Katherine Elizabeth

Just wanted to share my rather frightening experience taking Mirapex post-op. My doctor had checked "NO" on the release papers from the hospital (Gastric Sleeve 3/28/14) regarding several meds I was taking pre-op. Mirapex for restless legs was one of them. I asked the nurse in the hospital why he had checked that -- it didn't seem to have anything to do with the surgery. She didn't know and couldn't see how that would hurt (but of course told me to follow the doctor's orders anyway). I thought I really needed the Mirapex after I got home...I kept getting that "jerking," "jumping" feeling throughout my whole body, perhaps esp in the legs, and it was seriously keeping me from sleeping. So I called the hospital bariatric department again and again, until finally one of the PA's looked it up. Said the Mirapex works on the Central Nervous Systems, just like the hydrocodone. So, I was told to go ahead and take the Mirapex, just so long as I waited at least a couple of hours between it and the hydrocodone. So I waited a lot longer than 2 hours -- it was more like 11 hours -- then I crushed the Mirapex pill and took it with Water. Within 15 minutes I really thought I was going to pass out. I fell asleep in the recliner in the living room for 90 minutes -- my husband said he kept a close watch on me, and I did NOT pass out, but it certainly felt like it. Never experienced anything like this before. Before we went to bed, I asked my husband to take my blood pressure. Twice. Both times were low, but not dangerously so, and second reading was a tad higher. Only then did I feel safe enough to actually try to sleep. Which I did, and got the best rest I'd had since surgery. A friend of mine who had the gastric sleeve over a year ago told me the next day that the surgery amplifies the effect of medicines because there is less room for the med in the stomach and it reaches the Central Nervous System much faster. Makes sense. Wanted to share because it was VERY scary. I thought I'd never take Mirapex again, but the "jerks" and "jumps" came back this afternoon, so I crushed half a pill and took a few grains of it. I don't know if that tiny amount will help, but I didn't even want to take half a pill. I'll just work my up, taking a few more grains each time.