hi

   sorry to hear about your mum. i lost my mum 9 months ago. drivers are used to help keep pain under control. they not just used when ppl are near the end. think it just depends what is put in the driver. mum had one in when she woz taken ill and then when things where under control it woz taken out. but in her last few days befor she passed away she had to have it back in and on the last day she had another one put in her leg because the drugs they where giving her could not be mixed in one driver.  hope this as helped a little

      love claire xxx

Hi nicola,

So sorry to hear about your mum.

My friend is going through her chemo just now and has a driver put in just before each session so her anti-sickness drugs can be administered as she gets so poorly she needs a nurse to come in every few hours to give her injections.  So i get the impression the drivers save your wee body from getting too many injections as the drugs are put through the driver.  That way they can be given all the medication they need to keep them comfortable, pain free, and indeed as sick free as possible.  Maybe it was a blessing for you mum to have it in and not at all a contributing factor to her passing away.  So I hope that puts your mind at ease.

How are you doing?

Come back and keep us posted and I'm sure if you have any more questions we will try and answer them for you.

Take care sweetie

S x

Hi Claire

Thank you for your reply and kind words and sorry also for the loss of your mum.

It has helped, going through the grief process is certainly a hard joinery and I find myself getting stuck with certain elements of what happened and not being able to move on until I have spoken to someone about it, so thank you.

Hope that you are ok today, take care.

Nicola x

Hi Susan

Thank you very much for your reply and kind words, which has been a comfort and sorry to hear about your friend.

The whole grief process is a hard journey and I find that I get myself stuck at certain elements or things that happened and cannot move on until I have spoken to someone about it and processed it it in my mind.

Mum was being sick a lot and on the day was finding it extremely hard to be sick as she was so poorly and I remember now that the hospital said they would try to make her as comfortable as possible without lots of injections here there and everywhere. Mum was not able to drink or swallow so yes you are right it was a method to make it more comfortable for mum and a way to give her the meds she needed without bothering her too much.

I am doing ok thanks, it will be 11 weeks tomorrow since mum passed and I still do not believe it if I am totally honest, but I am taking it a day at a time and going through the processes, letting myself feel whatI feel, but it is hard and the emotions I feel all battering against each other sometimes is a struggle. But this site is helping me, by chatting to people and reading other people posts is a help.

How are you? I hope that you are well and I am sure that we will chat again soon

Take care

Nicola x

Syringe drivers are merely a way of administering drugs in a continuous and controlled way - they don't make the drugs work any differently than taking them orally or by other injection routes. People can be on them for months if that is the best way to receive drugs. There are a few reasons to use a syringe driver:

Problems in swallowing or tolerating drugs taken by mouth

To replace regular injections of drugs

To give a very consistent effect - eg for pain killers etc - drug level doesn't in the same way as seperate doses.

Hope that helps

Luke

Hi Nicola,

Give yourself some time, as you say the whole grieving process is difficult to go through in one big chunk so break it down as you need to, if you are facing a lot of emotions and need to talk or rant or be angry or just need a place to vent then this is the place to be, there is usually someone around most of the day and night so you'll never be alone for long.

Come back and keep chatting to us, we will support you all we can I'm sure

Take care

S x

Hi Luke

Many thanks for your reply and it has helped. Mum was really weak and unable to swallow and was being sick so through people's answers on here and thinking it through I can see that it was put in place to help mum, I am just struggling with it all and certain elements get stuck in my mind and then I cannot move forward.

I looked at your user profile and I am so very sorry about your wife, this must be a very difficult time for you and your family.

All the best and take care

Nicola

Hi Susan

Many thanks for your lovely words, is much appreciated.

Take care

Nicola x

Glad to be of help - there are a few misunderstandings around about syringe drivers and also morphine and other drugs - it has to be some use being a pharmacist!

Thanks for your thoughts - we are all going through difficult times and have to make the best of them!

Luke

Hi Nicola

I have just come across the discussions about the syringe driver. My mum died in 2012 as well and I have always had issues with the driver. She had a brain tumour and took so very ill with the pain. She couldn't have taken painkillers by mouth. We were told at the time that this would be the end. As for you it was an awful time for me. I think it suddenly dawned on me that my mum was going for good. But there was no other way to go forward. She slept through most of it and I still spoke to her but don't really know if she heard me. Losing your mum is the worst thing ever I know. I hope you have moved on in your life. I take pleasure now in her memories and enjoying every moment my family and I are well. I also feel her presence very closely at times. It's as if she's on the other side of a thin curtain bit difficult to explain. Lots of love to you and yours

GILLY