7 replies to this topic

[moonstar]

A COMMON SIDE EFFECT OF MY HUSBANDS TABLETS IS DRY MOUTH, AS A RESULT HE FINDS IT VERY DIFFICULT TO EAT SO HE DOESNT EAT MUCH AND IS VERY BORED WITH THE MEALS HE HAS. DOES ANYONE ELSE HAVE THIS PROBLEM? ANY IDEAS OF INTERSTING MEALS HE COULD TRY?

[bunkalar]

I'm not going to be of any help. I take oxybutynin which gives me pretty bad dry mouth but eating and drinking helps me salivate. Your husband must have it pretty bad. What medication is he taking?

[moonstar]

bunkalar, on Feb 4 2007, 10:20 PM, said:

I'm not going to be of any help. I take oxybutynin which gives me pretty bad dry mouth but eating and drinking helps me salivate. Your husband must have it pretty bad. What medication is he taking?

HE DRINKS A LOT BUT IT DOESNT HELP, HE TAKES DIAZEPAM, TIZANIDINE, BACLOFEN, AMITRIPTYLINE, OXYBUTYNIN, DANTROLENE AND LYRICA, IKEEP ASKING THE GP IF HE NEEDS TO TAKE SO MUCH EVERY DAY, THEY SAY HE NEDS IT, IN TOTAL HE TAKES 26 TABS A DAY xmoonstarx

[bigsmiles]

Hi Moonstar..What about trying one of those mouth solutions or a saliva replacement gels that you can buy. Not sure about foods really but theres plenty of juicy fruits which keep the mouth moist....just an idea.

[Becca82]

moonstar, on Feb 4 2007, 01:35 AM, said:

A COMMON SIDE EFFECT OF MY HUSBANDS TABLETS IS DRY MOUTH, AS A RESULT HE FINDS IT VERY DIFFICULT TO EAT SO HE DOESNT EAT MUCH AND IS VERY BORED WITH THE MEALS HE HAS. DOES ANYONE ELSE HAVE THIS PROBLEM? ANY IDEAS OF INTERSTING MEALS HE COULD TRY?

Hi Moonstar, I dont know about any of the other meds your husband is taking, but my partner takes oxybutinin, and he too found that it caused him to have an extremely dry mouth.
It is really good for the bladder spasms, so we looked into alternatives, and found that there is an Oxybutinin PATCH!!! it releases 3.9 mg a day, and you change it every three days. it is really really simple, you simply peel it off the foil wrapper, and stick it onto the skin, we put it right next to the bladder and at the top of the leg. you need to rotate the area that you put it on, so we have four spots that are rotated everytime!
I dont know how well known it is, and obviously it is far more expensive than the tablets, and so Dr's do not like to perscribe it, but luckily we have a fantastic GP.
If you want any more info on it then let me know!
P.S there have not been any side affects from it, and he has been using it for at least 6 months!!!

[moonstar]

THANKYOU FOR THAT INFORMATION, WE HAVE NOT HEARD OF PATCHES, WILL CONTACT GP TO FIND OUT IF HE CAN TRY IT, AT THE MOMENT HE TAKES 15MG A DAY, DO YOU KNOW IF THEY DO STRONGER PATCHES OR DO YOU ONLY NEED LOWER DOSES WITH THE PATCHES? xmoonstarx

[Becca82]

moonstar, on Feb 8 2007, 11:53 PM, said:

THANKYOU FOR THAT INFORMATION, WE HAVE NOT HEARD OF PATCHES, WILL CONTACT GP TO FIND OUT IF HE CAN TRY IT, AT THE MOMENT HE TAKES 15MG A DAY, DO YOU KNOW IF THEY DO STRONGER PATCHES OR DO YOU ONLY NEED LOWER DOSES WITH THE PATCHES? xmoonstarx

as far as i know the patches only come in the 3.9mg released over a 24 hour period. It might mean however, that he could lower the dose of the tablets (im not a medic, so really cant say if you can mix or match the two??!!) and use the patches, this might mean that the side affects he is experiencing might lessen is not taking such a high dose of the tablets! Out of interest, are they giving him the standard dose, or have they established that he needs that amount to prevent the spasms?
I only ask this, as my boyfriend didnt use oxybutinin for ages and was ok, and only started taking it, as he began to get bladder spasms which he feels triggered the UTI's! Just a thought.
Sometimes Dr's seem to put people on all the 'standard' medication, (which your right is an awful lot) when really its not totally necessary. Like i said im not a medic, but you might find that in time your husband can decrease the dosage of some of his meds, and stop taking others all together!
My partner doesnt take anything at all (just the ox patches) and uses a profolactic regime for his UTI's, which seems to be working.
Keep strong, and hopefully things will get better/easier for you. If you feel unhappy about certain aspects of your husbands medication, then talk to your GP (hopefully he is as wonderful as ours) and discuss possible alternatives that may not have the same side affects!
Good luck and keep us informed!!
bec

[Izziwhizzi]

[/quote]
HE DRINKS A LOT BUT IT DOESNT HELP, HE TAKES DIAZEPAM, TIZANIDINE, BACLOFEN, AMITRIPTYLINE, OXYBUTYNIN, DANTROLENE AND LYRICA, IKEEP ASKING THE GP IF HE NEEDS TO TAKE SO MUCH EVERY DAY, THEY SAY HE NEDS IT, IN TOTAL HE TAKES 26 TABS A DAY xmoonstarx
[/quote]

Hi Moonstar!

I've read a couple of your posts and my heart goes out to you & realise that you are not having it easy at the moment and I don't want to be rude, hurtful or very negative here so my apologies if I do sound that way. I'm so pleased that you are questioning these tablets - well done!!

I'm no medicine expert with dosages but I do know that most of those tablets blow your mind and/or body - and he is not having one hes having LOADS. He must be in bits both mentally & physically with these drugs. For example, I thought Dantrolene (they used to call it or something similar to it Dantrium) was banned - it is expressly not given some US spinal units because its major side effect is that it causes serious liver damage. And what does it do to the body? well its a muscle relaxant, but not a specific one - say if your husband had a specific type of spasm. It relaxes (for that read weakens the strength) ALL muscle groups including the diaphragm making it harder to breathe. What good is that?

Just put those tablets names into google and have your own heart attack. Why is he on so many anti-depressants? I do realise that you think he had a brain injury with the surgery but he sure sounds spaced out on drugs to start with. Do they/you/he really think he spasms so much more than the norm? If so whats up? Does he really spasm any more than you should expect? Tetras do spasm, thats a fact, we all have to learn to live with it. I'm pleased I have it as its a great thing for circulation & muscle tone.

For example both of my legs go out straight forward if I'm pushed over bumpy ground/cobbles, my back arches and my pusher has to put me on my back wheels and push my body forwards and then re-adjust my legs. My legs spasm at night, my legs kick, its something I live with. But I refused to take any anti-spasm anti depression tablets the day I left the spinal unit as they made me feel like a zombie and I wanted to live in the real world. Infact we threw them all away so not really the best policy for weaning your body off them.

Hope that helps you/your hubby think about things & question stuff more than the doctors do.

L xx