by taking too much lemship with paracetomol, it's no joke.

Call an ambulance now.

Much better to be wrong now, and call it out unnecessarily, than wrong to not call it and wish you could only go back in time to save his life.

You must act now.

Spaced out over 24 hours isn't as bad as all at once, but his tummy won't thank him for it. He can't be forced into hospital, even if paramedics arrive at his door, but perhaps he could be persuaded to attend a&e on the basis of sorting his abscess pain?

Is he on his own?

Shit.

I took 17 co-codamol over an 8 hour period once and got awful tummy ache/nausea.

Hope he's going to be ok.

Thanks for that, DinoSnores. I didn't know that and it's useful information. It's interesting, too, because the children's doses must be pretty low. DD is well below the 5th centile for weight and in fact at the time was below the 0.4th centile.

People have killed themselves unintentionally by taking too many painkillers due to severe pain.

Why on EARTH does he not want to go to hospital?

Please call an ambulance. He might be confused, which is why he's not doing it himself. You have to help him.

He's not on his own
He's going

Yes, hospital, now.

They will do blood tests and get him on antidote drip if necessary.

So pleased worried! X

I don't think op is physically there with him

sorry xpost, well done

That's good. I hope he will be fine but he's doing the right thing getting checked. Let us know how it goes.

Great. Given that it is a staggered overdose, they'll likely start the antidote drip straight off as the paracetamol levels won't be reliable (they are only useful if the paracetamol was taken all at the same time and when you know the time) and he'll be in for a day or two.

Very relieved that he is going!

Just a reminder that in medical emergencies like this, the best thing is to seek RL help
thanks

Good. Well worth having him checked out. Don't be too scared though OP - whilst quite small overdoses can sometimes be fatal so you should never exceed the recommended limit, the larger you are the more safety margin you've got and being male helps too.

Phew, poor bugger. Toothache can drive you insane. Hope he's ok OP

It doesn't matter if it's spaced out, it still could be very serious.

I'm glad he's seeking help.

Ambulance now! Paracetamol overdose can cause liver failure that can kill