Gransnet forums

Health

Ibuprofen/Paracetamo l

(123 Posts)
Slimswim Fri 29-May-26 15:59:50

Recently returned from the USA where we were able to purchase a tub of 500 of each of these. I appreciate we live in a different country but over here we can only buy 2 x 16 tablets at a time. Don’t know if it’s true but we were told it’s to prevent people from taking an overdose. Surely if someone is that desperate they will just go around different stores to purchase more.

twaddle Mon 01-Jun-26 00:33:22

MT62

NotSpaghetti

MT62. I'm not sure buying parrots will have much effect re pain relief -
If you had to keep on buying them though it would definitely be a distraction!
grin

They seem to be helping me.
I didn’t find the co-codamol any good apart from sometimes chilling me out.
That’s when I realised I need to try to wean off the co-codamol.
The only drug that wipes the pain is the volterol suppository’s but it’s not good for stomach, heart & kidneys.
So come off those as well.

That's not surprising. You've been taking a high dose of codeine, which is what's been spacing you out. That's why I wondered if the GP could prescribe a different formulation with less codeine.

NotSpaghetti Mon 01-Jun-26 07:02:30

MT62 grin
I thought you were "playing along" so you and me both!

I hope your knee is fixed soon.
🤞

monami Mon 01-Jun-26 13:47:10

its true, but our law makers are a bit dense, they probably never thought of that, like most of their unpoliceable laws

MT62 Mon 01-Jun-26 14:00:19

NotSpaghetti

MT62 grin
I thought you were "playing along" so you and me both!

I hope your knee is fixed soon.
🤞

Thanks notspaghetti. Me too 👍🏻

MT62 Mon 01-Jun-26 14:01:02

monami

its true, but our law makers are a bit dense, they probably never thought of that, like most of their unpoliceable laws

Are you on the correct thread?

AuntieE Mon 01-Jun-26 14:01:23

In Denmark too, you need a prescription to buy more than 20 or 24,can't remember the exact amount, as I use aspirin.

Other countries in Europe have different rules.

The idea is to prevent suicide, or especially failed suicide in young people, who can do serious damage to their liver etc. if they do not suceed in committing suicide, or did not want to, only wanted to make their families aware they had problems.

Glo33 Mon 01-Jun-26 14:01:46

Paracetamol is metabolised in the liver and it is the damage/failure of this organ that causes death - not the kidneys.

Mariew1 Mon 01-Jun-26 14:04:03

I haven't read all the thread, but just came on here to say that if you are going to top yourself, please, please, please don't do it with paracetamol.
It's a few days before you get any symptoms, and by the time you do, you might have changed your mind, but its too late then, and then it's pain, and suffering for quite a few more days.

jomo Mon 01-Jun-26 14:35:54

Question I was given tramadol on prescription..I on beta blockers blood thinners BP tablets water tablets. Staten been told tramadol safe for pain..any one else take them ??

NotSpaghetti Mon 01-Jun-26 14:46:46

I think Tramadol is an opioid.

NotSpaghetti Mon 01-Jun-26 14:47:23

Sorry. I thought you were linking them to paracetamol.

missdeke Mon 01-Jun-26 14:54:08

I take paracetamol every day and I live in a village where I can't buy any, so 2 packs doesn't last me very long. Going into town by car, we have no buses, with the current cost of fuel is a no go so I will always get a larger supply by going to different shops.

Iam64 Mon 01-Jun-26 15:15:42

Paracetamol is so cheap none of us should get it on prescription.

Marjgran Mon 01-Jun-26 15:37:42

This rule has reduced overdoses and deaths. Self harm is often impulsive, having to source more pills slows down the action and lowers the impulse. The restrictions are there for a reason and they work. Both paracetamol and ibuprofen can be damaging in quite “minor” overdoses. It is daft to sell them in tubs of 200!

win Mon 01-Jun-26 15:52:25

twaddle

MT62

I can’t get paracetamol off the Gp as I am already getting co-codamol.
I am trying to reduce the dosage of co codamol by taking one of each.

You shouldn't need paracetamol if you're already taking co-codamol. Co-codamol is paracetamol and codeine, so you're already taking paracetamol. It would be dangerous to take paracetamol on top of co-codamol.

You did not read her message properly she very much needs paracetamol if she want to reduce her intake of co codamol which are much stronger, she is doing the right thing, which I was advised to do by my own GP as well.

win Mon 01-Jun-26 15:54:15

Iam64

Paracetamol is so cheap none of us should get it on prescription.

In your opinion!!!!

Liz13 Mon 01-Jun-26 16:07:34

Many people in America have guns ... quicker and more certain way to die than an overdose of paracetamol or ibuprofen ...

NotSpaghetti Mon 01-Jun-26 16:27:36

Iam64 I think if they aren't on prescription a care worker can't give them to someone who needs regular pain relief.
My mother-in-law had to have them prescribed in order to take them after a stroke when she needed them.

HobbyCat Mon 01-Jun-26 16:51:28

Who is getting paracetamol on prescription?! You can buy it for about 30p! Prescribing it costs the NHS a fortune!

SueDonim Mon 01-Jun-26 17:10:55

Paracetamol is regularly prescribed for palliative care, where the patient is taking up to eight a day. Do we really expect very poorly people or their carers to go trawling round shops to get their medication?

Iam64 Mon 01-Jun-26 17:45:35

I accept the points from SueDonim and NotSpaghetti about the need to avoid palliative care patients and care workers having to go shopping around to buy enough packs of paracetamol. Presumably they’re prescribed a months supply and in most cases won’t pay for prescriptions.
My point as made by HobbyCat is the high cost of prescriptions and low cost of this painkiller

poppysmum Mon 01-Jun-26 18:02:08

plenty of online sell paracetomel and one day we added up in our small town there were 9 places you could buy them and supermarkets you could buy every time you go in so you quite easily go in and out a few times especially self serve tills

twaddle Mon 01-Jun-26 18:11:35

Would paracetamol be adequate for palliative care patients? Somebody very close to me has terminal cancer and has 72 hour fentanyl patches (applied by a district nurse). Paracetamol and even co-dydramol don't even touch the pain she's in.

twaddle Mon 01-Jun-26 18:20:03

win

twaddle

MT62

I can’t get paracetamol off the Gp as I am already getting co-codamol.
I am trying to reduce the dosage of co codamol by taking one of each.

You shouldn't need paracetamol if you're already taking co-codamol. Co-codamol is paracetamol and codeine, so you're already taking paracetamol. It would be dangerous to take paracetamol on top of co-codamol.

You did not read her message properly she very much needs paracetamol if she want to reduce her intake of co codamol which are much stronger, she is doing the right thing, which I was advised to do by my own GP as well.

I did read the message! She wrote that she's taking one 30/500mg co-dydramol and one 500 paracetamol. That's exactly the same as taking two 15/500mg co-dydramol.

I'm a bit baffled how she's going to cut out the codeine element because she'll have to go from 30mg of codeine to nil. It would be better to have 15/500, then she could reduce further to 10/500 then 8/500 (the latter can be bought from a pharmacist if necessary). If she's taking 1x15/500 and the pain becomes unbearable, she could go back to 2x15/500.

win Mon 01-Jun-26 18:27:55

twaddle

win

twaddle

MT62

I can’t get paracetamol off the Gp as I am already getting co-codamol.
I am trying to reduce the dosage of co codamol by taking one of each.

You shouldn't need paracetamol if you're already taking co-codamol. Co-codamol is paracetamol and codeine, so you're already taking paracetamol. It would be dangerous to take paracetamol on top of co-codamol.

You did not read her message properly she very much needs paracetamol if she want to reduce her intake of co codamol which are much stronger, she is doing the right thing, which I was advised to do by my own GP as well.

I did read the message! She wrote that she's taking one 30/500mg co-dydramol and one 500 paracetamol. That's exactly the same as taking two 15/500mg co-dydramol.

I'm a bit baffled how she's going to cut out the codeine element because she'll have to go from 30mg of codeine to nil. It would be better to have 15/500, then she could reduce further to 10/500 then 8/500 (the latter can be bought from a pharmacist if necessary). If she's taking 1x15/500 and the pain becomes unbearable, she could go back to 2x15/500.

You have lost me and I think we should let her decide what she takes and doesn't take.