Pain Meds and beer

[Jake]

I been having a lot of neck, shoulder and arm pain and been taking Darvocit (650mg) during the day (1) and Vicodin(500mg) at night. (2 or 3). Ibuprofen (600mg) 3x a day with my meals. I go have a MRI done Friday. Would it harm me to drink just one beer?

[oshea3333]

yes it could and if you are taking 3 regular vicodin at a time you are taking to much tylenol and will screw up your liver. you can only take 1g at a time and 3 vic's is 1 1/2 grams

[Jake]

I'm sorry I was not clear, I take 2 or 3 in a night of the vicodin Usually one at 9:00PM another at 12:00 midnight, and another around 3:00 AM . I usually take 1 Darvocet at 10 am.

[HogieWan]

it probably wouldn't harm you to have one every 3-4 nights. However, why risk your health for a beer - especially if it could damage your liver and make you give up beer for the rest of your life?

[newportstorm]

Beer will always be there. Your health won't. Take care of whatever it is that's ailing you and get medical advice, including mixing beer and pain meds, from your Dr.

I got a case of gout over the holiday and haven't had a beer in a week. Do I want one? Hell yes. Am I going to drink, knowing that yeast in beer can block the removal of uric acid from my body? Nope. Got 2 more days on Colchicine. Then I'll ease back into the beer scene.

It's not worth it.

Cheers!

[HogieWan]

nice avatar, newport.

[Seymour]

Actually, alcohol and NSAIDs are a bad mix as well. Ibuprofen is a little hard on your kidneys, and mixed with alcohol that's a double whammy. I'm with the rest of the gang: hold off on the hooch 'til you're better. Hope you have a speedy recovery.

[HogieWan]

from what I've read on NSAIDs, they are only a problem if you have more than 21 units per week for a man and 14 for a woman (ie, 3 beers a night for guys 2 for gals).

[chazwicke]

I've had medical problems for the past 9 months and they appear to be finally coming to an end. But I stayed off the booze on and off as dictated by my meds or doctor. Better to wait it out. You only have your health!

[Jake]

Thanks for the advice. Basically I have stop drinking. When I did have a beer or two it been on the weekend when I have not taken any vicodin or darocit. I will just stop regardless till I'm off them completely. Hopefull by Christmas because I have some Chimay Grande Reserve in reserve for me.

[Mill Rat]

Get medical advice from you medic, not a bunch of beer nuts on a web site. "Yeah judge, my doc told me to not drink when on these meds, but a bunch of guys on realbeer.com said it'd be OK, so I did. I got all sorts of f**ked up after a few pills and a few beers, so, um, yeah, I'm suing the doc for malpractice."

[brewmonkey]

First I would remind you that you should really be seeking this information from a medical professional such as a doctor, nurse or pharmacist.

That said, it is common knowledge as well it is generally printed right on the side of a prescription bottle of pain meds that you should NOT be taking any pain medications with any type of alcohol. Alcohol will most certainly intensify the effects of your pain meds and cause problems such as respiratory distress. I would HIGHLY advise that you just hold tight until you no longer need the pain meds at which time you can resume drinking your home brew.

Hopefully the MRI will be good to go and there will be nothing wrong.

[DecoJuicer]

Ok, everybody has warned him over and over, but to play devil's advocate...and to be clear, I am not recommending this...after my vasectomy, I found that 2 vicodins and 2 beers every 4-6 hours was a magical combination.

Jake, don't mix meds and alcohol.

[tpetty]

Well, I'm a doctor, so guess I should chime in here.

Alcohol and narcotics are both respiratory depressants, and too much certainly exacerbates this. Realistically however, a beer now and then when taking correct dose of pain pills is unlikely to cause problems.

Also, in regards to the tylenol issue. The general recommendation is no more than 4 grams a day. Again, that is a generalization and a healthy person could use a little more than that for a short time span without probable concern, while someone with underlying liver disease needs to avoid it altogether. Vicodin comes in different doses/ amounts of tylenol.

[Jake]

I want to make something clear. I was not washing this med down with beer. If I did drink a beer or two (the most was 3), it was 8 hours after taking Dar or Vic and 8 hours before I took another one. I have now decided not to even to that.

[Seymour]

Ah, we all know that, Jake. But you and I have been around here about the same amount of time; you know good and well threads seem to immediately take on a life of their own, and sometimes last WAAY longer than necessary, WAAY past when the point was made;) .

[zoom6zoom]

As others have said, err on the side of caution. If a major beer nut like Chaz can go on the wagon for months, the rest of us surely can!

too much certainly exacerbates this.

Yeah, but just don't exacerbate in public, OK?

[cold_nose]

I am a pharmacist so this would be my advice. Darvocet contains 650mg of acetaminophen and Vicoden contains 500mg of acetaminophen. The good doctor was correct in saying that over 4gm of acetaminophen is not a good idea. There is a reported case in Facts and Comparison's (the North American pharmacy bible) of a one time dose of 3.8gm of acetaminophen causing liver damage, not something to take lightly considering alcohol is processed through the liver. If you are having problems then see a doctor. If the doctor attempts to treat you with pain meds and can give you no other advice find another doctor. Ask you local pharmacist. I am sure that he or she would be willing to lead you in the right direction.