| Product: |
Feminax |
| Date: |
06/07/08 (288 review reads) |
| Rating: |
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Advantages: Once they start working, a decent, fairly fast pain relief for women's problems
Disadvantages: The removal of Hyoscine makes this just an ordinary Paracetamol/Codeine tablet
Contrary to popular belief, I am a woman. Quite a womanly woman in fact with a BIG womanly problem, one that I am unfortunate enough to share with thousands of women world wide. Every month, an aunty of mine drops by, an aunty who I hate very, very much. She's not warm and cuddly, or even pretty. In fact, she's sinfully hideous, annoying and painful. She has been known to make me cry.
Does it ring a bell, ladies?
That thing is aunty flow - well, it's not physically a person. It's the dreaded 'P' - nope, not pain in the butt, although it is that as well. I'm talking about the period or menstruation if you want to be less crass about it.
I would like to apologise to the faint hearted - or the blokes - out there right now; nothing about this review is going to be pleasant. It's the nature of the beast. But, if you do stick with me on this one, you might learn just what being a woman's like. Well, for two to three days of the month anyway!
WHY I TURNED TO (prescription) DRUGS
I can't say that 'the time of the month' had always been an issue for me. In fact, it fluctuated a bit, going from a little bit painful every once in a while to being a full blown explosion of indescribable, unpleasant trauma. I would say that I have a fairly high pain threshold, sure I haven't gone out of my way to challenge it but I don't exactly start screaming when I stub a toe or something! Every month however, it felt like Satan was stabbing at my stomach (which indicates that it must clearly be a man - or at least a woman who doesn't suffer the same problem!)
But when I had finally made up my mind that enough was enough, when it came to the issues of a female kind, and I was tired of the erratic, excruciating monthly outbreaks, I ventured off to the doctors who originally gave me tablets called Mefenamic acid, to be taken in conjunction with paracetamol tablets, the best known pain relieving, over the counter drug.
For the first 12 to 18 months of me taking them, they worked wonders. They were quite effective in a relatively short space of time, and I found that I didn't have to almost stop my life entirely during the days of menstruation. However, the honeymoon period didn't last long. Soon, the terrible side effects of vomiting and fevers started and once again I was on the search for a different brand that wouldn't make me feel even worse than ever.
To be honest, I didn't want to go back to the Doctors; in hindsight, I don't think those Mefenamic acids were the right tablets for me anyway as they cut blood by 60% after I'd already had tests that showed I wasn't anaemic. We'd already had conversations about injections (which I certainly wasn't in favour of as I was worried about the long terms effects on my body) and the Pill but I wasn't ready to take that step just yet. I wanted something that I could take as and when I needed to, something that was accessible but not quite as final as the other two options.
That's when I discovered Feminax the most unextreme medicine for women that there is!
WHAT IS FEMINAX?
Feminax are part codeine, part paracetamol tablets which actively work together as a way to combat pain and feverish symptoms which many women do experience during their period. These ingredients are used mainly for mild to moderate pain; both sources have many key features that help to reduce a woman's worse nightmare.
The paracetamol increases the pain threshold. This means that, whilst they also send signals to the area of the brain that allows us to regulate our body temperature, that it reduces any feverish symptoms and help make us feel a little more comfortable.
However, in the past, I have found that paracetamol on its own doesn't quite get the job done; I have almost always wanted to try and exceed the recommended dosage because it isn't quite strong enough. That's where the codeine steps in.
Codeine is an opiate, which is a narcotic alkaloid. It impersonates natural endorphins by connecting with the opiate receptors which are found in the brain and the spinal cord. Basically, the pain remains but the effects of this are made somewhat more tolerable so you can function a little better than normal! However, there are still many drawbacks to this, as you will discover later on.
As well as period pain, Feminax can be used against other ailments, including headaches and migraines, cold and flu symptoms such as sore throats and even dental pain. Personally, I have solely used it for the benefits during menstruation so can't comment on the other types of illnesses it can help.
DOSAGE AND THE TABLETS
As this product contains 500mg of Paracetamol and 8mg Codeine, it is crucial to remember that you shouldn't take any other product containing either ingredient whilst using Feminax. Other issues such as kidney conditions, pregnancy and if you are taking any other prescription medication need to be addressed with a doctor before you go out and buy these.
The tablets themselves are of an average size; I'm not too bad with taking tablets (thankfully!) but these can sometimes be a struggle to swallow. They aren't that big, being just shy of 2.5cm's long and are white. They have the name of the product on them so that, if they did get separated from their packaging, you wouldn't mistake them for something else.
The reason why I say it is a struggle to get them down sometimes is due to a number of reasons. If you already feel nauseous, then trying to pluck up the courage to swallow some of these is a bit of a trial. They have a fairly slippery, plastic type coating but if haven't taken enough water before hand and during taking them, then you could still be faced with the problem of not being able to swallow them easily.
You must be over 12 years of age to take these which I think is fairly acceptable; most women don't gain this 'rite of passage' much before then and Feminax could be viewed as quite a strong, over the counter drug. The dosage is one or two capsules every 4 - 6 hours and you can't take over 8 in one day.
I'd recommend taking them with lots of water and food; they don't taste nasty but if your body isn't prepared for the dosage then you may find yourself more susceptible to some of the side effects.
Each pack contains 20 tablets in two blister slides of 10. This is usually more than enough for me during my monthly sessions but for some who are less fortunate, they may need another pack.
As they contain codeine, there is also a stern warning included that you cannot take them for more than 3 days at a time as this ingredient is said to be very addictive or even stop the tablets working at all. This can lead to several problems as you have to be quite selective as to when you begin to take these capsules. If you do need them before your 'aunty' arrives, then it is a major drawback as you may not be sure as to how long the pain will last for and when to exactly begin taking them.
MY EXPERIENCES WITH FEMINAX
On many occasions, these babies have been life savers; I have managed to carry on with my day better than I ever could have on other supplements. They are fairly fast and effective and I am relatively reassured that by lunch time on the first day of my period, I will begin to feel more like me rather than a raving, ill lunatic (ok, so there may not be too much difference here, but I do feel like my old self again!)
However, this time frame still has a massive impact on my day to day life; because of school, I use to eat my breakfast around 7 o'clock so considering I had to wait another five hours before I would begin to feel a little better seems to last for days rather than hours. On many occasions I have found myself pacing up and down hallways in hope of easing the congestion in my stomach. This has gotten worse over the years due to one vital reason...one of the key ingredients is now missing in Feminax.
Hyoscine has been removed by the company after studies reported that it was a sedative and could be dangerous if women were doing tasks such as driving or heavy manual work. However, instead of scrapping the Codeine, they have kept it and made Feminax into an ordinary Paracetamol/Codeine tablet. In terms of the drowsiness, I haven't noticed that much difference; I'm as dopey with or without the hyoscine being included in these tablets but have found that the muscle relaxing properties are no where near as strong or quick as they use to be.
But, once I have taken more than one dosage, I have found that these tablets do begin to work significantly better. Until that time though, I am still stuck with the pain that plagued most of my early teenage years.
The main issue that I really have with the tablets is due to the codeine property and its said addictiveness. Usually, the pain associated with 'that time of the month' begins roughly a week in advance. Fair enough but it can be a bit unpredictable which means that I can't begin taking Feminax as soon as I feel the first twinges. Instead, I have to wait until things are in full motion which can mean more days of pain beforehand without any gain. These tablets are vital to be taken during the time but, until that point, it is a case of suffering.
INGREDIENTS AND SIDE EFFECTS
With the exception of the paracetamol and codeine, Feminax host the following ingredients:
Inside the capsule: pregelatinised maize starch, colloidal silicon dioxide and magnesium stearate.
The capsule: gelatin, shellac, soya lecithin, antifoam, titanium dioxide and red iron oxide.
It's important to consult your Doctor beforehand if you believe you are allergic to any of the above ingredients and if you bruise or bleed more easily whilst taking the tablets. This is also applied to any infections such as sore throats and mouth ulcers, or any other ill feelings. I am fortunate enough not to have suffered any of the side effects but then again, if you are feeling genuienly unwell anyway, you would put it down to being 'that time of the month' perhaps rather than the tablets.
Also, it's a good idea not to drink alcohol with these; they are still quite a strong over the counter drug and, by hitting the booze, it will not only make you feel incredibly sick but in addition cancel out any effects that the ingredients like paracetamol and codeine may have that are any good. Shame that I always feel like a nice Strongbow more often when taking these!
PACKAGING
As you can imagine, being a product for women, the box is decorated in bright, cheery pinks and purples - as if a girls reflecting that kind of image if she's desperate enough to resort to these! It's quite a good size though and is small enough to pop into most handbags, if you feel you'd need more than a couple during the day.
However, the blister packs also come with perforated edges around each tablet. You'll still need scissors for this one though in case you want the tablets to spill out all over the place. The foil tells you what's behind them though, including the value of both the paracetamol and codeine and has the use by date embedded into the plastic.
Like all medicines, Feminax comes with a little insert that tells you the basics about the product and what you can and can not do whilst taking them. Of course, it's advisable that you read all of that information before you begin taking the tablets or contact your local medical facility if you are unsure.
PRICE AND AVAILABILITY
Feminax is an over the counter brand that can be found and purchased in your local pharmacy or high street shops. I will warn you know though that it isn't particularly cheap and, considering they have taken the main muscle relaxer out of the mixture, you may want to consider buying pure paracetamol/codeine tablets instead.
However, if you fancy giving Feminax a go, you can find it available in the following shops:
Boots - £2.54 (normally £3.18)
Chemistdirect.co.uk - £3.39
Expresschemist.co.uk - £3.20
If my memory is correct, it retails from my Doctors for about £3.30 as well.
OVERALL
The final question should really be - are Feminax worth the buy? I don't really think there is an overly simple answer to this because it depends on what your needs are.
Before they took the Hyoscine away, I would have recommended these in a heartbeat; they were faster and certainly more effective tablets than my previous choice and really did begin to make me feel a little better within a couple of hours. However, now that stuff's been taken out, I would recommend trying a different formula. The chances are that you could get regular Paracetamol/Codeine pills for about half the price and, if they are dissolvable ones, they may even work quicker.
The disadvantage with the dissolvable tablets are that they are not very easy to take if you aren't at home. The taste of them is ten times worse than Feminax so it isn't always pleasant watching someone trying to swallow them without the urge to hurl! So, Feminax are good if you are on the go but don't be tempted to toss them back like Dr. House does with his vicodin - people give you amazingly funny looks as if you really are an addict!
Overall, I think Feminax are a good buy for quite mild pain. They are more suitable for me after the first day and another good thing is that you don't have to take them for as long as the three days if you don't want to. If you do, you most more than likely not will need something stronger than the type of medication that this version of Feminax has to offer.
However, for those completely insufferable days? Cancel all plans, eat as much junk (because lets face it - who really feels like throwing a salad party at that time of the month?) and watch as much mind numbing, spirit crushing TV as humanly possible. Then, you'll not only begin to feel better but get the sympathy vote too!
(Note: Previously written and displayed on Ciao by myself, MizzMolko).
Summary: A tablet for women at their 'special time' of the month!
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