"Drug allergies"

While having a Total Knee Replacement (TKR) recently, I was given drugs that I was highly allergic to.

All this was on my pre-op forms and I told them again and again so as I don't have any given to me.

I have extremely high allergies to morphine, tramadol, and codeine.

When given other new drugs I was not familiar with, I asked each time, do they have morphine, codeine or tramadol in them or related to them.

I was told no, and each time I asked I felt they thought I was being paranoid.

I know my body and even just looking at or hearing about these drugs u can say I am totally allergic. Can't have them period, but alas they were still being given to me under another name I knew nothing of or about.

I have extreme allergies to those drugs and have since found out they are called opioids. So I googled opioid drugs and low and behold, guess what was in those drugs with another name. What part of my drug allergies did they not understand?

So as I was taking these drugs that were supposed to be ok for me, I was getting worse in my recovery.

I was wondering, what is happening with me and with my body. Is it my age? I believe there are plenty older than me that have survived TKR and felt fine.

This one morning I had had my brekky after not eating much at all the day after my op. I was vomiting and just couldn't keep things down so I took myself off fentanyl which I was self-administering by a gun-type thingy and refused to have it anymore.

The next day I was feeling a bit better but was still in a lot of pain.

They suggested I could have a drug called endo  (oxycodone) and I again asked if it had my allergy drugs in it. The answer was no.

So I agreed to try a low dose as my head wasn't really with it. I was always feeling dizzy, weak, nauseated and could hardly talk.

This one time I got really bad being on this drug. I had had my brekky and was feeling much better. Then about half an hour after my brekky I said to my nurse I'm not feeling well. I told them I was light-headed like floating and very weak and tired. I am just going to lay down for a while. Apparently I collapsed on the bed and became very unresponsive for 2 and a half hours they couldn't wake me up. They had tried everything so I was told.

When I came out of it, I had a lot of people (doctors and nurses, etc.) around me and asking what happened. I was told what I had just said. I was thinking mmmm that's strange and was immediately transferred to the High Dependency Unit (HDU) ward.

As my family was returned to me they filled in bits of what happened. I said when I came out of it to them that I felt like I was coming back from the dead.

In HDU, I had yet another fainting collapse attack. Well I wondered what the hell was going on with me.

So I googled oxycontin drug n low and behold it has a morphine and codeine base. They were slowly killing me (well that's what it felt like) so I refused any more of those drugs and any related drugs.

So for pain, all I could have was panadol.

As the drugs cleared from my brain and body, my memories came back.

I remember having an out of body experience. I remember floating above my body and watching what they were doing to me while I was unresponsive. I also had my spirit guides pushing me and telling me to go back, it not my time. 

What a scary experience..no wonder I felt like I came back from the dead.

To those of you who do not believe in out of body experiences. I don't care really. I know what I experienced and will never forget it. It was totally exhausting, scary, and I felt so weak.

Well, all I can say to my story is doctors really must read all patients allergies and anything related to them.

I don't know if I can take this any further or what to do if anything really.

And to those skeptics out there I don't give a dam.

Having a TKR surgery wasn't supposed to be such a dramatic thing for my body.

I am home now 2 days and still cry of my near-death experience.

Thank you for reading.