pain controll

I have a very high tolerance for pain med.s i am worried about being in pain after the surgery.iI have taken lortabs for about 4 yrs now, and that is like taking a tylenol. i am not very big so it worries me they will go off my size, i'm 5'4" and 106lbs. Does any one know how they determine how much pain med.s and what kind they give you?

You'll want to have a conversation with your doctor about this. Most times, you will wake up with a PCA pump (patient controlled analgesia) attached to your IV. It may have morphine in it, or other medication according to your doctor's wishes. When you hurt, you push the button; it has controls so that it won't exceed a safe dose for you no matter how many times you push the button.

I also have a very high toleration to medications (not just pain meds). I tend to prefer not to use narcotic pain meds after surgeries and request instead injections of Toradol, a potent anti-inflammatory, and then oral Toradol to take at home. For me, that works best. I still have pain, but it's not unbearable, and my head is clear (morphine for me does not address the pain but makes me fuzzy headed, and I don't like that feeling).

Talk with your doctor about your concerns, and you should be able to agree on a plan for dealing with the pain. For me, the pain was like very bad cramps the first day, and lessened from there. At no time was it unbearable.

Good luck with your surgery!

s,
-Linda