Had my orchiectomy today. What did they send you home with for pain management?
I got sent home with 3 pills of 7.5/325 hydro/apap, which has barely touched the pain. My 2.5" incision (nsfw) looks clean; I just get stabbing pain where my legs meet my scrotum whenever I move like to go to the bathroom. Curious what other people were prescribed for their surgeries.
I spoke to the on-call doc, who cited other patients and studies as to why I didn't need more narcotics, rather than listening to my personal pain level. He also told me not to use NSAIDs and to just use Tylenol. He eventually relented and agreed to put in a script for 6 more pills in the morning, but to use Tylenol overnight. I texted my surgeon afterward, who told me I should visit the ER if I need more, because I shouldn't need that much narcotics. (I think it's a bit irresponsible to tell a soon-to-be immunocompromised cancer patient to visit an already-struggling ER during the COVID pandemic to score pain meds, but I didn't tell them that.) I just don't want to have to constantly be on the phone with their office to beg for pain management to then go out to get tiny refill after tiny refill.
I feel like I'm being treated like I'm drug-seeking when I just want to manage the first few days of pain. I'm not faking it. They sliced me open removed an organ. Pain should be expected. I never had this much trouble getting adequate pain meds for when I broke my leg. Three pills just feels absurd. But the more I protest, the more it looks like I'm seeking. This feels like a catch-22.
Thanks for reading and your responses.
Posted Sep 4, 2021, 4:20 AM UTC
Goodness, 3 pills? Wtf. They sent me home with oxycodone. I only took them if I really needed them (aspirin otherwise). Took them for about a week before aspirin alone did the trick.