Wow, don't ever do this

[SkyHog]

So I've had a cough for the last week or so, its most likely allergies, since I get a bunch of other symptoms throughout the day as well.

Last night, I went to Walgreens and asked the guy there if he had anything to just treat the cough, I am not big on medicating allergies usually. He suggests Delsym.

So I get home, take my normal dose of the medicine. I go watch some TV for a bit, and my cough is still there. So I go back and take a bit more about an hour later, and go back to the TV.

I finally got frustrated, and just took a shot glass and filled it, figuring it would either fix my cough or make me pass out, either way was acceptable, since the cough was killing me.

Oh...that's not what happened, that's not what happened at all, I sat on the couch, wide awake for the next 5 hours, seeing stuff I never imagined possible. I was hallucinating, I was hearing stuff, and everything seemed to be in some kind of weird dream world. It was so bizarre I can't really describe it....it was certainly not anything I'd ever felt before, that's for sure.

edit: hmm, I hit post too soon, there's more to the story.

So today, I wake up, feeling fine (cough is still there, dammit), and I can't believe what the hell happened last night. So I did some research....Dextromethorphan hydrobromide (or in this case, dextromethrophan polistirex) is a freaking psychedelic drug. How the hell did this make it into cough syrup?

That was an insane night....that's for damn sure.

 

[dmccormack]

So I've had a cough for the last week or so, its most likely allergies, since I get a bunch of other symptoms throughout the day as well.

Last night, I went to Walgreens and asked the guy there if he had anything to just treat the cough, I am not big on medicating allergies usually. He suggests Delsym.

So I get home, take my normal dose of the medicine. I go watch some TV for a bit, and my cough is still there. So I go back and take a bit more about an hour later, and go back to the TV.

I finally got frustrated, and just took a shot glass and filled it, figuring it would either fix my cough or make me pass out, either way was acceptable, since the cough was killing me.

Oh...that's not what happened, that's not what happened at all, I sat on the couch, wide awake for the next 5 hours, seeing stuff I never imagined possible. I was hallucinating, I was hearing stuff, and everything seemed to be in some kind of weird dream world. It was so bizarre I can't really describe it....it was certainly not anything I'd ever felt before, that's for sure.

And there were no instructions on dosage in this medication packaging...?

Several hundreds die each year from over-medicating on OTC drugs.

 

[ScottM]

I sat on the couch, wide awake for the next 5 hours, seeing stuff I never imagined possible. I was hallucinating, I was hearing stuff, and everything seemed to be in some kind of weird dream world. It was so bizarre I can't really describe it....it was certainly not anything I'd ever felt before, that's for sure.

I don't understand, why again should I NOT do this? Sounds fun!

 

[KennyFlys]

There are a lot of OTC drugs that given little increase in the dosage, they are then considered a prescription drug. That never made a lot of sense to me.

 

[ScottM]

dextromethrophan polistirex) is a freaking psychedelic drug. How the hell did this make it into cough syrup?

You really want to start a discussion on how testing at the FDA and regulation of the pharmaceutical industry has been gutted for the past 8 years, along with attemps to reduce product liability?

You really want that conversation outside of the spin zone?

 

[wsuffa]

So I've had a cough for the last week or so, its most likely allergies, since I get a bunch of other symptoms throughout the day as well.

Just a cough? Or chills/fever/et al?

Last time I had something like that, feeling rundown and having a fever it ended up being pneumonia. No OTC drugs will fix that.

If you suspect pneumonia, go get the shot in your rear and the antibiotics posthaste

 

[SkyHog]

Just a cough? Or chills/fever/et al?

Last time I had something like that, feeling rundown and having a fever it ended up being pneumonia. No OTC drugs will fix that.

If you suspect pneumonia, go get the shot in your rear and the antibiotics posthaste

Nah, cough, and depending on the time of day, sniffles, sneezes, and eye watering.

 

[steingar]

What's the name of that stuff again? Sounds like really cheap entertainment. Never underestimate the value of recreational chemicals.

 

[ScottM]

What's the name of that stuff again? Sounds like really cheap entertainment. Never underestimate the value of recreational chemicals.

Cherry Chlorseptic and Coke make for a good time too!

 

[SkyHog]

And there were no instructions on dosage in this medication packaging...?

Several hundreds die each year from over-medicating on OTC drugs.

I'm fat. I usually take more OTC than the dosage suggests, as its the only way it works on me.

 

[Skip Miller]

Oh...that's not what happened, that's not what happened at all, I sat on the couch, wide awake for the next 5 hours, seeing stuff I never imagined possible. I was hallucinating, I was hearing stuff, and everything seemed to be in some kind of weird dream world. It was so bizarre I can't really describe it....it was certainly not anything I'd ever felt before, that's for sure.

A more likely reason for feeling like this.... your TV was set to the Britney Spears/Paris Hilton marathon telecast. You now may want to check out the special down at the Lobotomy Clinic....

-Skip

 

[mikea]

A more likely reason for feeling like this.... your TV was set to the Britney Spears/Paris Hilton marathon telecast. You now may want to check out the special down at the Lobotomy Clinic....

-Skip

Lewis Black: "I STUCK A FORK IN MY EYE!"

 

[infotango]

DXM. You know the rap song, "sipping on some syzurp"...?

I had a friend who did that on purpose in college. Just watching him flip out for the next 6 hours made for probably the most unusual experience of my whole life.
"We are totally underwater man, like fish, dude."

 

[bbchien]

I'm fat. I usually take more OTC than the dosage suggests, as its the only way it works on me.

Well, it worked on you. Dextromethorphan is a water soluble narcotic, so it doesnt' dissolve in your bulk, but stays in the circulation. An overdose is not distributed into your bulk, but ends up staying in the circulation and delivered to your brain.

If you self administer, not according to directions, you get what you get. It's like if you don't have the maintenence manual and you attempt repair anyway, you get what you get.

Be careful, nick!

 

[SkyHog]

Well, it worked on you. Dextromethorphan is a water soluble narcotic, so it doesnt' dissolve in your bulk, but stays in the circulation. An overdose is not distributed into your bulk, but ends up staying in the circulation and delivered to your brain.

If you self administer, not according to directions, you get what you get. It's like if you don't have the maintenence manual and you attempt repair anyway, you get what you get.

Be careful, nick!

You'd know this Bruce - is there some way to get a warning on the label or something? Doing research today led to a BUNCH of information about it being abused habitually by teenagers. It seems like this is something parents should know before having this sitting around the house....

Moreover, the cough syrup I took, "Delsym" was sitting out on the shelf, not with the other stuff that kids steal a lot behind the counter. I don't even have kids, but this concerns me, a lot.

There's not even the standard warning about "Taking this product in a manner inconsistent with its labeling is illegal and may cause..." etc. I tell you, had I known I'd have gone into a psychedelic spin last night, I would have probably not medicated at all....or just made a hot toddy and called it a night.

 

[timwinters]

It was so bizarre I can't really describe it....it was certainly not anything I'd ever felt before, that's for sure.

Hmmmm...weren't around for the '60's and '70's were you?!?!?!?!









Take a trip and never leave the farm.

 

[mikea]

I gotta remember this.

I've taken cold tablets and cough syrup once in a while AS DIRECTED...and there have been times when I swore I heard the phone or the doorbell or a noise. I always thought it was wishful thinking or whatever. Now I can try correlating that to the medicine.

 

[alaskaflyer]

YDoing research today led to a BUNCH of information about it being abused habitually by teenagers.

Well, I have to admit that when first reading the title of the thread, I was thinking that is the best way to ensure someone of a certain age would do it...

Wow, don't ever do this

 

[gismo]

You'd know this Bruce - is there some way to get a warning on the label or something? Doing research today led to a BUNCH of information about it being abused habitually by teenagers. It seems like this is something parents should know before having this sitting around the house....

Moreover, the cough syrup I took, "Delsym" was sitting out on the shelf, not with the other stuff that kids steal a lot behind the counter. I don't even have kids, but this concerns me, a lot.

There's not even the standard warning about "Taking this product in a manner inconsistent with its labeling is illegal and may cause..." etc. I tell you, had I known I'd have gone into a psychedelic spin last night, I would have probably not medicated at all....or just made a hot toddy and called it a night.

A good pharmacist should know this stuff. You can probably learn a fair amount online.

http://tinyurl.com/4urzuk

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dextromethorphan

 

[mikea]

A good pharmacist should know this stuff. You can probably learn a fair amount online.

http://tinyurl.com/4urzuk

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dextromethorphan

Side-effects of dextromethorphan use can include:

* body rash/itching
* nausea
* drowsiness
* dizziness
* excitation
* vomiting
* blurred vision
* dilated pupils
* sweating
* fever
* hypertension
* shallow respiration
* diarrhea
* urinary retention

Can also cause increases in:

* heart rate
* blood pressure
* body temperature

Hey, Nick, edit it to add hallucinations and hearing voices.

 

[bbchien]

Nick, are you suggesting adding language like, "Disregarding the printed instructions with this product may lead to loss of control, seizures, hallucinations, epilepsy, respiratory arrest and brain swelling?", or "FOLLOW THE DIRECTIONS unless you are a Physician or Pharmacist or otherwise understand what you're doing!"

Where does the nanny state stop......

Clinical pharmacology 101, for Humanists. "Satisfies the SCIENCE distribution requirement for humanists":

It all has to do with the water to fat partition coefficient of the active ingredient, these are things that though even organic chemists understand, they would likely not understand the medical implications of an aqueous compartment overload. These meds are based on ideal body weight, because the vascular compartment is about 0.07 of the whole weight, and consistently so.

So, the directions are actually very carefully written, and "I'm a big guy" does not constitute an appropriate wiaver to the "following of instructions". There are actually some medications where the instructions direct the parent to weight the child and deliver dosage essentially by weight (and the substances are generally more fat soluble). Since most 7th grade educated parents in the USA don't even own a scale, let alone a thermometer, the ranges are given by age, based on statistical tables from the Nactional Center for Health Statistics.

All this is a longwinded way of saying, "amateurs are dangerous".

You can install the gizmo any way you want, in a certificated aircraft. You just can't return it to service unless its IAW published Valid data, and that is determined by someone who knows what the data mean.

GLAD YOU'RE BETTER.

 

[mikea]

Nick, are you suggesting adding language like, "Disregarding the printed instructions with this product may lead to loss of control, seizures, hallucinations, epilepsy, respiratory arrest and brain swelling?", or "FOLLOW THE DIRECTIONS unless you are a Physician or Pharmacist or otherwise understand what you're doing!"

Where does the nanny state stop......

Bruce, one reason the makers SHOULDN'T put that on the label is it will verify to the under-20 maroons that the stuff works for a high.

"Oh, Wow! It says so right on the box! No s*!"

 

[KennyFlys]

Whoever said ADM applies only to preflight and flight?

The FAA is not at all unfamiliar with this drug.

1994-1995: http://www.faa.gov/library/reports/medical/oamtechreports/2000s/media/00_21.pdf

Accidents 2000-2006: http://www.faa.gov/library/reports/medical/oamtechreports/2000s/media/200729.pdf

http://www.faa.gov/pilots/safety/pilotsafetybrochures/media/Meds_flying_web.pdf

 

[Chip Sylverne]

Nyquil does that to me even using the recommended dosage.

I call it Nytmare.

 

[etsisk]

cheap dates!

 

[astanley]

Well, it worked on you. Dextromethorphan is a water soluble narcotic, so it doesnt' dissolve in your bulk, but stays in the circulation. An overdose is not distributed into your bulk, but ends up staying in the circulation and delivered to your brain.

If you self administer, not according to directions, you get what you get. It's like if you don't have the maintenence manual and you attempt repair anyway, you get what you get.

Be careful, nick!

DXM has the purported, but not double-blind proven, nasty side effect (on heavy recreational abusers) of Olney's vacuoles. BAD.

There are lots of things that we can get OTC that can do pretty screwed up things to our bodies if we don't follow the dosing criteria. While the label criteria is pretty weak (Nick's point about dosing for fat guys like us is spot on, I do regularly double doses of various items), I still talk with my doctor yearly about any decisions like that I make.

Cheers,

-Andrew

 

[AuntPeggy]

I learned a long time ago to NEVER take an OTC sleeping pill. Even when following the directions, stuff happens.

 

[SCCutler]

I learned a long time ago to NEVER take an OTC sleeping pill. Even when following the directions, stuff happens.

...and to this day, we can buy photographic proof on the Internet?

 

[mikea]

 

[SkyHog]

Nick, are you suggesting adding language like, "Disregarding the printed instructions with this product may lead to loss of control, seizures, hallucinations, epilepsy, respiratory arrest and brain swelling?", or "FOLLOW THE DIRECTIONS unless you are a Physician or Pharmacist or otherwise understand what you're doing!"

Where does the nanny state stop......

Clinical pharmacology 101, for Humanists. "Satisfies the SCIENCE distribution requirement for humanists":

It all has to do with the water to fat partition coefficient of the active ingredient, these are things that though even organic chemists understand, they would likely not understand the medical implications of an aqueous compartment overload. These meds are based on ideal body weight, because the vascular compartment is about 0.07 of the whole weight, and consistently so.

So, the directions are actually very carefully written, and "I'm a big guy" does not constitute an appropriate wiaver to the "following of instructions". There are actually some medications where the instructions direct the parent to weight the child and deliver dosage essentially by weight (and the substances are generally more fat soluble). Since most 7th grade educated parents in the USA don't even own a scale, let alone a thermometer, the ranges are given by age, based on statistical tables from the Nactional Center for Health Statistics.

All this is a longwinded way of saying, "amateurs are dangerous".

You can install the gizmo any way you want, in a certificated aircraft. You just can't return it to service unless its IAW published Valid data, and that is determined by someone who knows what the data mean.

GLAD YOU'RE BETTER.

Touche.

 

[Lance F]

If we can use this thread to tell other related stories, here's one on me.
Many years ago (before doctors knew better, I guess), I got a prescription for Halcyon. I was making frequent trips to Europe, and the idea was to get some sleep on the overnight flight.
Well coming back to Chicago via DFW with Sue after a short vacation in Hawaii, I took one (with alcohol ). At some point in the night (it was an all night flight to DFW) I woke up to pee. Hmm, I said, I'm awake I must need another Halcyon, which I took.
Although I was conscious (walking, talking, all that stuff) in DFW, on the flight to ORD, on the drive home and for several hours thereafter, it was about 5 in the afternoon that I rejoined the real world.
I had been absolutely stoned that whole time and didn't know it. Sue thought I was acting a bit unusual but didn't realize what I'd done.
I believe that Halcyon is pretty much totally banned now. Good idea

 

[Ghery]

I learned a long time ago to NEVER take an OTC sleeping pill. Even when following the directions, stuff happens.

I've taken a sleeping pill once. In the ICU this summer after my pulmonary embolism. I won't take one again. I really didn't like what it did. Slept too well, didn't wake up when I should have and was darned near floating in the bed. . That's embarrassing.

 

[silver-eagle]

Side-effects of dextromethorphan use can include:

* body rash/itching
* nausea
* drowsiness
* dizziness
* excitation
* vomiting
* blurred vision
* dilated pupils
* sweating
* fever
* hypertension
* shallow respiration
* diarrhea
* urinary retention

Can also cause increases in:

* heart rate
* blood pressure
* body temperature

Sounds like me on a normal day!