Dilaudid Lethal Dosage? (Top voted first)

I am a stage IV cancer patient and member of an invitational research and survey type website.

Members primarily consist of other stage IV cancer patients, but in some cases, may be the caregiver of a stage IV patient.

A little over a month ago, a caregiver launched a blog-like diary of sorts. He states his wife has end-stage, metastasized, breast cancer. His postings started with news his wife had to be hospitalized when she began the dying process and indicating shut-down. However, many of his statements do not sound clinically correct or even possible. For example, after she was admitted to the hospice section of the hospital, he stated she emerged from days of a coma-like state to experience what he called a rally. This rally consisted of engaging in conversation with himself and hospital staff...only to sink into another coma-like state after being administered IV anti-biotics for a major infection due to compromised immune system (an extremely low, chemo-caused low white blood count). During this time, he also stated that both kidneys shut down...then...a week later, miraculously regained normal function. In still another posting, he describes she emerged from yet another coma-like state to devour a huge meal, although she had and was still on a PEG feeding tube!!! (All patients I know had to slowly acclimate over a period of several days to oral feeding with jello, puddings, non-spicy soups, etc.) He now states he has moved his wife back home where she can die in the comfort of familiar surroundings. Now at home, he described another coma-like experience, followed by yet another rally of low-level activity as if she had no health issues at all. Today, (July 23) his posting states she was in great pain the night before and her doctor increased her Dilaudid pain medication to 7mg/hour. If you had read between the lines of every post since this person started about 6-weeks ago, you'd quickly get the idea this person has the capacity to cause a faster than normal passing of his wife. For what reason?...so he can start re-establishing his social life! More than one prior comment had this type “social life” focus, though subtle. Far more troublesome are comments I feel would cause any perceptive person to wonder if he is capable of engaging in deliberate acts to cause his wife to expire sooner than later. In hopes a professional monitors this board, I have a quick question: Under her circumstances, does 7MG/hr of Dilaudid seem appropriate and correct...or...is does it sound more like an accumulative, lethal dose? I apologize for the length of this post, but am somewhat bothered by what may be the abuse (or worse) of a person that cannot defend themselves. Thanking you in advance, Nodawgs

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POST #10
I hope this is not too late to reach this ONE nurse and I only pray the dear, very ill man this nurse speaks of (whom she should be reminded did NOT choose this illness nor unspeakable pain), is no longer suffering. I hope he has found a nurse whom is not more concerned with his or her own circumstances than of ANY patients she is tasked with seeing through their most sacred, personal, intimate, dehumanizing, terrifying journey to what should be a peaceful and painless death. I am facing terminal illness and deal with debilitating pain pretty much every minute of every day. The inability to shower one's self is dehumanizing, the complete and utter lack of control we as patients are left without is a failure of our society's ability to deal with death WELL, as we are all terminal, but we will not all die peacefully in our sleep. I understand you are conflicted with what you perceive this patient's wishes to be, but you are NOT able to truly understand what he is planning or wanting as I often say, on my most difficult of days, dear lord please take me now. Sometimes I mean it, sometimes I tell my spouse I am ready but I am NOT asking anyone to take my life. However I wish I had that choice, instead I will die an agonizing death because I do not want to die in a facility and I have hospice nurses that are healthy, with the same feelings as yourself. Don't you think it's fairly disgusting that I will bankrupt my family by running up hospital bills that exceed my Medicare limits? I am being sued but it is illegal for me to kill myself and yet I can't afford to die. I paid my taxes and worked for over two decades to find that I will have done it all for what? My dog was allowed a most kind, gentle and peaceful death as we had the ability to gather around him while HIS doctor sedated him and gave us time to cuddle w/him and love him as he drifted off to sleep where his cancer was NOT allowed to leave him trembling in pain in his own urine. We treat our animals w/more humanity than we do our sick and dying, where is our outrage that we cannot decide how our life ends when we are "ready"? When your lungs begin to fill with fluid and you will literally feel yourself drowning in your own fluids, the pressure crushing, the pain INTOLERABLE and the nurse can't give you enough medication for fear it may kill you, you may rethink your judgement. For now, I hope you will rethink your cases and leave such cases to nurses best equipped to show the terminally ill the unconditional compassion and right to mourn the loss of their life, the life they once knew, the life they dreamed of and planned for and to find a way to accept and deal with the unrelenting pain their disease has left them alone to bear. I for one pray for a merciful time where I too can gather my loved ones, have them comfort me while I am afforded the RIGHT drift off to sleep in a dignified and gentle manner to join my sweet and ever loyal dog. I pray you are afforded whatever choice you deem appropriate for yourself should this fate one day be your own (and I wish this on NO ONE). Until then, let's leave the judgement where it belongs and all pray that the same medicine that helps us live quality lives will one day, if necessary, help us have a quality death.

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I am a R.N. & am a Cancer Survivor. I had A Type of Bone Cancer. Now in regards to the comment that indicates the utmost concern for this patient. I'd like to say that Dilaudid, when given via I.V. (Intravenous), or I.M. (Intra muscular), or when is it being administered by mouth, have various effects on the individual that it is being administered to. 7mg / per hour, ... Isn't a fatal dosage, when the patient has shown resistance / tolerance, to the narcotic pain reliever. I'd like to think that, any individual posting comments in regards to a Terminally ill Person ... would not be so honest in stating how his partner is being medicated, if he / she were guilty of ... what may be suggested here as, helping one to pass, sooner than later!!! Maybe this person is reaching out to others by sharing that His / Her partner is having some, very sacred moments of clarity. Especially if the patient has only a little bit of time left.
Now in regards to The Drug Dilaudid, it can cause severe disorientation when the dosage is this strong, ... & can also cause the patient to seem Out of IT. ...
So to speak. I'm thinking that perhaps this Drug, ... is the one Chosen by the patients Doctor, & may be the one that works the best, for the patient in this very sensitive matter!!!
I'm not 100% .... (re: The amount of Dilaudid) ... But, if the Person that POSTED THE ORIGINAL POST, has that much concern, feel free to contact the necessary parties. I wish the Cancer Patient / 's ... Blue skies, & Sunshine.

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I have ms,lupus and ra. I take morphine 30 mg tablets. 1 in the morning and 2 at night. I have dilaudid that I can take every 4-6 hours as needed for break through pain. Most of the time this has worked for me but sometimes not. My doctor has talked about sending me to a pain management clinic if I choose to do so. I have very caring doctors who take how I feel in consideration rather than either keeping me doped up all the time or in pain all the time. I also have tramadol that I can take during the day if I'm not in a whole lot of pain which is non-narcotic. I guess what I'm trying to say is that the best course of action is to find a doctor who listens to your concerns and what your needs are. I also forgot to put on here that I had thyroid cancer 3 years ago now. So my body has a lot of things going on and I have several different doctors but they're all at the same hospital and I have 1 doctor who prescribes my medications. If 1 of my doctors wants to change a medication they call my primary and let's him know and he writes the script for me. That way there's no confusion and less chance of having a problem with bad interactions of my meds. Finding caring doctors like mine is hard sometimes but its worth it to keep looking until you find the right doctor for you. Just because you see a specialist doesn't mean its the right doctor for you. I'm very blessed to have the group of doctors I have and I hope all of you having problems with your pain management will find the help you need. Being in pain is the worst part of any illness because you're focused on your pain instead of your life. And we all know that being in pain causes a lot of stress and stress makes you even sicker. Good luck to all and God bless. Sorry this was so long but thanks for reading.

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hi i read your question and i know alot about dosages and lethal doses i know i was off all opoids for about a year i got back on couple months ago within 2 weeks of taking dilaudid i was up to 35 mg per hour but not all day id shoot up alot of them for about 2 hours them be cool for about 6 hours then do some more so 7 mgs per hour i personally wouldnt even feel and i also believe if the person was on morphine based drugs over a period of more tha n3 months its almost impossible to overdose on morphine when i was doing heroine there was times id take a 140 mg shot of pure black tar heroine thats the max u can fit in a large rig but the first response is also something to look at about him telling you about the stuff about how long shed been on it and if she showed resistances to it well thats all i got for u

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My fiance admitted to me that while he was a nurse he and a Dr " helped" a woman die faster because she had pain. How often do nurses do that stuff

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My mom has stage 3 oral cancer that has moved quickly to her spinal cord and nerves in her head. Se is taking 13 mg/ml :per hour concentration. Her breakthrough is currently set to 16mg. Every thirty minutes as needed.

7mg lethal?? Doubt it

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Is it possible for someone to take 1500 mg of dilaudid without over-dosing? Curious bc friend was on that amount for months. I thought that dosage was lethal. Worried about friend.

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My doctor just changed me from Kadian(100mg-2x/day) to dilaudid #4 every 4 hours; it's just NOT enough!!!
I'm taking 2-3 #4's every two to three hours, considering more - am I killing myself? Even this does not give the same relief as the Kadian, which costs about $2,000.00 each month, my co-pay = $100.00. Any suggestions- PLEASE!

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no your not killing your self but the half life of dilaudid is somewhat short compared to mscotin I would try to explain to you doctor that morphine sulfate works better for you and is more cost effective than 4's

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smoke a lot of cannabis with high levels of cbds in it for pain. also try cats claw as another erbal helper. I 2 was on kadian and others til put on dilaudid yrs ago, but I keep my consumption down as much as possible. im now on 8mg every 6hrs and I only get 50-60% pain benefit from it. im not wanting to take more so im trying other stuff always. I feel like a test tube now cause doctors r practicing on me and im havin to live thru it. hang in theyre and keep lookin outside the gov box. theyre not our friends at all. god bless.

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WELL SAID!!! AMAZING!!! I just watched my father, the heart and glue of our family, die in horrific pain. I do not believe he "passed away," for that would have been peaceful. I believe he "died," for that was filled with excruciating and horrific pain every second of his final 6 days...that was how many days we had left with him after his brain surgery to remove a tumor found and was told after his surgery by the Neurosurgeon that "he was NOT dying, that he was NOT going to die." However, to say we had 6 days would not actually be accurate for on the 4th day post-op my father went from being coherent and having conversations with his family and friends to being able to say only 2 things..."hurt" and "help me up." He, also, became paralyzed on the left side of his body, a chance he knew was a risk of the surgery but willing to take because his other option was to go into a coma. NEVER in all his life has my father spoken of killing himself. For the very first time he begged the doctors and nurses to give him something to make him go to sleep and never wake. He begged my mother, his wife, to take him home so he could use his own gun to take his own life. A retired Army 1SG (First Sergeant, E8) of an MP (Military Police) Company, Vietnam War Veteran, Operation Desert Storm, survivor of multiple cancers, the strongest man I have ever had the honor of not just knowing but to call him Daddy...brought down to begging to end his life only to end the Pain. A man who lived for his wife, daughter, 2 granddaughters and grandson. He said his life revolved around us, especially for his youngest granddaughter who was born not only prematurely but, also, with a Cleft Lip and Palate and fought to survive her Qst week of life because she continued to lose weight. She was special to him and him to her. While he was still coherent and communicating, he asked for her while in the ICU for 5 days. However, she refused to leave his side except to eat and sleep. By Friday afternoon, day 5, he was being transferred to a local Hospice House where we lived. 14 hours and 45 mins, from the time my brave and strong father was admitted to the Hospice House to his time of death. While I miss him dearly words can NOT describe, I am thankful that his fight is over and he his now pain free.
Having similar medical issues as my father I understand and know how much I wish for my time to be peaceful and pain free. I suffer from pain every day for I am not as strong as my father and take pain medications daily. Too watch a person who was strong die the way my father did...words can not express my fears. I only know that we, as free citizen, should have the right to choice how we want to go!

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I hope you're in a peaceful place whether here of heaven. Thank you for posting such a detailed description of your experience. Im not physically ill. I came on to find out how much di lauded to take to end my life. I've suffered depression my whole life, and have reached the point of giving up. Reading this makes me sad. Here I'm thinking to end my life, and people are suffering greatly, and bravely walking through hell barefoot. I want to live too but I don't want to hurt anymore.

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Jerry, I am a chronic pain patient in NM. The medical board here told us that if our pain was being undertreated to report the physician to them for formal action. I had a go round with my pain Dr. in order to get appropriate pain relief. Currently I am on 8-16 Mg of Dilaudid q4hours along with 200 mcg Fentanyl patches that get changed every72 hours. This is bearly enough to allow me to stay out of bed and enjoy some time with my family. As for the original post. I would imagine that the patient in question was on narcotics for some amount of time. The siezures derscribed by her care giver sound more like withdrawal than cancer. Removing all pain meds probably killed her, I know it would me.

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I take care of a stage IV breast cancer patient, with brain meds, who is left alone at times and has the ability to get out of bed on his own, he is tired and wants to go "home", I will not assist in this. I am concerned and would like to know if what he has available would be fatal if abused? 180mg IV and oral dillaudid, 600mg valium, 600 flexiril, and lortab 10's.

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I took lorcets. Because hydromorphone is a metabolite of lorcets, my Dr. thinks I took dalaudid. What is going on? I've never even seen a dalaudid.

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Hydrocodone turns into hydromorphone in the liver.

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How much didaudid do you have to take when you are a terminal patient

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I don't know if this is related, however, I, also, had swelling of my feet. It was so extremely horrible I couldn't walk and had to crawl to get to the bathroom. I was in excruciating pain. I thought it was my pain medication. My doctor increased the dosage. I was on Oxycontin and Oxycodone. At the time, I had been on pain medications daily for approximately 6 years. The swelling didn't happen often and for short periods of time, 2-6 or 7 days. It would gradually go away for months. My doctor didn't show too much concern (I just moved to the city and he was my PCP, not a Pain Specialist). I didn't live in that city long and moved back to my hometown. I went back to my PCP, who was my Doctor for many, many years, and back to my Pain Specialist, whom I had been a patient of since diagnosed with cancer. My pain is a result of said cancer and the damage it caused to my Optical Nerve and facial nerves. My PCP began running diagnostics and my Pain Specialist changed my pain medications to Opana ER and Percocet. Even with the med change, I continued to suffer from my feet swelling. My Pain Specialist didn't believe it was caused from the Pain medications. My PCP discovered I had Hypothyroidism. With this condition being treated with medication, I have not suffered swelling of my feet since!!!!

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Your post just made me feel like you understand what I am going through. I never reached out on the Internet, I just got my first tablet in May, social networking for the first time too. How do we go on with pain? Nobody knows but one who's walked in our shoes. Thought suicide but too scared and too guilty with 2 kids, but at least mt doc says wtf do we do with you. Reply to me if you feel like sharing a similar s*** storm, lol.

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Thanks for all the input. I have chronic pain and was considering cutting my dose of 20mg a day and stocking perhaps 5 mg a day for 6 months to yield about a gram (900 mg). To provide an exit strategy. In light of this forum, it appears too many factors to ensure success. Let alone if this is a sufficient dose. I dont understand why suicide is so taboo....We treat our pets with greater compassion than ourselves. The truth is dead patients don't generate costs. So let the suffering continue...."AT ALL COSTS".

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