Addicted to ibuprofen, any Dr's around to tell me honestly if it's that bad?

[Isithonestlythatbad]

Since being in my twenties (I'm 39 now) I take 5 ibuprofens every morning, sometimes 5 again in the afternoon.
I suffer terribly with headaches/migraines and period pains so got into the habit of taking them regularly. I'm on amitriptaline for my bad heads but can't stop taking the ibuprofen every day.

Can anyone tell me honestly am I risking my health? I currently don't have any side effects but when I told my friends they were horrified. I'm too scared to tell my Dr. So if anyone can offer me any advice I'd be grateful. Thank you!

I agree with everyone saying you need to speak to your doctor to find a way to safely manage your symptoms and also to try to get to the root cause of the headaches, so that you can hopefully put a stop to them.

Ibuprofen is, as everyone has said, really bad for your stomach.

You don’t need to be ashamed but equally you do need some medical help.

I hope this thread has been a wake up call for you. Ibuprofen is not addictive and you can break the habit without experiencing any of the physical withdrawal symptoms associated with addictive medications.

It may be worth considering something like hypnotherapy to help you with the psychological impact of breaking the habit.

Do be completely open and honest with your GP. You have left yourself open to some significant and possibly life threatening gastric issues so you need your GP access and assessment of any symptoms to be easy.

It’s not an addiction, there are no addictive substances in it. It’s a habit.

I'm no medic but even I know you are seriously overdosing, just with your morning dose of FIVE tablets. You need to go to your GP asap and be totally honest about the length & scope of your addiction. You are facing either a long detoxification regime or organ failure. Your choice.

This is extremely worrying. At the very least it's probably given you medication overuse headache. You might not even have migraine. Check out the Heads Up podcast which has an episode about Medication Overuse Headache. And speak to a doctor immediately.

It’s not addiction 🤔

OP if the driver for taking them is headaches (rebound headaches are definitely a thing as others have said) then plan to have non drug alternatives. Wheat bags - the type you put in the microwave - and 4head are two options that could help you manage the transition.

Anything can be an addiction. Even food, sugar, drinks etc.

Try weaning yourself off them? Take 9 instead of 10 for a week. Next week 8, the week after 7 until you are down to 1 and then quit buying them. Going immediately cold turkey will maybe freak you out/cause withdrawal symptoms? Id try reducing gradually.
And for sure go and speak to your GP.

Yes, it is possible to wean yourself off. I was taking ibuprofen for pain and like you I felt addicted. I gradually cut down, reducing a little every few days, even splitting tablets in half then quarters for last few weeks.

A habit is not an addiction. Your first step is recognising that.
Good luck with the GP and I hope you can break this habit with whatever support you need.

The OP is taking life threatening amounts of a drug that could cause her to collapse and die from a gastric haemorrhage. This is ridiculous and unsafe advice.

I know lots of PP have talked about painkillers causing headaches already but I wanted to share a link to a Radio 4 programme I heard many years ago about exactly that - https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00804yq At the time my dad was suffering with constant headaches which were getting worse and worse, and taking an ever increasing amount of painkillers. I sent him this to listen to and he immediately started weaning himself off them (didn't go cold turkey, just gradually reduced) and it made a huge difference. His headaches got drastically better.

This. I used to take two at a time only never overdosed and yet I ended up having headaches every day.

when I stopped after some random bbc documentary way back - I had the worst most horrific headaches for over a month. Paracetamol wouldn’t help. I ended up off work and all sorts. It’s been over ten years now and I’ve never taken them since.

it was normal for me to have daily headaches. I now get one x1 per month if that.

Neither is diet irn bru but here we are. (I cannot stop drinking it 😅)

I took it for about a week after I had all my impacted wisdom teeth removed. About a month later I had a gastroscopy and my stomach lining showed up as being irritated!

Any addiction or reliance on medication without a specific prescription is a problem. If you read the notes on the ibuprofen you'd see a specific warning about taking them on a regular basis.

Ibuprofen can cause significant stomach irritation to the point of causing ulcers and other gastric problems. And, as with all painkillers, their effectiveness can decrease with dependency.

You already know the answer to your question: you need to see your GP, you need to be honest about how many of these things you are taking, and if you migraines are that bad (assuming they are migraines and aren't tension headaches or occipital nerve issues etc etc) then clearly you need a different approach to treating them.

You should also address your posture and what you do during the day. Sadly being on one's phone/tech can cause significant neck problems that can lead to headaches. A lack of exercise can also cause those issues or certainly make them worse.

Migraines have many triggers and things that make them worse - including the food and drink we consume.

Addiction/dependency can be treated - but you need to be honest about it and you need to speak to the GP as soon as possible.

I don't understand why you're addicted to it? I never understood paracetamol addiction either.

It doesn't do anything for pain unless it's really mild and it doesn't make you feel any different. How can you be addicted to something that doesn't have any effect?

Aspirin daily can prevent migraine. Talk to gp

I know somebody who took daily self-prescribed ibuprofen for years and has damaged their kidneys to the point they now need dialysis.
Ibuprofen is not safe to be taken in high doses over an extended period of time without any kind of monitoring.

First day of cold turkey. Had my usual coffee but without the side of 5 pills, just my daily vitamin. Have a headache as usual, but powering through!

Absolutely this. And tell your doctor.

Well done - that's a good start - don't forget to make that appointment and if your headache gets really bad, either try eating something with a bit of salt in (but also ensure you keep hydrated) and/or rub a thin layer of vapour rub across your temples.

Got my good luck fingers crossed for you OP - you'll do this - you've already taken the first step by admitting there's a problem.

You’re not addicted. If someone swapped out your ibuprofen for identical looking sugar tablets, you’d take them and you’d carry on and be totally fine. You wouldn’t have any withdrawal symptoms or any signs of a come down. You’re not addicted.

It’s a compulsion. Get help. But stop saying addicted. You’re not an addict, you’ve just formed a compulsive habit and they aren’t doing anything for you so you can absolutely stop this with some behavioural changes and therapy if you need it.

Ok that's 3 times in the same post you've said I'm not addicted. Why has this irked you? I stand by my earlier comment, an addiction can present itself in many ways. In my case they take away my pain. Some people are addicted to coke for example.