So I went to the drug store to find something to help calm my throbbing tooth. I’m in the middle of a root canal nightmare and I’ve already used all the vicodin the dentist gave me.
I heard Aleve was good. I’m not alergic to aspirin, so I can take anything. Though I’ll admit the gazillion warnings on the box of this stuff freaked me out a bit. I got the idea that some people get almost dead from taking it.
But my question has to do with one of the warning signs for an alergic reaction: “The feeling that the pill is stuck in your throat”
How is that a sign of an alergic reaction to Aleve???
I’ve taken 1,000,006 pills in my life, and I’ve had a few that went down slow, leaving a feeling that the pill was stuck in my throat, though I know it really wasn’t. Why do they list that as a sign of an alergic reaction???
Anyway, the epic of warnings on the package freaked me out, so I just bought some aspirin and a case of beer.
Some types of allergic reactions can cause the tissues in the throat to swell, which could lead to the sensation of the pill being “stuuck in the throat”. (The swelling can also result in severe difficulty breathing - it’s a dire medical emergency).
As for all the warnings - look at the ones on aspirin or Tylenol, they’re comparable, and equally frightening. Aleve is no more dangerous than those two products (arguably, it’s less dangerous than both). Those reactions are listed, not because they’re common (they aren’t), but because they are serious if they DO happen, and the consumer needs to be able to recognise signs of a serious drug reaction should they occur.
Untrue. Naproxen (Aleve) a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory pain killer, can be safely taken with acetaminophen (tylenol) as long as regular doses of both meds are adhered to. Likewise, it can be taken with prescription narcotic pain relievers, if they don’t contain non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs.
So if you’re taking Aleve, don’t supplement it with aspirin or motrin or ibuprofen, or orudis or other types of NSAIDS, without checking with your doc first.
Some types of allergic reactions can lead to a feeling that something is stuck in the throat, a something that can’t quite get swallowed. The can come from eating something you’re allergic to, inhaling it, getting stung by a bee (if you’re allergic), or any other exposure.
If you ever do have such a reaction to something, it can be a sign of a serious problem. Get thee to an emergency room immediately, should that happen.
My doc says the on-the-label dose of Aleve (naproxen sodium) is half the prescription dose. He says it’s safe to double it (two tabs every 12 hours) for most people. He said three tabs every 12 hrs. wouldn’t hurt me, but to come see him if I got to that high a dose. I’ve been taking 2 every 12 for several months now, with his approval. I buy the house (generic) brand.
I’ve taken Aleve many times without any unusual or adverse effects. But twice, I got what I can only describe as a chemical taste/feeling in my throat. It didn’t feel at all like there was anything stuck in my throat, although at first I assumed the pill must have stayed there for a period of time long enough to leave behind the residual taste/feeling. Drinking water didn’t immediately help get rid of this, but it usually went away after an hour or two.
This is a slight hijack, though it is about Alleve.
When I was in college I had an extreme reaction to two Vivarin I took. I followed the directions – took one tablet and then the other four hours later. After I took the second tablet I started getting a headache, so I took an Alleve.
After that, I felt sicker than I’ve ever felt in my life – my heart was racing, I was extremely dizzy, I couldn’t think straight, and I was so nauseated that I had to lie down on the floor and the smallest movement would make my stomach heave. This lasted for over 24 hours, and it was about 48 hours until I felt completely better.
I’ve always assumed that my problem was with the Vivarin alone (since I don’t usually ingest caffeine), but could it be that the Vivarin and Alleve had some sort of hideous interaction?
Hey, how dare you hijack a thread after I post? j/k
I’ve had the same effect with 2 NoDoz caffeine tablets (no Aleve necessary) and I never took ‘em again. Unfortunately, I was on top of a 20’ ladder having not slept the night before when the effects hit me all at once. Dizzy, light-headed, sweating bullets, couldn’t think straight or form complete sentences (like this one)…
Luckily, I made it down the ladder unharmed and swore I’d never touch caffeine in pill form again…
Sometime after that incident, a friend who worked at GNC (and apparently fancied himself a chemist) gave me some GelCaps he’d made from various “natural” ingredients before we started working out. (I know, I’m an idiot, but it was a long time ago and the word “natural” fooled me)
Well, it turns out among other stuff, they were loaded with guarana and ephedrine. Basicly, natural caffeine with an extra kick. The results on my constitution were worse than before when combined with the workout. Not only that, but I caught a wicked two-week cold very soon thereafter. My friend, who took more than I did and also worked out, was fine. So I have to conclude that some people just aren’t tolerant of concentrated doses of caffeine.
So after that, I swore off caffeine in pill form (natural or not) and friends who think that working at GNC qualifies them to medicate others.
While I’m very sorry you suffered like that, I’m so glad you posted about it! I always assumed I must have done something wrong (maybe I shouldn’t have taken the pills on an empty stomach?), since none of my friends had ever had that kind of experience. It wasn’t my fault, after all!
Now that I think more about it, it was NoDoz I took, too, not Vivarin.
Since that experience, I can’t take any medication with caffeine in it (like Exedrine Migraine) because it makes me extremely jittery. (Caffeinated soda does not, though it does make my heart beat irregularly.)
However (back to the OP), Aleve does not have caffeine, so it should be safe. Yay, Aleve!
What I want to know is why naproxin doesn’t do a thing for me. A few people at work have mentioned the same thing. I’ve tried it for various types of pains/injuries and it has never done anything. Couple of aspirin or advil always does the job though.
Are some people immune to the effects of naproxin?
I used to have really bad toothaches. Naproxin didn’t do a damn thing for them. Nothing at all. Might as well have taken sugar pills.
Aspirin made it feel a tiny bit better. Tylenol, a bit better than aspirin.
However, the only two things that really worked were Ibuprofen (Advil) and Ketaprofen (Orudus KT). Orudus seemed to work a bit better than the Advil, but last time I checked, there was no generic equivalent.
For me, Tylenol has never done a damned thing for any pain I’ve ever had. Aspirin works great, ibuprofin works good too. But Tylenol does nothing!
Yet I know ooddles of people who swear by the stuff.
