After spending 4 days at the hospital with my 82 year old mom, I need to get on my bike and ride back to California this morning. Feeling sad, and so old and helpless. She will probably be going home after another week of rehab/physical therapy, but she's still taking oxyconten, as she has been for 3 years. She says she doesn't feel any narcotic effects from it, and doesn't think there's any chance of addiction, but she does get incoherent and forget what she's talking about in the middle of conversation often. She says she doesn't crave it, but she's never without it. She's been taking it like clockwork for 3 years. I don't think there will be many more visits, and the content of visits is becoming more recounting memories than anything else.
It's going to be a long, lonely ride home these next two days.
This makes me angry. Big Pharma controlling and compromising our health for their profits.
I'm sorry you're going through this. I hope you have support. This sounds really tough.
I am 80 years old, in good health, take no meds, nothing wrong with me and I frequently forget what I am talking about in mid-sentence and most elderly people I know do the same.