quit medication?

[witheredrose]

I want to quit taking medication now. I'm tired of the constant headaches and drowsiness I get, and being unable to carry out a normal day because I feel like such crap. The doctor said its probably not a good idea just yet.  I wonder would i be better off on meds or off? I'm back to taking just seroquel again and I have adderol  that doesn't require to be taken daily, only when I need to. Even if its just for a little while. I'm tired of relying on pills to have a normal life, even though they make me feel like crap too

[sara12345]

It sounds like you should ask to get an appointment sooner than whenever it is scheduled.  Are you aware that taking any pain reliever, even OTC ones, can cause constant rebound headaches?  If you're not doing that, then you could at least get treatment for your headaches if the doctor doesn't think that your medication is causing them.  If your medication may be causing the problem, then the doctor can prescribe something else.  Plus you need the doctor to address the long list of concerns that other people have brought up to you to have checked.  Good luck to you.

[mandy876]

some medications can cause bruising.  check with your doctor are the pharmacist.  And see if you are taking anything to cause this.  they will probably change your meds if it is causing the bruising.  good luck sweetie.  mandy876

[jemma116]

They may be little blood vessels bursting.

Write a list of all your problems to show to your doctor so that you do not forget any them.

[witheredrose]

Okay, I'm not sure when I see my doctor next but I will ask her when I do.
and the bruises aren't coming from being hit. Because they happen overnight while I'm asleep and I don't see how a soft bed could cause me to bruise. I wake up with a tender sore area that turns into a bruise later on and these bruises take a lot longer to go away than a bruise that I get from actually being hit. They look different, as well.

[jemma116]

The carpal tunnel is in the wrist and problems with inflammation and thickening of the tunnel causes friction on the tendons that run inside of it that flex your fingers.

Bruises on your arms and ribs has nothing to do with carpal tunnel problems.

If you are experiencing bruising on your arms and on the sides of your ribs without knocking yourself, you should tell your doctor to rule out any blood and liver disorders.  It is likely that you may be pressing against something or getting a knock without realising it.  Bruising that appears that is not related to any knocks should always be examined by your doctor.

You should make an appointment with your doctor to get checked out and have a nerve conduction test to find out for definite if your hand problem is to do with inflammation of the  carpal tunnel.

Best wishes.

[ILADVOCATE]

  My mom has carpal tunnel and what you are describing sounds unrelated. Increased bruising is a symptom of concern that can be caused by a variety of factors some of which include loss of blood coagulation. However only a doctor could determine the exact cause. It would be worthwhile to have them do follow up work to see what could be happening and how to follow up.

[witheredrose]

Does carpal tunnel cause strange bruising too? I always get these mysterious bruises on my arms and sides around my ribs that I dont recall anything happening in order for me to get them. They start out as these sore tender areas on my skin in which I wake up with and there is nothing visible at the time, but as the day goes on a light purplish bluish bruise with a yellowish blackish center appears, sometimes the bruises are only the size of like a half dollar coin or as small as a quarter, but there have been times when they are quite large

[jemma116]

Numbness and tingling in the wrist, hand (doesn't have to be the whole hand) and pins and needles is indicative of carpal tunnel problems.

Tingling and numbness usually in the little finger can be come from neck problems.

But with carpal tunnel problems, you will not feel severe pain.  Tendon, muscle and arthritic joint problems will present with pain.

I had terrible numbness and tingling in both my hands and all my fingers last night and had to put on my metal wrist supports which does help.

[witheredrose]

But there isn't any pain, I always though carpal tunnel was painful? I'll talk to her about it in my next checkup. I got a new doctor now because my old one moved away

[jemma116]

Hope the counselling helps.

You are using your hands a lot.  You do not have to use a computer to get these the hand problems - any repetitive actions can cause the problem in your hands.  And you say you do a lot of drawing, texting and play the piano often - brilliant, I wish I could play, tried to learn.  My instrument was an acoustic guitar, and I cannot play that anymore because of my wrist problems.

All the things you are doing is repetitive movements and you may now have carpal tunnel problems.  Tell your doctor the problems that you are having with your hands and ask (or he may suggest it anyway) for nerve conduction tests to see if you have carpal tunnel problems or whether your hand problems are as a result of overuse which is affecting the tendons and muscles.  I was retired on ill-health grounds because of that.

Hope you get on OK.

Best wishes.

[witheredrose]

I do a lot of drawing, texting and writing and play the piano often, but I dont use a regular computer keyboard. I am currently going to counseling

[jemma116]

You do need to mention those symptoms to your doctor.

Would be a good idea, if you haven't already done so, is to get your blood tested for diabetes and iron deficiency, get checked out for any stomach problems and also for any trapped nerves in the neck area as well as having your blood pressure checked out.

Although stress, anxiety and depression can cause headaches, so can a number of other problems like too high or too low a blood pressure.

Tingling in the arms and hands and numbness can be from compression in the carpal tunnel as well as from pinched or trapped nerves in the neck area.

If you do a lot of keyboard work or any repetitive work, that can cause the those problems.  It would be worth getting checked out for Vitamin B group deficiencies as well as a nerve conduction tests to see if you do have a problem in the carpal tunnel.

It is a good idea to be guided by the advice of your doctor with regard to decreasing your medications.  What can happen is that if you come off too soon, you may (or will) spiral slowly downhill again and it will take a few months to get back on an even keel with the help of your meds.  

If you haven't had any form of counselling and especially CBT it may be worth having a go.  Ask your doctor about this next time you see him.

Best wishes.

[witheredrose]

I'm not entirely positive that they are caused by my meds, I'm just guessing they are. They haven't improved. Some days they are worse than other days and make me feel nauseous, tired and queezy and my arms and hands feel numb and tingly.

[nursegirl6572]

Hiya rose!

I would listen to the advice of your doctor.  I think sadly too many people make the mistake of coming off their meds, only to realize just how much they were helping them.

Are you sure your headaches are related to the meds?  I know you've been getting them for some time now.  Have you noticed any improvements of the headaches with med changes?