Went to Emergency Room Yesterday

@Marie Mallory I am a bit confused. Is your tailbone just sore or is it swollen? Is it a reddish color? My friend that is borderline diabetic, has the problem and she is getting it better now by applying Voltaten gel to it and some of the surrounding area. It gives her enough relief that she can tolerate it.
 
I'm so glad you got the appointment, Marie. If you like this doctor, having a Primary Care doc that is familiar with your records will be a good thing. It's easier to get appointments as an established patient.

If you can get a bottle of Advil or generic ibupropen, that will probably help more than the Tylenol because NSAIDS are anti-inflammatory. I take a prescription NSAID (Naproxen) when I have a gout flare, and it will knock out the inflammation overnight for me. Also, some doctors recommend swapping Tylenol and Advil daily which may help prevent kidney damage. (Take Advil one day and Tylenol the next day.).

As far as your diabetes, do you take Metformin or any medicine to control your glucose? That may be an answer instead of going straight to insulin, but your doctor will need to make that decision. I have a friend who has an insulin pump and it automatically dispenses as required but she has to wear it all the time.
 
Coincidentally, yesterday, I went to the local ER for severe knee pain that had started all of a sudden on Wednesday. Xrays showed it to be good old fashioned arthritis, and was referred to an ortho doc, and was told to pick up 2 new meds this morning. One of the meds was a muscle relaxant, which I took about noon, and if I was any more relaxed I'd be at a Jimi Hendrix concert. It was only a 2 mg dose, that I'm supposed to take 3 times a day for 5 days. Anyhow, I've been sound asleep for the past couple of hours. Did I miss anything?
 
I agree with @Beth Gallagher , and she is saying everything much better than I could. It is quite possible that you can control your diabetes without having to take insulin, and many people are able to do it with other medications and low carb diet.
It is great that you are going to see the doctor, and that you can get an appointment that soon. I agree about not saying about pulled muscle back last fall, just tell them where you hurt and that you are diabetic, let the doctor do tests and see what is causing all of this.
 
Not real advice, but a suggestion @Marie Mallory. Ibuprofen, naproxen, and acetaminophen are bad if you take them for long periods of time, or if you drink a lot of alcohol, but you have to get severe pain under control as it can also affect your diabetes. For a couple days, I would try 2 naproxen (Aleve) if you have them AND 2 acetaminophen (Tylenol). Take the naproxen every 12 hours and the acetaminophen every 6 hours. Do this for TWO DAYS ONLY unless your doctor says otherwise. Ibuprofen (Advil or Motrin) can be substituted for the naproxen if you don't have it, but naproxen is slightly better at relieving inflammation. The drugs can do damage to the kidneys and liver, but you have to make life bearable and this might get you through a few days and maybe break the pain cycle. Prescription strength naproxen is 500 mg as @Beth Gallagher said, but the OTC naproxen is 200 mg, so taking 2 is still below the prescription strength. Do not increase the Tylenol. acetaminophen unless told to do so by your doc. Drink lots of water, and sometimes an Epsom Salts bath will help.

You mention barbiturates, but they are seldom prescribed these days. Opiates are better at reliving pain, but are addictive as well, so never take them for long periods. There are muscle relaxants and there are MUSCLE RELAXANTS. They are no equivalents OTC that I recall. Some are very strong and some are mild.

I certainly hope you find relief. Again, as has been said above, don't talk about pulled muscles as you can't be sure that the problem lies there. You don't want to send an inadequately-trained practitioner down the wrong path. This sounds like something more than a pulled muscle.
 
Yall really are helpful just being here and I really appreciate it.
I can't sit forward long to reply until I take another does of Tylenol till I can get some of the other OTCs . I wasn't going to fill them til I read reply.
Jake just left for drug store to get the muscle relaxers.I called and they are open so just in time.
:love:
 
Krystal Shay said:
Can you switch your aspirin or Tylenol to Aleve, Advil ,or ibuprofen for a while. Sometimes one will work better than the other.

I'm just guessing but it sounds like you have a very angry pulled muscle that has become a painful muscle knot. If you can afford it, maybe see a massage therapist that can perform a myofascial massage. That is what gave me some relief and help me on my way to recovery. Maybe your insurance will pay for the massage because massages can be expensive.:(
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Krystal, Jake vis on the way to drug store which closes in a few minutes, so I'll tell him to pick me up some of those too. Thank you.
 
Don Alaska said:
Not real advice, but a suggestion @Marie Mallory. Ibuprofen, naproxen, and acetaminophen are bad if you take them for long periods of time, or if you drink a lot of alcohol, but you have to get severe pain under control as it can also affect your diabetes. For a couple days, I would try 2 naproxen (Aleve) if you have them AND 2 acetaminophen (Tylenol). Take the naproxen every 12 hours and the acetaminophen every 6 hours. Do this for TWO DAYS ONLY unless your doctor says otherwise. Ibuprofen (Advil or Motrin) can be substituted for the naproxen if you don't have it, but naproxen is slightly better at relieving inflammation. The drugs can do damage to the kidneys and liver, but you have to make life bearable and this might get you through a few days and maybe break the pain cycle. Prescription strength naproxen is 500 mg as @Beth Gallagher said, but the OTC naproxen is 200 mg, so taking 2 is still below the prescription strength. Do not increase the Tylenol. acetaminophen unless told to do so by your doc. Drink lots of water, and sometimes an Epsom Salts bath will help.

You mention barbiturates, but they are seldom prescribed these days. Opiates are better at reliving pain, but are addictive as well, so never take them for long periods. There are muscle relaxants and there are MUSCLE RELAXANTS. They are no equivalents OTC that I recall. Some are very strong and some are mild.

I certainly hope you find relief. Again, as has been said above, don't talk about pulled muscles as you can't be sure that the problem lies there. You don't want to send an inadequately-trained practitioner down the wrong path. This sounds like something more than a pulled muscle.
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Just got back with both Alive and Motrin. Thanks, will take them tonight, maybe I'll sleep.
 
Don Alaska said:
Don't take both together. You can take either with Tylenol though. Never take two NSAIDs together, but you can take them with acetaminophen/ Tylenol. Never exceed the prescription strength and take the OTC strength (what is on the bottle) if you have questions.
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Don, I think I'll just take the Tylenol again tonight, since I already took it this morning.
Tomorrow start on the Aleve or Motrin.
 
Hoot Crawford said:
Coincidentally, yesterday, I went to the local ER for severe knee pain that had started all of a sudden on Wednesday. Xrays showed it to be good old fashioned arthritis, and was referred to an ortho doc, and was told to pick up 2 new meds this morning. One of the meds was a muscle relaxant, which I took about noon, and if I was any more relaxed I'd be at a Jimi Hendrix concert. It was only a 2 mg dose, that I'm supposed to take 3 times a day for 5 days. Anyhow, I've been sound asleep for the past couple of hours. Did I miss anything?
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have taken that.. absolutely useless for me. Glad it works for you
 
I stand by the statement I made before, "SOC has the best medical experts on the internet." :ROFLMAO:

For those that don't know, Voltaren is a NSAID. It is more effective than an oral NSAID, because you can target the area where the pain is. It is absorbed by the skin and goes direct to the inflamed area. If any are interested, it is diclofenac sodium which is NSAID and much more effective because it effects the area treated first, before it gets diluted in the blood stream. The other thing is, it doesn't effect your stomach, unless applied in super large quantities.

How much ibuprofen and acetaminophen can one over 60 take without digestive system and/or liver damage? The answer is a lot less than a young person. The problem arises because older folks have more pain and it takes more of these two pain relivers, to be comfortable than it did when younger.

Just my opinion, from personal experience, but with a tailbone inflammation, one can't take enough of the recommended cocktail of ibuprofen and acetaminophen to address the pain in the a s s. A direct application of diclofenac sodium gel, will give the maximum relief possible without causing problems to the digestive system. A topical application addressing the area effected, can be applied heavier and more results will be experienced. Usually results are within 30 minutes.

Just be careful to not get any on the rectum! I was hoping I didn't have to be so direct, but I know now some of y'all weren't getting what I was saying by my sugar coating for those of a sensitive nature.
 
Hoot Crawford said:
Coincidentally, yesterday, I went to the local ER for severe knee pain that had started all of a sudden on Wednesday. Xrays showed it to be good old fashioned arthritis, and was referred to an ortho doc, and was told to pick up 2 new meds this morning. One of the meds was a muscle relaxant, which I took about noon, and if I was any more relaxed I'd be at a Jimi Hendrix concert. It was only a 2 mg dose, that I'm supposed to take 3 times a day for 5 days. Anyhow, I've been sound asleep for the past couple of hours. Did I miss anything?
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Hey Hoot! For your knee, get Voltaten gel and apply it directly to the knee where it hurts. Forget the oral stuff, take the fight directly to the source and enjoy life.

I am granting myself permission to make an analogy.

Comparing oral pain relievers to topical for specific pain, is like comparing spraying an entire lawn with a diluted weed killer, instead of directing the spray to the offending weed in a concentrated manner. When energy is focused and funneled down, it is more powerful than if it is spread out. Oral meds must go through a lengthy process before getting into the blood stream. A heavy dose becomes diluted by the time it hits the area of pain. With topical, the heavy dose hits the effected area first, then becomes diluted in the blood stream, thus less side effects and more pain relief.
 
The diagnosis for tailbone pain is coccydynia. It is very common in post menopause women.

Causes in older post menopause women.

Loss of estrogen
Bone loss
Weight loss
After cancer
After surgery
Sitting to long
Arthritis
Chipped tailbone from a fall
Unknown
Some of the above
None of the above

If it persist, more than a few days, getting an X-Ray is a good idea to rule out bone loss and arthritis. I agree that getting to a doctor for X-Rays, blood test, and physical exam. is a good idea, just don't expect miracles. 30% of the time, doctors have no idea why it happens and with older women as discussed above, they simply cite all the maladies old women face, as a revelation and catch all diagnosis.

In the mean time, Voltatren to the boney patoot and good luck. ;)
 
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Faye Fox said:
Hey Hoot! For your knee, get Voltaten gel and apply it directly to the knee where it hurts. Forget the oral stuff, take the fight directly to the source and enjoy life.

I am granting myself permission to make an analogy.

Comparing oral pain relievers to topical for specific pain, is like comparing spraying an entire lawn with a diluted weed killer, instead of directing the spray to the offending weed in a concentrated manner. When energy is focused and funneled down, it is more powerful than if it is spread out. Oral meds must go through a lengthy process before getting into the blood stream. A heavy dose becomes diluted by the time it hits the area of pain. With topical, the heavy dose hits the effected area first, then becomes diluted in the blood stream, thus less side effects and more pain relief.
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Thanks for the suggestion, but different strokes, I guess. Voltaren doesn't do much for me. I also have arthritis in my feet, so I have Voltaren available, but I can't tell the difference. My friend does use it on her hands, and it seems to help her with that.
 
Mary Stetler said:
At this point you need a diagnosis, Don't you think? Not only symptom relief or it will keep coming back?
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Exactly right, Mary. Many times pain is "referred" and hard to pinpoint where it's actually coming from. This is more common with nerve pain.

Since Marie had a pulled muscle that could be significant or just coincidental. This is why I recommended not mentioning the pulled muscle to the doctor, since he might then focus on that and miss the actual problem that is causing the pain.
 
Hoot Crawford said:
Coincidentally, yesterday, I went to the local ER for severe knee pain that had started all of a sudden on Wednesday. Xrays showed it to be good old fashioned arthritis, and was referred to an ortho doc, and was told to pick up 2 new meds this morning. One of the meds was a muscle relaxant, which I took about noon, and if I was any more relaxed I'd be at a Jimi Hendrix concert. It was only a 2 mg dose, that I'm supposed to take 3 times a day for 5 days. Anyhow, I've been sound asleep for the past couple of hours. Did I miss anything?
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The only thing you missed are a couple of hours:)
 
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