Method Can I die from an ibuprofen overdose? Without alcohol?

[Scribble Fan]

(Sorry for the armada of words everyone! TL:DR - Would a bottle of ibuprofen, possibly mixed with aspirin and aleve, kill me? Even without alcohol? Is rubbing alcohol viable?)

So I have one nearly empty bottle of ibuprofen and another almost full. That could be about ~500 tablets of 200 mg each.

1. I read in this article that: "If people take dosages greater than 400 mg/kg, they may experience central nervous system depression. This can cause loss of consciousness and coma."

I'm not exactly sure what it means by "greater than 400 mg/kg". That's only three tablets? I've taken more for a bad headache, about four tablets in the past. Maybe the article's just covering the bare minimum for a possible overdose, even in children? Or maybe I wasn't supposed to take that much...

2. This source shows a man took 72 g worth of tablets... and lived, by the looks of it. He got hospital treatment but what if I didn't? Would I die sooner if I stayed in bed? 500 tablets of my 200 mg ibuprofen should be 100 g worth.

"The patient was extubated five days after admission and transferred for further psychiatric treatment on day 12."
I wouldn't want to spend so long in pain but I'm thinking this is so long and drawn out because of treatment from the doctors.

It's also mentioned that: "Although fatalities have been described, they account for less than 1% of cases." and "Reported serious or even fatal overdoses may have also been attributed to complications, such as secondary sepsis or coingested substances."

Hmm, I'm not sure this is a very reliable method to ctb with... Maybe it's only 1% because they got medical treatment? My family should be going out with some friends all day about next week, I should have plenty of alone time then. I shouldn't be caught until I've passed. Then again, I'm not sure how soon the overdose kicks in.

3. This final article gives the cause of death: "We will describe 2 cases of ibuprofen overdose characterized by cardiovascular collapse, acidosis, and hypothermia despite the use of vasopressors and renal replacement therapy. Although rarely reported, massive ibuprofen overdose may result in refractory multisystem organ failure and death."

Ok... I'm having my doubts. While it looks like this will kill me I'm not entirely sure it will be peaceful. There's no guarantee I would pass out and I wouldn't want to be awake when my organs fail ._.

I found the dregs of some family member's aspirin and one tablet left in an aleve bottle. I could wait until those prescriptions are renewed, then I could down them along with the ibuprofen? It's a shame I don't have any alcohol because I read very serious interactions could occur with aspirin and aleve, which sounds promising, but with ibuprofen only interactions may occur... whatever that may mean.

Would rubbing alcohol work? I know that would make me go blind, so I'd have to be very committed to the act, but it's still alcohol. Right..? And if I'm successful being blind doesn't matter anyway because I'll be dead.

*sigh*

I'm not sure if I'm being impulsive or not. I feel nauseous just existing, it's my time to go. I've been wanting to die for around five years now, so it's not like I haven't thought this through, but I may have to hold off and perfect night-night or hanging. I'm not sure why I'd prefer to overdose. It's so tempting, the bottles being right there makes it seem enticingly accessible, but I'm curious as to what everyone else has to say here? I'm not convinced the risk is worth the reward

 

[deathenvoy]

It won't be peaceful, don't bother unless you want to suffer.

 

[Jean Améry]

I'm not an expert but you'll probably destroy your liver and this is quite painful from what I've read. I would not do this if I were you. Think it over carefully and review your options.

OD'ing on over the counter medications is pretty much a recepy for disaster. With all due respect but I would not consider doing something like this the product of careful deliberation. More like desperation. Which I get, I really do.

 

[whyidon'tknow]

Interesting in learning more as well

Love and kindness

 

[TimeToDie]

I'm not exactly sure what it means by "greater than 400 mg/kg". That's only three tablets?

That's 400 mg per kilogram (2.2 pounds for Americans). So if somebody was 100 kg (220 pounds) that would be 40,000 mg.

The 400 mg/kg figure is likely the LD50 from testing on rats. LD50 is Lethal Dose 50%, the amount needed to kill 50% of the rats tested. This number may or may not be accurate for humans, but it gives some vague idea of how toxic a drug is. Damn near any drug will kill rats at some level since researchers can keep putting an endless supply into the little guys until they finally drop dead.

Keep in mind that it's possible to die from drinking too much water, so basically everything is toxic at some ridiculous dose.

 

[cornflowerblue]

(Sorry for the armada of words everyone! TL:DR - Would a bottle of ibuprofen, possibly mixed with aspirin and aleve, kill me? Even without alcohol? Is rubbing alcohol viable?)

So I have one nearly empty bottle of ibuprofen and another almost full. That could be about ~500 tablets of 200 mg each.

1. I read in this article that: "If people take dosages greater than 400 mg/kg, they may experience central nervous system depression. This can cause loss of consciousness and coma."

I'm not exactly sure what it means by "greater than 400 mg/kg". That's only three tablets? I've taken more for a bad headache, about four tablets in the past. Maybe the article's just covering the bare minimum for a possible overdose, even in children? Or maybe I wasn't supposed to take that much...

2. This source shows a man took 72 g worth of tablets... and lived, by the looks of it. He got hospital treatment but what if I didn't? Would I die sooner if I stayed in bed? 500 tablets of my 200 mg ibuprofen should be 100 g worth.

"The patient was extubated five days after admission and transferred for further psychiatric treatment on day 12."
I wouldn't want to spend so long in pain but I'm thinking this is so long and drawn out because of treatment from the doctors.

It's also mentioned that: "Although fatalities have been described, they account for less than 1% of cases." and "Reported serious or even fatal overdoses may have also been attributed to complications, such as secondary sepsis or coingested substances."

Hmm, I'm not sure this is a very reliable method to ctb with... Maybe it's only 1% because they got medical treatment? My family should be going out with some friends all day about next week, I should have plenty of alone time then. I shouldn't be caught until I've passed. Then again, I'm not sure how soon the overdose kicks in.

3. This final article gives the cause of death: "We will describe 2 cases of ibuprofen overdose characterized by cardiovascular collapse, acidosis, and hypothermia despite the use of vasopressors and renal replacement therapy. Although rarely reported, massive ibuprofen overdose may result in refractory multisystem organ failure and death."

Ok... I'm having my doubts. While it looks like this will kill me I'm not entirely sure it will be peaceful. There's no guarantee I would pass out and I wouldn't want to be awake when my organs fail ._.

I found the dregs of some family member's aspirin and one tablet left in an aleve bottle. I could wait until those prescriptions are renewed, then I could down them along with the ibuprofen? It's a shame I don't have any alcohol because I read very serious interactions could occur with aspirin and aleve, which sounds promising, but with ibuprofen only interactions may occur... whatever that may mean.

Would rubbing alcohol work? I know that would make me go blind, so I'd have to be very committed to the act, but it's still alcohol. Right..? And if I'm successful being blind doesn't matter anyway because I'll be dead.

*sigh*

I'm not sure if I'm being impulsive or not. I feel nauseous just existing, it's my time to go. I've been wanting to die for around five years now, so it's not like I haven't thought this through, but I may have to hold off and perfect night-night or hanging. I'm not sure why I'd prefer to overdose. It's so tempting, the bottles being right there makes it seem enticingly accessible, but I'm curious as to what everyone else has to say here? I'm not convinced the risk is worth the reward

1. 400mg/kg is per kilogram, so for a 150lb person that's about 27grams (27,000mg). That CAN (not will) cause loss of consciousness and coma, which isn't guaranteed to kill you.
2+3. Lots of things "may" kill you. This sounds like if you happen to have several pre-existing medical conditions AND take a huge amount AND don't get medical help, you might die over the course of several days, if you don't become a vegetable. This is also assuming you don't just puke out the meds.

TLDR bad idea, won't do anything other than cause intense pain and permanently damage you but probably not kill you

 

[not_a_robot]

Highly unlikely. I don't feel like I can tell you directly which over-the-counter med might work without getting myself accused of "murder", but those won't do the job, buddy.

 

[LogicalConclusion]

-5/10 do not recommend. Unless you really want to suffer. I took idek how much tylenol when I was 16 and I just remember agony and feeling like my body was tearing itself apart from the inside out and I panicked and called someone. EMTs gave me charcoal and then I was in the medical ward for like a week and they had me drink sulfur every few hours. Which, iirc, isn't medically necessary. They wanted to punish me.

 

[Scribble Fan]

Unanimous agreement on this being a bad idea, got it.

Thank you everyone for taking the time to clear this up! I deeply appreciate all the feedback from you guys.