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Started Hospice one month ago and has no pain, but extreme anxiety. Prescribed morphine and Lorazapam , which gave him ever more anxiety. It was replaced with Haldel, but he was still not himself. He has wanted to end it all, can be anxious and jittery, just waiting for his dose. He's still smart enough to know he is now addicted, but also still alive. By his own choice, he wants no more of these drugs , and I am hoping just his oxygen (new) will calm him down, let him sleep, breathe, and be himself, but so far he still wants it over.

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When one is under hospice care, morphine is prescribed for when the patient is in extreme pain, and the Haldol to calm anxiety/agitation.
Has your husband been in extreme pain the entire month that he's been under hospice care, and if not why is he being given the morphine that you as his wife control if your husband is still at home? You actually say that your husband "has no pain." Is that because he's on the morphine or was he not having pain prior to you giving him the morphine? And if the latter is the case, why did you give him the morphine if he wasn't in any pain? I guess I'm a bit confused on that.
When my late husband first went under hospice care, morphine was prescribed for if and when he was in extreme pain and I was the one who gave it to him if and when he needed it, which quite honestly he didn't need it at all for quite a while. And when he did finally need it the morphine didn't even begin to touch his pain and he had to be put on fentanyl.
The best thing you can do now is to talk to your husbands hospice nurse or PA, and see what is anything can be done to help your husband be more calm.
But do know that death itself isn't always "calm" the way we see it on TV and in the movies. It can actually be quite traumatic to witness as in the case of my late husband, so my heart goes out to you as you try your best to allow your husband to leave this world for the next the best way possible.
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Reply to funkygrandma59
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Aging and eventual death has taken his quality of life. It's not something most people can handle very well. I'm sorry for your difficult situation.
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Reply to Dawn88
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I'm not sure how many of us wouldn't have anxiety when in hospice care. It is, after all, end of life. How could we and why should we be ourselves? Our self is transitioning, and we know it. Hospice offers drugs to ease the journey.

If husband's addicted and he quits the drugs, it won't be that simple. Someone else who knows more about that can comment here, but I suspect that going through a drug withdrawal could be something neither he would like nor you would want to experience. I suggest that you call upon hospice services - grief counselor, clergyman, whatever they offer. Talk to the doctors, talk to the nurses. Take their advice and follow the protocol. Going rogue right now may not be in husband's or your best interest. One more note: when it's painful, that morphine will be his best friend. And yours.

I'm sorry you are experiencing this, and I wish you and husband the best.
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Reply to Fawnby
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PLEASE talk to the Hospice Nurse and tell her or him your concerns and desire to wean your husband off the medications.
They can find other medications that can be used.
There are medications that are not "typical" / "formulary" that can still be prescribed and they may have to resort to one of the lesser used meds.
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Reply to Grandma1954
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Hospice is there to help you.
Speak with Hospice about this.
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Reply to AlvaDeer
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One thing I can tell you for certain is that you should never ever suddenly stop opiate medication or psychiatric medications. You need to slowly taper off over time. If a doctor tells you differently, ask another doctor. It sounds like he's having what's called a paradoxical reaction to the lorazepam, which normally makes people have less anxiety, but in some people causes the opposite. This is rare and not all doctors are aware of it. I am not a doctor, just giving some info that I know because I have a lot of experience with certain medications. There are other anti-anxiety meds they can offer that will be better. Some psych meds are contraindicated in the elderly. Morphine can also make some people feel anxious but the reason he isn't in pain is because of that drug. You should ask for a different opioid med after describing the heightened anxiety. There are lots of others that they can give him. Don't be afraid of physical dependence in someone who needs pain relief. Physical dependence means if you stop the drug, he will get violently ill and have rebound pain. If you use the term "addicted" some medical persons may get scared and then they won't give him any when he needs it.
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Reply to SamTheManager
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I'm so sorry for this distressing situation, but this is a question for a doctor, not a group of random strangers on the internet who are not doctors and have no accountability.
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Reply to Geaton777
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KNance72 Sep 5, 2025
We Have experience Geaton that Maybe you don't Have .
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My father was helped by cbd elixir that was provided by hospice.
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Reply to PeggySue2020
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KNance72 Sep 5, 2025
YES That was My Suggestion also .
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I was on Morphine and Morphine ER for six weeks under the direction of a pain specialist. I went off with no help at all from doctors (long story) and can tell you first hand... it was HELL. Absolute hell. Can't imagine wanting to get off of Morphine AND Haldol. Please, please, please follow closely the advice of the doctors. You think he has anxiety now? It's a walk in the park compared to what will happen when he starts to titrate off of those meds.
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Reply to Stardust
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KNance72 Sep 5, 2025
I was On the Burn Unit for a Month and got Nothing after Having Morphine . Only some codeine Tylenol . You do Hallucinate .
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Weaning off drugs is not something to do without professional guidance. Good luck.
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Reply to Bulldog54321
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