To be pissed off that Boots wouldn't sell me Nytol?

[Appalonia]

I went to Boots today to buy some Nytol. The shop assistant asked me when I had last taken some. I said, a few weeks ago. She refused to sell it to me and said that they could only sell it to someone every 6 months! I've never heard that before when I've bought it previously. When I asked why, she said it's because it's addictive. I am definitely not addicted to it, my sleep has got pretty bad since menopause, and Nytol is one thing that helps me fall asleep. I only use it occasionally.

Was she right to say this? I'm really confused...

To stop paracetemol overdose, they'd do better to publicise what a horrific painful slow death it is than restrict purchases.

Most people have 6 boxes of paracetemol in the kitchen. I certainly do. But it won't be the suicide method I choose!

Try buying eye drops with antibiotics! Almost impossible.

I am now 73 and have had poor sleep since my mid 40s which I always thought was hormone related but everyone loudly shouted me down, so I am pleased that menopause related insomnia is now a thing and talked about and please can I time travel and pop back to "deal" with those people who were so bloody dismissive.

Over the years I have tried all the sleep aids, valerian, magnesium glycinate, nytol, melatonin, and Panadol night. As a psychologist, I even went on workshops to learn how to help people deal with their insomnia (ie me). Now in my 70s I can have 2-3 reasonable nights sleep (I take regular magnesium in the morning) and occasional melatonin (which I order from Biovea-uk), inevitably followed by at least 2 crap nights. I also seem to have 2-3 nights a year when I don't sleep at all. I find Nytol works for me for one night, max 2 nights, but from the 3rd night on it doesn't.

For info - Panadol Night is also good, it contains 500 mg Paracetamol and 25 mg diphenhydramine and I find the combination seems to work better than just nytol. Is expensive though for 20 pills/pack. And again it doesn't work for me from 3rd night on.

Oh for the joy of being able to get into bed knowing you will sleep soundly.

The hydrocortisone nonsense I say its for legs its weak and dermatologist is correct. Tho understand they are not allowed to sell if for face so dont say that now lol.

Really.? That makes no sense. I bought some a few weeks back and then just walked in the shop next door to buy some more . If someone wants to overdose, restricting the sale won’t stop it.

A) It really does. The harder you have to work to kill yourself, the less likely you are to do it.
B) More importantly, it stops having the method in your house. If you don't have 100 tablets at home (previously common, now unlikely) you have to go out and buy more. It cuts down on spontaneous stupid decisions. See above.
C) It cuts down on accidental overdoses where people take a few paracetamol to 'get over it faster' or forget they've already taken some. Smaller quantities make this less serious than if large tubs are available.
D) Back to suicide. A fatal dose of paracetamol is surprisingly small. If you take ten tablets and regret it and phone an ambulance, you'll probably be alright. Take 30, and even if you phone an ambulance right away, there's probably nothing they can do. And as I said in a previous post, paracetamol poisoning is an incredibly painful way to go.

I don't know the rules around this particular medication but I do know that some of those 'pharmacy advisors' think they're pharmacists and guard medications with more might than the king is guarded by his own security.

i dealt with one who was mightily pissed off that I had asked for a medication which could only be dealt with by a pharmacist and stood picking at her nails when I explained why I needed it. She then said she would speak to the pharmacist about it; I stood for 15 minutes while she made a show of rearranging packets on the shelf and avoiding actually going to speak to the pharmacist, seemigly out of spite because she didnt like that it was something which was outwith her scope of practice. Another 10 minutes later, I went directly to the pharmacist (who was very helpful and professional) and she stood watching us from a distance with a look on her face like I had just force fed her shit.

We know now but it was just the fact DH saying it was a Dr’s recommendation and they were adamant they couldn’t sell it. He has lupus so has issues with his skin regularly.

I'll have to remember to bring my own. I'm in the US and I buy it by the bottle of a thousand from our warehouse club.

Try ZMA - it is incredible for helping you sleep, not addictive and much better than Nytol.

DD had trouble getting Canestan. She had a run of thrush. She had seen a GP, a gynea specialist, and the sexual clinic. She had had several courses of cream, pessaries and pills, and had been advised to re-medicate the minute she got a new flare up. She was honest and Boots and they would not sell her any more. We went round to Superdrug and lied. It's a crazy system, but people are just encouraged to lie, so what's the point.

Can I ask where you get phenergan? I’m struggling to get hold of it.

KrisAka busi didn’t they stop selling it in jars and only selling in pop out strips about the same time. Wonder which change had the most effect?

Continued use of anti cholinergics ,which prometh and diphenhydramine are, is linked to a risk of ? Dementia,I think it is, or Alzheimer’s in old people-hence the caution nowadays

@EightToSixer i got it through one of the online pharmacies although I buy generic promethazine. I haven’t bought any for a little while so hopefully there isn’t a shortage.

It’s licensed for hayfever and as a sleep aid and you have to answer an online questionnaire.

I find Otto CBD sleep drops very good for menopausal sleep issues. I now sleep through till morning rather than waking hourly from 4 o'clock onwards.

It does, I have heard that too- my bladder drugs being one of those type of drugs, also sent by blood pressure sky high. I used to take phenegan went I worked shifts 2/3 at the time & so did my dad who worked shifts, he has Alzheimer’s so who knows- plus my memory is terrible at only 60 😩

Funny though, tried putting two boxes of paracetamol through the till, sorry woman said, I can only sell you one box, ( yet can get box 100 offthe Gp- anyway woman said nothing to stop me putting through on a separate shop, so got the 32 I was after, after all

it’s not good to take regularly because of the anticholinergic burden
increased risk of Alzheimer’s/ dementia as others mentioned above
also has anyone read “why we sleep” by Matthew walker
sleep after alcohol/drugs isn’t as restorative as unintoxicated sleep

you may be unconscious for 8 hours but your brain can’t do what it needs to do because of the alcohol/drug
if it wasn’t potentially harmful there wouldn’t be these restrictions

When I had teenage girls at home, I was worried they might take paracetamol as a "statement" and I’d not find out till it was too late. THEN you could by paracetamol with some of what I call the antidote in it so it wasn't as harmful if too much was taken, cost an arm and a leg but they stopped selling it as there was no call for it!!!