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i hate Coumadin


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now that i'm on topic number 11, i decided that this entry needs...no, deserves a special title that will truly portray the deep sentiments that i have for this topic

 

11. f*** acceptance...I HATE COUMADIN!!! i hate the little number that i have to chase around on a regular basis to make sure that i will not have another stroke (too little) or an intercranial bleed (too much). i hate the myriad of medications which speed up or slow down the various cytochrome P450s so that i have to go for more frequent blood tests when i am on them and when i stop them. i hate that i have to go off Coumadin and on injectible low-molecular weight heparin whenever i am faced with a surgical procedure, and then have to spend several weeks with more blood tests afterwards while my Coumadin becomes therapeutic.

i hate having much more severe injuries whenever i am in an accident because i bleed into my subcutaneous tissues, my joint capsules, and whatever else happens to be around at the moment.

 

i used to hate wearing a Medi-Alert bracelet which says 'stroke-takes coumadin' on the back until Medi-Alert came out with an inexpensive orange (one of my two fave colors) beaded bracelet and an inexpensive black and red dog tag. the bracelet goes with all of the other bracelets that i usually wear, and the dog tag is sufficiently trendy/punky/hip-hop for me to wear it. fashionista triumphs over mad dog-now i like wearing these pieces of jewelry.

 

so, today, i went for yet another INR. because i am taking Xenical, and because i was taking Biaxin and Flagyl for two days because of very severe gastritis/reflux,/stomach pain, i expected my INR to be high, and cut down on my Coumadin for the two days that i was taking antibiotics. well, my INR was 4.84-not too bad, since i'm supposed to ruin an INR between 3 and 4 (a thick head has to have thick blood, don't you think?)i'll cut down on my Coumadin by 1/2 mg (4-3 1/2 mg/day)and get it testing again next week)

 

on a more positive note, some of the most meaningful conversations that my dad and i have had over the last two years have been about Coumadin and elevated INRs. does that qualify for a silver lining?

 

i'm sure he would say that he hates Coumadin, too. the only difference is, he would curse in Rumanian.

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I used to take Coumadin myself and hated it as well. It was what ruined my arms as far as getting bloodwork was concerned. angry.gifangry.gif

 

I went for a visit to the Cleveland Clinic. The neurologist there wanted to do some kind of test but couldn't because I was on Coumadin. lol_2.gif At last!!! I had my excuse to get off that cursed medication. When my wife and I were coming back from Cleveland, I called my neurologist and told him I was coming off of Coumadin. He told me I was not very smart for doing that but I was within my rights to do that.

 

He told me to start taking an 81 mg aspirin a day which I have been doing since February 8.

 

Coumadin took away my energy.

 

That therapy worked until my next TIA which occurred 8/3/05.

 

I no longer go to that neurologist. Once I get with my new neurologist which is in early September, I will get back in order again. Only 2 1/2 weeks more to go. I hope I can make it that long.

 

Charles

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I hate it too, my inr is always F-up b/c I may have a drink one week, and take Aleave the next. I never know. One week, my levels were 8!!! I freaked the nurse out, and I guess I had been taking the wrong dose of meds.. Now I take 6 mg 5 days a week and 3 mg. 2 days a week. They want mine around 2.4.

I feel ya.

-Amy

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charles-

i don't have the option of being on 81 mg ASA, because i am on that as well. because of my autoimmune disease, antiphospholipid antibody syndrome, i have to be on both to 'thin' my blood. kinda sucks, doesn't it?

 

my rheumatologist, Robert Lahita, is a big macher (yiddish for VIP)on my disease and tells me that there are Phase 1 trials for drug(s) specific for my disease. one of the reasons that i'm staying with him as a patient, aside that he's a very good clinician and takes all of my calls promptly, even giving me his cellphone number (he wouldn't do that if i wasn't a doctor-see, Ma, i made the correct decision to not be a psychologist)is that as soon as Phase 3 trials start i will have the option of going off Coumadin and on whatever drug is being trialed.

 

i also have to mention that, as of 1996, i had the highest IgG anticardiolipin antibody measured in Beth Israel Medical Center's lab, 985+/-4 GPL (i can find the lab result if i'm sufficiently motivated-i have reams of my old medical records)a negative result is less than 10 GPL. i have been running a level of between less than 10 to 42 for the last two years. i'm sure that i still make the top ten in that particular hit parade

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