Lorazepam

So, in the last couple of posts I mentioned taking Lorazepam. This leads me to my Lorazepam story.

In 2009, after my liver resection, I was having a lot of abdominal pain. This was the first time I was prescribed Lorazepam (Ativan). I was told that it would help relieve muscle spasms and make the pain less severe.

So, I took the Lorazepam as a pain medication.

I was also having a lot of nausea later on when I was on some hard-core chemotherapy (the same as I'm on now, pretty much). The oncologist (my previous one) told me to take the Lorazepam for nausea control, and to alternate it with Zofran.

So, now I know that Lorazepam is used for muscle spasms and for nausea.

Because of the steroid medication that I was given with the chemotherapy infusions I was having trouble sleeping. The steroids would wind my brain up and wouldn't let it shut off. Therefore I was very exhausted. When I told the oncologist about this she said to take the Lorazepam to help me sleep.

So, now I'm told that Lorazepam is for muscle pains, nausea, and as a sleep aid.

I had to find out what this "magic pill" is actually for. It's primarily used for treating anxiety, which is not one of the reasons it has been prescribed to me.

Here's the "official" information about this drug: http://www.drugs.com/lorazepam.html
This website actually lists the other uses for the drug: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lorazepam

The one thing that I am aware of is that it can be habit forming so I take this magic drug only when needed.

First Round: Days 3 and 4

Yesterday (day three) didn't really exist for me. Luckily I had no nausea. Part of that may be because I took a Lorazepam as soon as I got up followed by an Emend. These two drugs help control nausea signals two different ways and I wanted to cover all bases. Also the Lorazepam makes me sleepy and I just wanted to stay calm and sleep the day away. It's better than being awake and uncomfortable. David did make sure I had food all day, so I stayed comfortable. I think I dozed off until it was time to go get the pump removed. When I came home I ate some soup and fell asleep in the living room, where I remained until it was dinner time. But at least I was comfortable.
 
 Last night at about 3:20 (I think) I woke up with my nose hurting - a side effect of the meds, and I got up to attend to it. While I was doing so, my stomach was queasy so I took another Lorazepam and easily went back to sleep. Because of the late-night dose I actually slept until about 9:00. I got up, checked on the hummingbird nest (she's sitting on eggs now) and had a bagel and some milk for breakfast. I eventually took a shower (all clean!!) and am now dressed. I had a nice big serving of chocolate milk for lunch.

A nice surprise showed up to brighten my day. My parents-in-law sent me some nice chocolates. David quickly claimed them, saying that since I was sick I couldn't eat any. But I'm pretty sure he will share when I trust my stomach to handle sweets. Maybe tomorrow.

I'm tired right now so I'm headed upstairs for a nap until dinnertime.

First Round: Days 1 and 2

Yesterday I started the FOLFIRI + Zaltrap drug regimen. David and I were at the infusion center for nearly 6 hours. When I left I was feeling queasy and exhausted. After I got home that didn't change. I tried to eat a few bites of Cream of Wheat thinking it might go down easily but just couldn't do it. I gagged and coughed a lot. I even burped a lot. I think part of what's going on is these drugs are causing excessive saliva and nasal mucus drainage which I frequently swallow. I am probably also swallowing a lot of air which upsets my stomach too. So to combat that I will spit a lot rather than swallow it.

Last night I just wasn't able to eat anything. I took some anti-nausea meds and eventually went to bed. We have a wonderful Tempurpedic bed with the mechanical adjustable bases so that each of us can independently raise and lower our head and feet. I started out reading with my head raised and then as usual made the bed almost flat for sleeping. My stomach complained immediately so I raised the head to a comfortable level and slept like that all night.

I woke up this morning feeling less stomach uneasiness and took an Ativan and my Emend (anti-nausea drugs) right away. Then I ate an entire English muffin and drank a small glass of milk. After that I headed upstairs to lie down because I wanted to keep my stomach as settled as possible so that it would have a chance to digest this food. Eventually David brought me some pumpkin soup which tasted good and was easy to eat. A little while ago I was wanting some Fritos and bean dip so David went to the store for that. I didn't eat much of it to keep my stomach from getting upset but what I did eat I enjoyed. I have been sipping on Metromint waters to try to stay hydrated. And I've been sleeping a lot and watching some TV.

It's now nearly 7:00 at night and I thought it was about time for me to take a shower so at the moment I am clean!! My hair can't get washed until after tomorrow because I have this lovely tubing stuck in my chest which is delivering the 5-FU chemotherapy drug. That will be removed tomorrow and then I'll just eat, rest, and try to get my strength back.