MIL taking medication when she doesn't need it

Your MiL needs a reality check if she thinks it's ok to take pills for 10 years without question.
Her doctor needs to be pued up about it too. We've just been discussing NHS costs on a recent thread and this is a tiny example of waste through ignorance (Op's MiL) and indifference (doctor)
You should have to pay for items which can be bought over the counter at pharmacies. They cost pennies compared to the exorbitant charges levied by pharma to the NHS.

There was a notice in our local pharmacy yesterday saying that non-prescription drugs, like paracetamol, that can be bought cheaply over the counter, will no longer be prescribed or dispensed.
Maybe when she has to pay for them, she might not think it is such a good idea,

Paracetamol is the only painkiller I can take, due to severe side effects from others. My Doctor, who is very particular about medication reviews, says it's ok to take up to 8 a day, however, they do lose their effectiveness if used at the maximum for a long time. Also I'm surprised the doctor is still prescribing them, our surgery will not, under governmental guidance I believe, prescribe anything that can be purchased over the counter, I buy my own paracetamol and antihistamines that I need to take regularly.

As far as I know, no pain-killers work as well is you take them continuously, as they do if you only take them when in actual pain. All have side effects if you take them all the time, some affect the stomach others the kidneys, they can also thin the blood.

To me, too, taking laxatives too often, is likely to ruin natural bowel function, so it becomes a vicious circle.

However, knowing this will do no manner of good, unless OP's MIL is willing to either go to her doctor and ask for her prescriptions to be reviewed, or change doctor.

Dr Michael Mosley recently did a test on some 40 people who had back pain and were on long term medication, some prescribed and some self medicated. All were dosed up to the hilt and some could barely walk, only walk with aids or barely get out of bed. Onexwas in a wheelchair much of the time.
They were all put through rigorous health tests prior to the investigations and spent 4 days living away from home then a period of time at home with indicators attached to different parts of their bodies to assess their mental stimuli. Half were given placebos but no-one knew who had what as all the capsules looked the same.
Just under half said that their pain had disappeared completely, no walking aids needed, one had started at a gym.
It just shows that it's often a case of mind over matter.
If you anticipate pain, that's what you'll feel.

Lots of different opinions in this thread. You don’t need to take them with food - that’s ibuprofen. If you have a lot of pain, taking pain killers regularly helps stop it. I do agree with reviewing prescriptions annually. Is she fully compos mentis? If so get her to ask her own doctor. I’d be seriously annoyed if my children thought they had the right to contact my doctor.

As a PS I think regularly easy exercise really helps pain and fitness.

I'm surprised she gets them on prescription. Some doctors will just ask you to buy them...it's so cheap.
Taking too many analgesics can't be good. But really, quality if life is better than quantity, and if it's keeping her pain free, I wouldn't worry too much.
Btw, you are a good daughterinlaw, to be concerned .

This sounds eerily like my sister 5 years ago. If a doctor or professional told her something, it was religiously followed without question. She would also be a frequent visitor to the surgery about a stomach upset, or knee pain, or weight gain etc, all on separate occasions. She would leave with a cocktail of medicines, and a repeat visit
It wasn't until she got married, 5 years ago, and her doctor retired, that she was given a full medical review.

A doctor can only treat the symptoms/problems, that are presented to them on the 5 minute visit. They don't have the time for an in depth review of individual patients unless that is requested when the appointment is booked.
It is quite poßible that you MIL slips through the net and it might be worth you informing her doctor of your concerns, either by letter, email or a personal visit, whilst being aware that they won't be able or willing to discuss her care with you directly.

The latest thinking on chronic pain is that paracetamol doesn’t really help it. GPs in my area are being told to prescribe NSAIDs and reduce opioids. As my GP said that’s all well and good if the patient (me) is able to take them! She continues to prescribe what is helping in conjunction with my pain consultant. It does seem odd that she’s not having regular reviews although I once had a client who was taking a cocktail of drugs including two benzodiazepines and two opiates when her main condition was borderline PD.

I am 'prescribed' paracetamol for mild arthritis too. I take it when the pain demands it and it can be anything from 4 a day to 8 a day. It isn't addictive and is recommended as a good all-round painkiller with few drawbacks. I get very stiff and achy if I don't take it, and then life closes in somewhat ...

You are very caring. It is a delicate area, so tread with kid-socks!

I reluctantly take the same dose of paracetamol, in soluble form. I also take morphine every day. I would like to stop both, but get too much pain and have been rushed into hospital even on this dose, trying not to scream through the acute agony, so I would do anything to prevent that kind of flare-up.

Paracetamol at this dose will not harm her although I understand it is not good for the liver to take it too much and there are side effects associated with long-term use. These can include kidney, heart and intestinal problems.

We do not know if she needs it or not, because it may be working on reducing her pain. There is evidence that repeated use of pain-killers gives headaches. see
www.nhs.uk/news/medication/painkillers-may-be-making-a-million-headaches-worse/

Research suggests, in both osteo and rheumatoid arthritis that paracetamol is ineffective regardless of dosage.. There are many references if you google it. for osteo try:
health.spectator.co.uk/paracetamol-wont-ease-the-pain-of-arthritis/

Only her Doctor can advise concerning whether she should consider stopping, reducing, or changing to another medicine.

Could you persuade her to go to her GP for an "M.O.T."? Tell her, everyone who is on a repeat prescription has to check in and discuss it every so often to make sure all is well and that there have been no advances or changes in medical knowledge. Explain that research is always ongoing and bringing up to date what is known in medical science.

If you are close, would she let you go with her?

Good luck, and meanwhile try not to worry. My un-medical feeling is that she is surviving ok, so nothing terrible will happen suddenly.

I take Tramadol as well as paracetamol for pain,I have problems with my bones where they are moving out of place,my knee is st the side of my leg now for example. I would rather be hooked on the painkillers than suffer the affects of stopping taking them.
I have blood pressure tablets as well and had a bad cough for years that just wouldn’t go,couldn’t talk long without setting it off. My chemist used to do a medication review and he heard the cough and immediately said it was due to the ramapril I took for it,apparently a well known side effect,I also used to cry with pains in my arms,that I found was due to simvastatin so always worth getting things checked out. Once I was on different tablets both the cough and the pain went after a couple of weeks

You say she is as fit as a flea, so they are not doing her any harm. Paracetamol are not addictive and are not harmful, so I'd say leave her alone.

Chronic – especially daily – paracetamol use is nephrotoxic, and older age, fasting and dehydration are associated with increased toxicity. Medical adviser Dr A J Bell

Paracetamol toxicity is influenced by poor nutrition so in your shoes I would suggest to your mother-in-law that she (or preferably you if she will permit it) asks for a full MOT and medicine review. When my mum was ill I asked her GP for this in a letter that included what my concerns were. The GP responded well and a number of ongoing health issues were properly addressed as a result.

Thanks grannyactivist I'll speak to her again about me seeing the GP with her and I'll write to him about my concerns.I dont want to go behind her back and cause problems in our relationship.We have always got on exceptionally well ,I wouldn't want that to change .

I have that dosage + dihydrocodeine + amitriptylene to manage mt pain and have had that combination since 2003 - but - I take them only when my pain levels are too great. I know that the medical profession say the pills should be taken regularly, but given the dual problems of addiction and tolerance, I at least know that I need them when I take them.

I have a general comment - we don't know whether pills do us good or harm long term. Think of all the meds which have been taken off the market when they are found to be harmful. Imo we should be careful to only take what we really cannot manage without.

DH has had back problems for many years and during this time GPs have added various prescriptions to the point that he really didn't know what was working and what wasn't. However, he was sure he needed them because they had been prescribed. We tried to get him to drop them one at a time and see if it made a difference but he wouldn't. Earlier this year he had abdominal bleeding and test showed he had multiple stomach ulcers which we believe were caused by the meds. Suddenly he decided to drop the meds one at a time and has discovered they were not working. I was pretty sure that a placebo would have worked so decided to get him an alternative, a TENS machine. He has been back for another endoscopy and the ulcers are healed. He won't be going back on the meds and has started to admit that we may have been right!

I would only be concerned about any of her medications if she hasn’t had them reviewed in the last year or so. Long term use of laxatives isn’t generally a good idea, but if she has boxes and boxes of them in a cabinet, it doesn’t sound as if she is taking them.

i think you need to accompany her to the drs. tell her you are concerned about the amount she is taking. paracetamols are for other things than arthritis. she needs stronger tablets but the right tablets for arthritis.if concerned get a health visitor around to see her..

I know her mother had it badly in her hands and that it caused a lot of pain but MIL has always been fit as a flea she knits and crochets which I doubt she'd be able to do with arthritis
Perhaps she is able to knit and crochet because the medication keeps her arthritis from causing her pain and problems.

I only discovered them when I looked into her medicine cabinet and there are boxes and boxes of them
Most GPs these days will not prescribe paracetamol and advise patients to buy them over-the-counter as they are so cheap.

When I went to the GP with foot and knee pain I was prescribed Naproxen. However, that and other NSAIDs eg diclofenac, ibuprofen, are not routinely prescribed nowadays for joint pain. The GP surgery was in the process of stopping NSAIDs for anyone who needed pain relief and advising them to take paracetamol - my GP prescribed 8 paracetamol daily and said it was better to take them routinely as this was better for pain relief than taking them 'as required'.
This, presumably, is the latest protocol.

However, I don't do that as I am not happy about doing so.

I think your MIL's GP should be reviewing patients on a regular basis to ensure that they still need the medication as issuing repeat prescriptions without a regular check-up is not advisable.
I wonder if she should also occasionally (perhaps once a year?) be having a blood test to check liver and kidney function? Also to check for iron levels and other possible issues.

You cannot speak to the GP about this, all you can do is try to persuade her to make an appointment to discuss this with her GP and suggest you accompany her when she goes for the appointment as she may not be able to hear what the doctor says very easily.

Good luck.

I should have said I was prescribed Naproxen three years ago, then it was stopped and paracetamol recommended instead.

Can’t comment on the paracetamol, but if she has boxes and boxes of laxative medicine in her cupboard then she’s obviously not using it, so maybe she could tell her GP she’s good for that for a couple of years or more!

Free up some cupboard space and save the NHS a bob or two!

seems the GP sends her 3 months laxatives at a time ,its on one prescription thats why there are so many .She says she had problems with constipation when she had a prolapse in her late 30's early 40's and she got stuff from the gp then and just continued ordering it ever sonce.I asked her if she tried going without it and upping her fibre intake but she says she cant eat a lot of ruit and veg as "it gives her terrible wind" Honestly I'm sorry I looked in the flamin medincine cabinet now ,I just thought it might give the answer to her current health problems.She has a revitafit machine that I bought a couple of years ago for her "tired legs" but she wont use it at anything above the minimum setting so it does nothing to help.

It really does get worse.....3 months laxatives? Good grief ....Using laxatives on a regular basis means she will not be able to "go" normally. She should change her diet, rather than take laxatives. Or perhaps, prunes.