Surgeon only gives Tylenol after surgery

[Anonymous]

RN here. Sometimes Tylenol is all you need. However, if this surgeon is adamantly against giving anything other than Tylenol, I would look around. I've found those doctors are the hardest to deal with when trying to advocate for patients who need better pain management.

That said, I'd also be wary of a surgeon who just freely prescribes narcotics too. The good in between is the one who talks about how they normally handle pain management (maybe with Tylenol) and then how they escalate it if you're still in pain. Or how they escalate it if you're having a certain level of pain in the recovery room before you go home (if it's same day surgery). Or ask about your history with pain management.

[Anonymous]

Can you also take ibuprofen? Combining tylenol and ibuprofen has similar pain relief to opioids. This is what the doctor recommended after I had surgery recently and I was fine.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I met with a surgeon today for a consult for significant and urgent surgery. There were a number of things I was unimpressed with but one was that they only give Tylenol. I feel like they would probably give more if a patient was in REALLY bad shape but her take was “some discomfort is normal after major surgery but it should be manageable with Tylenol.” That’s jacked up. We invented medication so that you don’t have to feel pain. Give a patient 3-5 days of pain meds. I’m meeting with other surgeons because this one seems heartless.

Just want to bold this as many posters don’t seem to have read this.

[Anonymous]

The Tylenol advocates should probably read

https://www.acsh.org/news/2023/08/22/tylenol-6-more-years-failure-17266

But the evidence is overwhelming that acetaminophen fails to provide adequate pain relief for any condition. Yet, hospitals will dispense the pills like candy and/or an expensive and useless IV form of the drug. As Dr. Moore opined, "Time to look, listen, and open up a new conversation."

[Anonymous]

I have trouble believing this is real, OP, it's so contrary to the precepts of modern medicine.

Pain medications are not just to relieve a patient's perception of pain!
They have an important role in decreasing inflammation around the incision site, reducing swelling and generally accelerating healing.

If the goal is for this doctor to avoid an opioid-related lawsuit, they're missing the forest for the trees.

Mind-boggling.

And I am someone who had major surgery and did not take opioids afterward! I was prescribed them. I did not need them. But the fact I had them did wonders for my peace of mind.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Don’t be a baby. Pain is temporary. Tylenol is sufficient.

Are you the maternity ward nurse that has been telling this to all the c-section moms?

Can only speak for myself, but I was appalled at how hard they pushed Oxy after my c-section, even after I told them Tylenol was all I wanted.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Don’t be a baby. Pain is temporary. Tylenol is sufficient.

Are you the maternity ward nurse that has been telling this to all the c-section moms?

Can only speak for myself, but I was appalled at how hard they pushed Oxy after my c-section, even after I told them Tylenol was all I wanted.

1. Because as PP said, pain meds don't just reduce your pain - they also reduce inflammation, etc. Not just steroids, but all non-steroids as well. If you don't want steroids, you should still take something.

2. Because different people have different body compositions, different surgical experiences, and different pain sensations!!!

3. It's horrific to shame some patients for feeling more pain than others. If a woman has endometriosis or ovarian cysts, for example, the lower abdominal area might be EXTREMELY SENSITIVE. I have both, and I need to be very careful about invasive exams or interventions in that area. But when I had thyroid surgery (neck), I didn't need steroid pain meds afterward.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think you're over reacting. Most surgeries people do just fine with Tylenol, and dont need the heavy duty Oxycontin or Vicoden that they used to prescribe like candy and people got addicted. Sounds to me like this surgeon has learned from the past and is being appropriate going foreword.

Wouldn't it depend on the surgery? A blanket rule is foolish since it has no nuance.

Actually, no, it doesn’t depend on the surgery, and that’s a gift. The surgeon is telling the patient that there are absolutely no circumstances in which he would prescribe serious pain meds. Find a new surgeon.

Huh what? That’s not what the OP said.

I’m sure it’s an unpopular opinion but i actually think the surgeon is right. My kids were sent home with oxycondone after having their wisdom teeth removed which they did not need. I prefer the more conservative approach to prescribing them only when need is shown. Addiction is a HUGE issue right now.

Did you keep the oxycodone in case you need it later?

Why do you want it?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Don’t be a baby. Pain is temporary. Tylenol is sufficient.

Are you the maternity ward nurse that has been telling this to all the c-section moms?

Can only speak for myself, but I was appalled at how hard they pushed Oxy after my c-section, even after I told them Tylenol was all I wanted.

My anesthesiologist didn't want to remove my epidural line because he claimed I had "no idea" how much pain I would be in after my last c-section when I said I told him to remove it. I knew I wouldn't want any meds through the line and it was irritating to keep in. It was not my first c-section, but my last one.

As if a women who has experienced this surgery multiple times would know less than a man who cannot have even have a c-section.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think you're over reacting. Most surgeries people do just fine with Tylenol, and dont need the heavy duty Oxycontin or Vicoden that they used to prescribe like candy and people got addicted. Sounds to me like this surgeon has learned from the past and is being appropriate going foreword.

Wouldn't it depend on the surgery? A blanket rule is foolish since it has no nuance.

Actually, no, it doesn’t depend on the surgery, and that’s a gift. The surgeon is telling the patient that there are absolutely no circumstances in which he would prescribe serious pain meds. Find a new surgeon.

Huh what? That’s not what the OP said.

I’m sure it’s an unpopular opinion but i actually think the surgeon is right. My kids were sent home with oxycondone after having their wisdom teeth removed which they did not need. I prefer the more conservative approach to prescribing them only when need is shown. Addiction is a HUGE issue right now.

Did you keep the oxycodone in case you need it later?

Why do you want it?

Apparently, you do. Keeping it around leads to experimentation.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Don’t be a baby. Pain is temporary. Tylenol is sufficient.

Are you the maternity ward nurse that has been telling this to all the c-section moms?

Can only speak for myself, but I was appalled at how hard they pushed Oxy after my c-section, even after I told them Tylenol was all I wanted.

My doctor didn’t push oxy, but all I needed was Tylenol as well

[Anonymous]

I just had both eyes operated on (cataracts) and only took acetamenophen (sp?). It was fine. You are merely another patient in a long line of patients this doctor sees every single day, OP. To you, this is major. To the doctor, you're their 8 a.m. Trust in the medical staff, they do this all day and know what they are doing. You will get a handout with instructions on what to do and phone numbers to call if the pain is greater than expected.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Reminds me of a professor I had in undergrad who on day 1 said "I don't give out As"

I hate fixed people like that. OP you are smart to shop around. I've had one serious surgery and one bone break. I got oxy for both, reasonable amount, took what I needed and didn't get hooked. But I needed it. A doctor who doesn't understand how these pain medicines work (beyond tylenol) are not worth their medical degree

+1 and this isn't how people get addicted, from a day or two of using those meds. I used them after my C section. It's long term pain and other issues.

I would be annoyed too OP. This does not seem like a patient centered approach.

Yes it is.

A doctor who prescribes these drugs responsibly bears no responsibility for a patient becoming addicted after 1-2 days of medication. Doctors shouldn’t be prevented from prescribing pain management drugs because some people get addicted. If a patient is addicted after 1-2 days, they can choose to obtain the pain management drugs illegally or choose to withdraw.

[Anonymous]

I took nothing but Tylenol and Advil after my second c-section. Found the narcotics too constipating and that was by far the worst part of my first (emergency) c-section. I was absolutely fine with just ibuprofen and acetaminophen after the second.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I took nothing but Tylenol and Advil after my second c-section. Found the narcotics too constipating and that was by far the worst part of my first (emergency) c-section. I was absolutely fine with just ibuprofen and acetaminophen after the second.

I needed the oxy with my c-section. The doctor didn't push it, but said it gets rid of the deep, underlying pain and the memory, while the ibu does its magic on the inflammation and nerve pain. The rn didn't want to give it to me and I had to remind her that the doctor went over using both with me. Like PP, the constipation concerns are enough to encourage most of us to only use it for the bare minimum until our bodies recover enough to take it from there. That was 10 years ago. Guess what! I'm not an addict!! What a revelation.