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Comment by robzyb | Hacker News Reader

> Being 33, it has essentially been OTC my whole life and I seriously took for granted how awesome this drug was until I could not take it (or any other NSAID) any longer.

Wait. Why could you not take any NSAID any longer?

I am someone who gets a lot of value from the occasional ibuprofen, and you have me worried.

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I was diagnosed with Ulcerative Colitis at age 22. It's generally accepted that people suffering from Crohn's, colitis, IBD, etc should avoid NSAIDs and COX-2 inhibitors as they can lead to flare ups of their disease. So, it's not that I absolutely can't take them without dire consequences, I just can't take them regularly, or for very long (like a day or two MAX). When my doctor told me this, I shrugged it off and just avoided them until I sprained my ankle so bad they were afraid I tore ligaments. I took Ibuprofin for 4 days when I was trying to avoid narcotic use and get some work done and I wound up with the closest thing to a flare up I've had since I went on Remicade years ago. So yeah, I won't be doing that again, but I'd pop a couple once every so often if my back was extremely sore or something like that.

The upshot is that I am really aware of how Ibuprofin affects me and I can feel it kick in and relieve pain the same way someone who could take it regularly might feel about an opioid.

I also have UC and "abused" ibuprofen in my twenties. My body cannot tolerate them at all anymore. I try not to take any pain relief, but when I'm forced to, I've turned back to paracetamol.

What are you using for pain relief? BTW, out of interest, did your UC start after a course of antibiotics?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nonsteroidal_anti-inflammatory...

Basically anyone with any sort of GI issue, kidney issues, or heart issues. As well as alcoholics.

Not me personally, but I have heard that ibuprofen is avoided by people with various stages of kidney disease.

According to [1] it can cause "an increased risk of sudden kidney failure and even progressive kidney damage."

[1] https://www.kidney.org/atoz/content/painMeds_Analgesics

Allergic? I'm curious as well, but that's the only thing I can think of off the top of my head. :S

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