I am not in a good way today. I somehow managed to overdose on NyQuil two nights ago.
I was feeling sick and in need of some NyQuil goodness to soothe me to sleep. I called my Ex, who was out running errands with his mother. “Can you pick me up some NyQuil?” I asked. Since he wasn’t going to be back for a while, he told me to rummage around the house, as he thought there might be a few capsules lying around. Sure enough, I found two of them!
Since I didn’t have the box, I wasn’t sure what a normal dose was. (And usually, I take half a normal dose, since I am so small.) Of course, I did the rational thing and took both pills. Before long, I was passed out in bed.
Well, about an hour later, my Ex arrived home. Very thoughtfully, he had picked me up a bottle of NyQuil. He poured a healthy dose and brought it in to the bedroom for me. He coaxed me to a sitting position and handed me the cup. “Here you go,” he said proudly.
I was too out of it to realize I shouldn’t be taking more NyQuil and the room was too dark for my Ex to realize the state I was in. Suffice to say, I drank it.
I finally awoke at 3pm the following day, having completely missed work. My body ached. My eyelids were heavy. I felt severely hung over. I spent the remainder of yesterday in slow motion, barely able to perform basic functions like showering or eating.
Today, I am feeling mostly better, though a little jittery still. I’m not sure how long this stuff takes to work it’s way out of your system. Hopefully, it will be soon!
4 responses so far ↓
1 Jen W // Nov 13, 2008 at 8:20 pm
Wow! That stuff is hard core. I firmly believe NyQuil was invented not really to make you feel better, but rather to make you so out of it that you don’t realize how crappy you actually feel.
2 Date Girl // Nov 14, 2008 at 2:01 am
Have you ever heard that song by Dennis Leary? About how NyQuil is a drug and that’s why it has the big giant Q on the box? “NyQuil NyQuil we love you, big f*@3$ing Q!” Hehehe.
I’m sorry you were so out of it-that stuff is horrible. I think you’d be better off drinking a hot toddy than that stuff.
3 dad // Nov 15, 2008 at 6:01 pm
Hi Erica,
I hope you’re feeling better. You can always call home and we’ll send some. Just a joke!! Your writing is impeccable.
Love you.
4 Lindsay // Nov 16, 2008 at 5:44 pm
Nerd alert! One of the active ingredients in NyQuil is Doxylamine, which is an antihistamine often used as a sedative (which you had a pretty hefty dose of, in your small self). I myself can’t take that stuff without feeling hungover for a good 24 hours. The halflife is generally 6-12 hours with the average being about 10. So it’s no wonder why you slept through work and felt comatose for quite a while. I personally like to take DayQuil and at night, I skip NyQuil and take Sudafed (behind the counter, the real stuff!), Benadryl and Tylenol. That way you can avoid the Doxylamine, as Benadryl is Diphenhydramine, which is a completely different antihistamine. Although … you might be one of those folks who is just sensitive to all antihistamines.
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