janehill Posted April 11, 2007 Share Posted April 11, 2007 Last week my mom's back pain caused her doctor to increase her Fentynal patch dosage to 50 mg (up from 25 mg). Within 2 days, my mom developed various new symptoms (dizziness, nausea, vomiting) and I told her to use a 25 mg patch the next time she had to change her patch. Did she listen? Of course not. Argh!!! So today she was shaking and for the very first time ever, mom said she had zero appetite. In fact, she couldn't get more than a bite of her buttered roll down for breakfast. Let me say, for the record, that my mother has eaten a huge meal minutes after throwing up from pain medications (gross but true). So with all of her symptoms (palpitations, hands/legs fluctuating between hot and cold, intermittent fever), I decided to drive her to the hospital and she's there. She'll likely be admitted for a day or two and they'll run various tests. So here's my question. Do you guys think I'm off base thinking that the double dosage of the Fentynal patch caused the symptoms? I know that I would make an awful drug addict - I can't stomach heavy pain pills. They cause such severe nausea/vomiting and just a general miserable feeling. And that's why I thought her meds were responsible for the symptoms. Of course, I'm frustrated that I asked her and reminded her, etc. NOT to double the Fentynal patch (mostly because I think my mom is quick on the draw to increase pain meds and doesn't think about the consequences - one of which is that I think it might make sense to hold off the big guns until she really really really needs them. Whew! Okay, I'm home after a day of mini-drama and a lot of driving. Opinions on Fentynal side effects very welcome. Thanks guys!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Treebywater Posted April 11, 2007 Share Posted April 11, 2007 With my Mom we found the dosing on the Fentanyl to be REALLY touchy, and when the prescription increased it always took a day or two for her body to adjust. It sounds reasonable to me that these symptoms could be attributed to the increase in the Fentanyl. It took quite a bit of tweaking to find the right dosage for Mom that didn't give her nasty side-effects or leave her feeling completely drugged, and then as her pain increased even more tweaking. It may be that your Mom *does* need more than the 1 patch to manage the pain. Could you talk to the doctor about whether or not the patches come in increments smaller than the ones she's on? So she could do her normal dose + a little more, but not doubling it? Let us know how your Mama does, and how you are doing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
janehill Posted April 12, 2007 Author Share Posted April 12, 2007 I just talked with the ER nurse. Really helpful I asked if she would be admitted or if I should expect to take her home tonight (which amounts to a 3.5 drive for me door-to-door/start-to-finish) and she said, Well, we wouldn't kick her out on the street. I said, No, I wouldn't expect that, I was just trying to figure out how to plan, in case I get a call in the middle of the night. How rude! On a good front, she's sleeping - which I know she needs and that makes me very happy. I'm okay, thanks for asking. In six minutes, American Idol is on - should give me some laughs. Right about now I'm thinking I should have come home and napped, in case I do get a call in the middle of the night to take her home. Gosh, I'm so sleepy. I must have looked really haggard a couple of weeks ago. My mom looked at me and said, "When I'm gone, I want you to stop worrying and sleep peacefully." Made me really sad because despite the extreme anxiety her cancer has brought, her death will not leave me feeling peaceful. I will miss my mom every second and I can't imagine the thousands of times I will fall apart having to put the phone down realizing, Oh no, she's not home. Ugh! I'll stop now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crystleshoe Posted April 12, 2007 Share Posted April 12, 2007 my mom didnt do well with the fentanyl patch at all. It caused her to hallucinate and she was very drugged out with it. I insisted the doctors take her off it and within a few hours she was better. Its a very strong pain med and its difficult to find the right dose and alot of people are sensitive to it. Unfortunately it is trial and error to find what will work without to many side effects. I hope you et some much needed rest soon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Liz13 Posted April 12, 2007 Share Posted April 12, 2007 Hi Jane, I think it is the patch. They put me on 50 mg on November 21st when I left the hospital. I was nauseated and vomiting from the chemo at the time, so I really didn't contect the two. I finished chemo on December 3rd. And continued to vomit. Somedays more then others. December 19th, they upped the dose to 75mg. The vomiting got worse. Someday more then others. I finally figured it out. First day on was worse, started getting better by sencond, third was doing well. Then I changed the patch. And within 2 hours was vomiting again. I took it off January 8th and have not vomited since. I just dealt with the pain because I couldn't swallow meds at the time. Maybe they can give her something different? I hope she feels better soon. Hugs, Liz Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
overtherainbow Posted April 14, 2007 Share Posted April 14, 2007 My dad had a similar reaction to the fentanyl patch when he first put it on - hallucinations, nausea, vomiting. However, those symptoms have not returned since the first couple of days. It seems like the body needs to adjust to the shock of the narcotic effects, but everybody responds differently. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.