Health - Side effect tips & tricks

[olduncle]

Swim's been a member less than a week, and has already stepped on Little Uncle twice. Unintentional, to be sure, but firm heel-to-head stepping events nonetheless.

First, swim'd like to apologize. No offense, trolling, or heat seeking was intended, and none of the subjects broached will be discussed again. Swim was attempting to create an interesting discussion about a subject to which serious and reasoned debate appeared inevitable, and swim thought he could help others avoid receiving or causing harm via his experiences in the wonderful world of opium and all its children. Swim will attempt again:

All opiates and opioids share a set of side effects. Individual users will experience none or some or all of them to varying degrees based on a large number of factors. Those who choose to, or are forced as the result of medical situation to consume these substances regularly require methods to counteract the side effects.

The 'major' side effects (respiratory depression, shock, cardiac arrest, etc.) aren't the type of thing one can swim with. Further, some substances have very specific side effects not shared by the others (presumably mainly the result of polysorbate 80, various dyes, etc.). It's the 'minor' and general ones swim'd like to see addressed. Perhaps the result would be a single handy-dandy thread that contains a spate of experience-based methods to counteract the things about these substances that swiwe don't like. Please chime in with swiyour tips and tricks for dealing with any of the minor nuisances or maddeningly aggravating things that result from the consumption of these substances. Swiuncle will start, and will revisit whenever a tip is recalled. Habitual use for many years makes some of these things just as habitual and bereft of conscious thought. To commence:

The thing that bothers swime most is constipation. Anything from codeine to vitamin H will cause it in swimy case, and days of discomfort that end in particularly painful movement are inevitable. Swiuncle's tried 'em all - prune juice, Fleet enemas in both the water and oil configurations, OTC and powerful prescription laxatives, etc. The laxatives work but are not for consistent use. The enemas are inconvenient and frankly disgusting, but they also work. If 4 days go by and swiuncle has not had a bowel movement, swihe may resort to these things.

However, a procedure has been developed over the years that almost always works, no matter how much dope has been consumed and no matter what's been eaten. Pretty simple, safe, effective, reasonably convenient, non-foul, and inexpensive. A two-part solution: Swiuncle makes sure to drink at least half a gallon of water and 4-6 tablespoons of pure psyllium husks every day. The husks can be purchased at any health food store, swiyou should get a big giant container. It will probably cost twenty USD or less and last a few months. The water is critically important - the husks will not work without it.

Swiuncle saves half gallon milk jugs, washes them out, and fills one with pure water first thing in the AM. Swihe carries it with swihim throughout the day and makes sure it's all gone before bed. The husks are admittedly difficult to get down, swim simply stirs them all into one glass early in the day and swallows the whole mess. It would be better to use half the amount twice a day, a quarter four times a day, etc, but swim has places to be and things to do and needs to check this item off the daily list bright and early.

Anyone considering following this should read all the contraindications and dosing data on a trusted medical web site, of course. Swiy's with ulcers, for example, cannot do such things. Swiuncle uses about 10 times the amount of psyllium recommended, and arrived at the dose via self-experimentation. Swiothers should probably also ramp up slowly from the lowest recommended amount until the desired effect is achieved. It's amazing how a satisfying bowel movement brightens up one's day.

Further installment possibilities: difficult urination. The first time this happened, swim was sure swihe had prostate cancer and was freaked out big time. No, swim is not fixated on the rest room...