I think my mom might be over-medicated, how can I tell?

I am so sorry about your mom. As my mom declined the dosages of her meds were to strong and had to be changed. Also my moms doc actually perscribed the same pain med under two different names. They were perscribed for two different injuries but still everyday she took two times the amount. As patients decline you should always ask the doctor if there are any meds that can be taken away. We are going thru that with my dad right now. DO NOT BE AFRAID TO ASK YOUR DOCTORS QUESTIONS SHE IS YOUR MOM! My prayers to your you & your mom.
Debbie

If your mother is declining fast, the people who are "overmedicating" her may be just trying to save her from the agony that attends the medical condition that is causing her decline. Death cannot be postponed indefinitely. It may be time for you to deal with the impending loss of your mother to a process that is as natural as birth. Gather your friends and family to support you in the difficult period that is approaching, as you put it, "fast." The process will be painful for you, but there is a healing that comes from dealing with it. Good Luck, and God Bless You.

You may take a medicine list to your pharmacy and have them review the list for interactions. The pharmacy can let you know if there are any interactions.
Blessings, Bridget Wetterer

Yes it is possible that your Mom-has a low tolerence to her medications, or how they interact, or it may be something else entirely...If possible, contact your physician and let him know of the symptoms that you are observing, and review all her medications---and move forward from there. Also be sure that you do get all your Mom's meds from one place, as it usually is put in a computer-which will alert the pharmacy tech of negative interactions---this also may include OTC meds as well.
Best,
Hap

yes its amazing to me -the way that some drs.come to decisions
about our aging family-sometimes i have to say to them- that doesnt make sense-what are you talking about-
like they cant ake a istake and they cant explain it to us because we wouldnt understand-man- that really gets me mad
i have had many dissagreements with doctors-so much so
that this time around with my mom in the hosp, for 3 weeks, my brother became the one who had POA, my name was taken off
from the paper-he goes along with most of the doctors- it causes alot ofstatic between us- iknow how things are done in hosp- and u really have to watch and be anactive advocate for the patient- otherwise they are just another old and dying person-treated withlittle dignity and respect.
i my brother is a little more aware of what is and isnt being followed thru as far as medical care-
i still make a fuss- i still go a bit crazy- but hey, its my mom, i have to do what i feel is right- and i will admit if i amwrong- i am not totally against "them", but at least they know my mom has someone who is checking things and watching out for her-
its a horrible situation-
i hope it doesnt happen to me-if it does, i dont know if i would want to be exposed to indignity and pain that i see around me

Years ago I had read in AARP magazine about a PharmD who went into nursing homes (and private homes) to review medications. This is a doctor of pharmacy who is independent and all they do is review the meds that are currently being taken and advise the family of interactions. Whats great is that this is all they do so unlike a doc or a pharmacist ( or tech) who might have made a mistake they have no agenda other than making sure that your loved one is on the RIGHT meds and dosage. Hope this helps.

thank you-
it helps when i hear someone i dont know-who can be objective-
to reassure me that i am doing what i should be doing-
i would say the same to someone-don be afraid- i say that all the time, but somehow when it is me-inmy situation- i too get intimidatedand i know better- and its just helpful to read your comments--thanks-

and about that aarp pharmd- i have to check that out- it sounds like a very smart and logical contact- thank you so very much

Defintiely get the meds list. If she is taking them herself, make sure of HOW she actually takes them - some people organize bottles a certain way and make mistakes so they are taking double doses of something at times. I finally confimred this with my mom, who inadevertantly quadrupled the dose of a statin she was on, and it basically led to the end of her indpendent living - long story. Even the best meds lead to bad side effects in some people. My parents' generation habitually never questioned or botherered to understand what their meds were for, and they COMMONLY keep taking pills that are killing them. I am a peditrician and I like it a lot better with modern families who are very suspicious of side effects and will call you (ideally) or at least stop on their own before anyone is likely to be seriously harmed. I just heard about a friend of a friend who was put on HOSPICE due to a bad medication reaction until a smart doc figured it out and got it stopped; he promptly returned to much better health and has a good prognosis for a lot of extra years.

Welcome to the wonderful Wizard of Oz Jsomebody!!! What happened with you routinely happens in doctors offices and let me tell you why. Most doctors work off insurance plans and have more patients than they can reasonably handle so the staff is often overworked and underpaid. Charts go missing but they are often misplaced or misfiled (English is not often the first language in office staff). Medical assistants call in a prescription have a long wait on hold with the pharmacy and sometimes can't get through so the chart goes on the side. Sloppy penmanship by the doctor so the medical assistant has to "guess" what the doctor means. Some doctors are often preoccupied during the visit and they write down the wrong info..... and the list goes on. This is why you need to speak with the doctor while you are in the office and confirm the meds and dosage. There are a lot of great docs out there. Why don't you tell Grandpa that his doc is retiring as of the end of the year and offer to help him find another?

i am concerned about the medication because she is displaying side effects-negitive side effects-
if she was being medicated in such a way as to relieve
her and make it easier ,lesspain,less aggitation,removing
the feeling she describes as "my heart is racing",
releaving the feeling in her throat that she says makes
it difficult to swallow- if her meds were dealing with these things,or helping tocalm her down,lighten the fear,etc,then i would have no problem-
i realize she is going to die-she is declining- but now that some of her physical problems have been managed,for now,
she is eating,gets hungry and eats--
i am the one who notices these things,i dont know why the
visitng nurses,the social worker,the aides,why no one else
seems to think my obsevations are anything but denial-
maybe they are-in a way, but i do know that there are many meds that are around-for this kind of situation,-
and it is possible that there may be other ways to manage these things.

while she is still alive, i find it very disturbing to be advised
to just hand her care over to agencies and doctors and inadaquate caregivers.I will question and be a pest as long as i feel something isnt right or that there is another way to deal with her problems.
so thanks for the advise, but im not ready to give in-
and my mom and i are trying to deal with the inevitable, her death- we have been talking about it-
and my grieving started months ago-
but she is still here,alive-she knows who people are-
and she is suffering-
i think i may have been under the misconception that this
was a place i could vent-andmaybe get a little relief-
maybe i just find it too difficult to be told to just face it-
but she is my mom,and i cant just go along when i feel
somethings arent right-
i do have good intuition-we all do- we need to follow our gut -
i grew up around doctors, my father was an orth surgeon for over 50yrs,started manyorth clinics -taught so many at HSS,NYH,etc-doctors dont have all the answers,
and the system certainly isnt set up to make it any easier for the patient and /or the families-unless $$$ is to be gained.