My prescription bottles read--"Take 3 tablets of carbidopa 25/levodopa 100 orally four times daily before meals and at bedtime". This has been the dosage instruction for several years now. It adds up to 12 tablets per day.
A typical day should look like this: 3 tabs at 7am (breakfast); 3 tabs 5 hrs later at 12noon (lunch); 3 tabs 6 hrs later at 6pm (supper); and then 3 tabs 6 hrs later at midnight (bedtime). Trouble is, at this point in my life, a dose of 3 Sinemet tabs is only "effective" for about 3 hrs. When the "off time" hits, it hits hard--mostly very bad dyskinesia, or less often very bad rigidity. They have me on Ritalin to help "extend" the effectiveness of the Sinemet (two 20mg tabs/day--take one 20mg tab 5 hrs apart). The Ritalin does help. It can extend the effectiveness of a dose of Sinemet by 1-2 hrs, which means a dose of Sinemet can be effective for up to 4 hrs, occasionally 5 hrs, depending on what kind of day I'm having.
When the Sinemet wears off after 3 hrs, I give up the struggle and take another 3 tabs no matter what time it is. I've told my neurologist all of this. She knows I'm "over-dosing" daily. Instead of 12 tabs per day, I take 18 to 21 per day, and the doctor just keeps on sending me bottle after bottle filled with 440 tabs each. It's as if she's not even counting them. After 28 years, I guess this is what I get. Anyone here doing this? Where is this headed?
A typical day should look like this: 3 tabs at 7am (breakfast); 3 tabs 5 hrs later at 12noon (lunch); 3 tabs 6 hrs later at 6pm (supper); and then 3 tabs 6 hrs later at midnight (bedtime). Trouble is, at this point in my life, a dose of 3 Sinemet tabs is only "effective" for about 3 hrs. When the "off time" hits, it hits hard--mostly very bad dyskinesia, or less often very bad rigidity. They have me on Ritalin to help "extend" the effectiveness of the Sinemet (two 20mg tabs/day--take one 20mg tab 5 hrs apart). The Ritalin does help. It can extend the effectiveness of a dose of Sinemet by 1-2 hrs, which means a dose of Sinemet can be effective for up to 4 hrs, occasionally 5 hrs, depending on what kind of day I'm having.
When the Sinemet wears off after 3 hrs, I give up the struggle and take another 3 tabs no matter what time it is. I've told my neurologist all of this. She knows I'm "over-dosing" daily. Instead of 12 tabs per day, I take 18 to 21 per day, and the doctor just keeps on sending me bottle after bottle filled with 440 tabs each. It's as if she's not even counting them. After 28 years, I guess this is what I get. Anyone here doing this? Where is this headed?
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