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Wednesday, December 3, 2014

Pain medication...PODay 172

My shoulder hurts just enough that I'd like to take an over the counter drug for it. Aspirin causes me to have little hemorrhages so I tend to avoid it. Ibuprofen works very well but it keeps me awake if I take it at night which is when I could use something. It's true that a lot of pain medications have caffeine   added to the active drug ingredient. Caffeine perks us up, delivers the pain relieving element of the pill faster and is, in and of itself, a mild pain reliever.

That's great except for those of us who are sensitive to Caffeine. Oh, I don't mean I'm allergic to it. I used to love the "kick" a real coke gave me. But a little, a very little, caffeine, nervouses me up and keeps me wide awake. I have enough trouble sleeping without adding caffeine to the equation.

So what doesn't have caffeine in it? Dr. Google says aspirin, acetaminophen , and ibuprofen probably do not contain caffiene. However, individual manufacturers could add it so one has to check the label. Tylenol probably does and so does excedrin. The military used to hand out "APCs" which were a combo of  Aspirin, phenacetin, and caffeine (a pill containing all three). Phenacetin was the first nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) to be associated with kidney failure. Scary but very effective. Does chocolate contain caffiene? Yes, but not much. When I was a teenager working in the mall my breakfast if choice was a coke and a piece of chocolate cake. That gave me the strength to work twelve hours on Saturday.

But even though I have bought what I think is caffeine free Ibuprofen  it adds to the insomnia problem. I don't believe being free of discomfort keeps me awake. It ought to be the other way around, pain free should equal sound sleep. But in spite of the fact I am not sleeping well at night I am full of energy and don't feel sleep deprived. And, because I get up so early, I get a lot done before 7:00 AM. 

I used to be jealous of early risers. Now I am one!

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