I generally stick with ibuprofen because of the anti-inflammatory aspect, since I’m lucky enough most of my pain is injuries.
I don’t like NSAIDs, of whatever variety, they always make me feel a little queasy, and don’t do much for the pain. That said, I do have a prescription NSAID for the arthritis in my hip and knees. I take that fewer times than once a week. Sometimes Tylenol works well for me, sometimes it doesn’t seem to have much effect.
Tylenol does nothing for me. I would ordinarily take ibuprofen, but I’m supposed to avoid all NSAIDs following back surgery w/fusion due to their interfering with bone healing. So I got nuthin’ right now.
When the doctor says “You can take Tylenol”, they might as well say “You can take Skittles.”
Are you my wife? This is exactly her routine.
I love that line. Bravo.
I very rarely take any pain meds. But about 3 weeks ago, I had a sinus infection that caused terrible pain in my left cheekbone. I took some antibiotics and prescription pain meds for it and it seemed to clear up. But for the last week, the pain in the cheekbone has returned. It only happens every other night when I lay down to go to sleep. I get up and take some liquid Tylenol and that immediately stops the pain and puts me sleep. It’s weird because I don’t think it should work that quickly. But maybe? Anyway, the situation is frustrating and if it keeps up, I’ll have to go back to the doctor to see what is going on.
Separate pills - I generally do 2 tylenol and 1 naproxen
This discussion is timely for me. I’ve had some intermittent L hip pain the past 4-5 years. An x-ray back then said “mild” arthritis. PT/exercises did nothing. I’ve got a pretty high pain threshold and prefer to avoid ongoing meds, so I’ve just been dealing with it.
Went to the ortho this week and the xrays were ugly. Bone on bone. Likely looking at eventual replacement surgery. 
And the R hip is not far behind. He says the only reason I’m not complaining about the R hip is because the L hip is so bad!
Not in a rush to ave surgery. Maybe in a few years, if it gets significantly worse. And, tho I doubt an injection will be of much use, I may try one next spring before next golf season.
I’ve still been golfing and biking, but have been experimenting with the various OTCs, taking them before I golf/bike. All of them seem to work pretty well with zero side effects. Not sure how to decide among them. Of course, I haven’t yet tried Skittles. 
Avoid the generic Skittles. They just aren’t as good as the name brand.
Go with prescription strength? Kept behind the counter? 
You do you. But …
The idea thst bone on bone isn’t cause for immediate joint replacement leaves me baffled. You can bung matters up until it’s inoperable.
I’ve known one hell of a lot of people w knee or hip replacements. I have never met anyone who said they wished they’d waited longer. The usual comment is the exact opposite: “I shoulda done this 3 years before I did!”
You’re maybe young enough to be worried that you might outlive the lifespan of an artificial joint, and not want to need to do it again near end of life. That makes sense if so.
Otherwise I’m curious what your thinking is if you’re willing to share.
My go-to for headaches is marijuana. I used to make fun of people who got medical marijuana licenses for their “headaches”, but actually it is quite effective.
Yeah - that’s basically the idea. I’m 65 next month. They said the replacement is expected to last 20 years - likely longer. I’m hoping to make it to/past 85.
I’m playing 18 holes tomorrow (riding), biking 30 miles Friday, walking 9 holes on Sunday, and biking another 25-30 on Monday. It really isn’t that bad. Pain tolerances differ and all, but this is more of an inconvenience than anything else. Pretty much the worst limitations are I now play upright bass seated on a stool, and I have to stand on a curb to swing my leg over my bike seat. And I lost quite a bit of distance on the course. Eventually I’ll get the replacement, but I’m not in a rush to have the tope of my femur sawed off just to regain a couple of strokes on the course!
They said whatever I’m doing is not going to make it worse and there is no reason to rush into it - although folk with less severe damage on x-rays have replacements all the time. The most important thing I can do is stay slim (unlike just about everyone else in their waiting room. 
) I’m not afraid of the surgery or anything. But I’m not going to minimize or rush into what is a kinda significant procedure.
I’ve got a good relationship with this ortho. He rebuilt my ankle 10 years ago and we see eye to eye. I’ll have hm do it when it gets worse.
An excellent reply full of excellent news. Thanks for sharing.
Tylenol for headaches, which work pretty well for me. Rarely, aspirin or prescription Meloxicam for body pain, for which Tylenol is ineffective. Never ibuprofen or Aleve, because that stuff eats holes in my stomach. If I start becoming arthritic in my old age, I hope they will have come up with an NSAID that’s easy on the stomach lining by then.
Meloxicam is an NSAID.
Aspirin for muscle aches. Ibuprofen for headaches. Acetaminophen does nothing for me whatsoever, for any kind of pain.
Pain for me is usually from inflammation, and Aleve didn’t do much for me, so ibuprofen it is.
It’s probably a weird kind of conditioning, but Ibuprofen makes me barf.