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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

To think he's taken an overdose?

117 replies

worriedddddddddddd · 08/12/2015 20:46

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?

OP posts:
Original poster
worriedddddddddddd · 09/12/2015 06:17

They did blood tests and the amount in his blood was just below the amount which would need to be treated
So he's not allowed to take any more paracetamol for a while.

OP posts:
BeautifulLiar · 09/12/2015 06:48

Glad he's ok OP!

I took 36 paracetamol in about 7 minutes once. I am/was 7.5 stone. I did tell a friend who dialled 999 and luckily I was fine.

Gruntfuttock · 09/12/2015 12:10

BeautifulLiar I'm glad you survived. I didn't think there was much they could do for a paracetamol overdose. How did they treat you?

LagunaBubbles · 09/12/2015 12:10

armchair medics do make me laugh

You have no clue about peoples backgrounds Potatoface2. I'm a Psychiatric Nurse who has nursed people who have survived and also died from paracetamol overdoses. Its a slow, lingering painful death and can drag on long after the initial overdose and long after the suicidal person has decided life is worth living after all.

DinoSnores · 09/12/2015 12:14

"As it was over 24 hours the amount he took MIGHT have been less than a doctor could prescribe in a hospital anyway."

BlueSmarties, in hospital a doctor will NEVER prescribe more than 4g (8 tablets in 24 hours.

www.evidence.nhs.uk/formulary/bnf/current/4-central-nervous-system/47-analgesics/471-non-opioid-analgesics-and-compound-analgesic-preparations/paracetamol

I'm rather puzzled as to why they didn't start treatment if he really took 20+ tablets within 24 hours. That's a staggered overdose and blood levels are pretty meaningless, so hopefully we've got the story wrong somewhere and perhaps he took them all at once or something like that.

(Guidelines for treatment of paracetamol overdose in case anyone is interested! bestpractice.bmj.com/best-practice/monograph/337/treatment/step-by-step.html)

DinoSnores · 09/12/2015 12:15

potatoface, I am a doctor but sitting on a sofa at the moment. Does that count?! I've also seen the effects of paracetamol overdoses. Miserable stuff, I tell you.

LagunaBubbles · 09/12/2015 12:23

Gruntfuttock it all depends on how quickly after the overdose you are treated and everyone metabolises drugs differently. Generally an antidote like Pavrolex can be given to try and prevent fatal liver damage.

Gruntfuttock · 09/12/2015 12:24

Thanks very much for the info, Laguna Smile

AliceInUnderpants · 09/12/2015 12:29

Glad he is okay. I hope they are closely controlling his meds from now on.

Was it combined paracetamol and codeine, or separate?

BeautifulLiar · 09/12/2015 13:04

Thank you, Grunt Blush

I was on a drip all night. Also threw up lots of green water (though no whole tablets). I remember asking a nurse in A+E if I was going to die and she couldn't give me an answer. Then I realised what a stupid thing I'd done!

CaspoFungin · 09/12/2015 15:12

Zombie and Phil- if a patients temp was 37.5 or above and that was their only symptom and they felt fairly well otherwise we would certainly expect them to drive themselves in to hospital where I work.

And I agree this situation did not warrant an ambulance but a taxi- the ambulance crew are not there to try to persuade people to go to hospital. There's plenty of people waiting who do want to go in.

PhilPhilConnors · 09/12/2015 16:41

Caspo I agree, as did MiL and FIL, but MIL's ward disagreed and said that FIL was not allowed to drive as it was too urgent.

As it happened, she went in late one Friday night (which must have been a busy night for ambulances anyway), and on arrival to hospital they did no investigating or medicating until Tuesday, so there was no point in treating it as an emergency. She died not long after that, we'll always wonder if she would have lived had they investigated and found the infection earlier.

IamtheZombie · 09/12/2015 21:50

Zombie's temperature on both occasions was closer to 39C. She was also 4 - 5 days into the chemo cycle so, no, she didn't feel well otherwise. First admission was for 3 days and second was for 5 weeks.

SilentlyScreamingAgain · 09/12/2015 22:24

Zombie, you were quite right and they are exactly the instructions given with some types of chemo. I don't know how anyone on the interwebs would disagree with the oncologist who was actually treating you. X

Indole · 09/12/2015 23:06

if a patients temp was 37.5 or above and that was their only symptom

Did you not read Zombie's post? She has stage IV breast cancer. Presumably there are some other symptoms arising from that.

munkisocks · 09/12/2015 23:47

Feel for him Flowers I've got an abscess atm and it's horrible. Also attempted overdoses years ago and it's destroyed my ability to take paracetamol. Hope he feels better soon.

Chloenewoneagain · 11/12/2015 00:10

How is he op?

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