Drugs are bad...mkay

[legion]

unclebilly's unfortunate thread got me thinking...

I had my wisdom teeth pulled back in 2002. The oral surgeon prescribed me an antibiotic, a pain reliever, and an anti-inflammatory. As the week after my surgery wore on, I progressively got more and more paranoid. My stress levels were going off the chart. I suddenly felt like I didn't understand my job, and was feeling frustrated and depressed.

I am normally a pretty self-confident person who just takes adversity on the chin and plows throw, so these were seriously new feelings for me. I was confused about how I was feeling, and in a rare moment of clarity that week, I decided that the only thing that had changed was the fact that I was taking drugs.

I'd taken Vicodin before, as well as augmentin, so I figured it had to be the anti-inflammatory that was messing with me. I stopped taking it and threw the bottle away several days early.

The next morning I woke up, felt normal, and went on with my life.

That scary little episode taught me that drugs, even (especially) the legal kind, can seriously mess with your mental condition. I had no underlying issues and I was seriously contemplating quitting my job and losing myself in the bottom of a bottle.

[pavulon]

what was the name of the anti-inflammatory?

[legion]

I don't recall. I only recall the other two because I had been prescribed them many times. I've been prescribed steroid anti-inflammatories and Celebrex since then with no side effects.

[Nostril Cheese]

This message has been brought to you by Budweiser.

[HHI944]

On the flip side of that, a little over a year ago, I had some issues going on in life and went to the doc.. He prescribed Klonopin. I'd always had anxiety issues and anger issues that stemmed from the anxiety...The Klonopin cleared it all. I'm more productive, happier and much easier going these days.

[DonDavis]

Great info. Thanks for sharing.
I've been a bit off kilter for the last year or so. I've had a few injuries, a couple minor surgeries, on and off different meds. Just figured my "blahs" were just part of the recovery. Never considered it could be from the meds. Nothing serious, but reading of your thoughts gives me pause.

Again, thanks.

[Evans, Marv]

I've mentioned my reaction to Vytorin before. I suffered from memory loss, confusion, and finally the muscle pain and strength reduction that you hear about with these kinds of medications. I stopped, let my doc know and felt normal in less than a week. I was prescribed another statin, and I still suspect it slightly affects my memory. When you read the long list of side effects associated with medications, you don't tend to think any of them apply to you.

[onewhippedpuppy]

Totally agree. I've been prescribed Loritabs on several occasions and won't take them, I prefer the pain to the way they make me feel.

[recycled sixtie]

I used to take sleeping pills but not anymore. Why? I feel better not taking them. No dizziness now, no hangover the next morning. Learned to relax more at night(there are books out there on how to improve sleep). It has been suggested that prolonged use of sleeping pills can cause dementia later in life. Anyway feel better now.

[widgeon13]

Originally Posted by legion

unclebilly's unfortunate thread got me thinking...

I had my wisdom teeth pulled back in 2002. The oral surgeon prescribed me an antibiotic, a pain reliever, and an anti-inflammatory. As the week after my surgery wore on, I progressively got more and more paranoid. My stress levels were going off the chart. I suddenly felt like I didn't understand my job, and was feeling frustrated and depressed.

I am normally a pretty self-confident person who just takes adversity on the chin and plows throw, so these were seriously new feelings for me. I was confused about how I was feeling, and in a rare moment of clarity that week, I decided that the only thing that had changed was the fact that I was taking drugs.

I'd taken Vicodin before, as well as augmentin, so I figured it had to be the anti-inflammatory that was messing with me. I stopped taking it and threw the bottle away several days early.

The next morning I woke up, felt normal, and went on with my life.

That scary little episode taught me that drugs, even (especially) the legal kind, can seriously mess with your mental condition. I had no underlying issues and I was seriously contemplating quitting my job and losing myself in the bottom of a bottle.

And we wonder why so many folks are going off the deep end and either suicide or shooting others at the mall and schools. We are a GROSSLY overmedicated society and it will only get much worse because no one seems to care and no one wants to blame what they believe is a cure not a curse.

[pavulon]

Originally Posted by widgeon13

And we wonder why so many folks are going off the deep end and either suicide or shooting others at the mall and schools. We are a GROSSLY overmedicated society and it will only get much worse because no one seems to care and no one wants to blame what they believe is a cure not a curse.

A lot of people don't want a pill for everything. A lot of people demand a pill for everything and will keep coming back until they get it.

[widgeon13]

And they will keep getting it even after they don't need it anymore. It is not only a sign of a decaying society but a terrible waste of personal wealth and taxpayer $$ simply because it is so abused.

[Laneco]

I had a minor surgery done a few months ago. Just had a weird skin thing removed. The surgeon offered to put me to sleep wholly, or do an anti-anxiety along with a local when we met for pre-op. I said, why don't you just numb the area, cut it out and show it to me when we're done?

He said, that's also an option...and that's what we did. I was somewhat taken aback by the first choice of being knocked out, and then medication plus as a second choice. Further, some types of pain killers, specifically the morphine family, make me hallucinate. Scares the snot out of me.

I do not want medication. If absolutely necessary, I will take an antibiotic - but only if I'm REALLY sick as in next step is hospitalization. As a society, we should be looking to life style for wellness, not meds. Meds are the the last choice (and often very necessary) but they should not be the FIRST choice...

angela

[black73]

No, drugs are good. But only if you own stock....

The global pharmaceuticals market is worth US$300 billion a year, a figure expected to rise to US$400 billion within three years. The 10 largest drugs companies control over one-third of this market, several with sales of more than US$10 billion a year and profit margins of about 30%. Six are based in the United States and four in Europe. It is predicted that North and South America, Europe and Japan will continue to account for a full 85% of the global pharmaceuticals market well into the 21st century. Companies currently spend one-third of all sales revenue on marketing their products - roughly twice what they spend on research and development.

As a result of this pressure to maintain sales, there is now, in WHO's words, “an inherent conflict of interest between the legitimate business goals of manufacturers and the social, medical and economic needs of providers and the public to select and use drugs in the most rational way”. This is particularly true where drugs companies are the main source of information as to which products are most effective.

[pavulon]

Sorry for the thread drift here but...I see more and more surgeons who will offer up anesthetics without regard for anyone or anything but themselves. As Angela illustrates, a lot of surgeries do not require the anesthetic a surgeon offers. Surgeons offering to "knock you out" (general anesthesia) for everything may be doing so for a number of reasons (often money, control and/or to mask their behavior or skills in surgery and often times because they own the surgery center and options can take some time...back to money).

You are the patient, the risks and benefits are yours and you need to ask about all of your options. An amazing number of surgeries can be well accomplished under a number of anesthetics. For example, almost every surgery on a limb can be done with a nerve block, hernia repairs can have several options, some neuro-surgery may require patients to respond to commands. If patients can cooperate, they frequently have options with advantages that aren't obvious unless offered...not always but frequently enough to mention it here.

[Joe Bob]

[onewhippedpuppy]

That's a little creepy.....

I often wonder how many on regular prescription meds would feel just as good on sugar pills. It would be an interesting experiment....

[BlueSkyJaunte]

That gif is seriously disturbing.

[svandamme]

We hardly get any painkillers here in Belgium

Had cut the tendon on my left index finger, doc stiched it up and told me to chew some over the counter ibuprofen if i felt like needing a painkiller....

Same for wisdom teeth pulled. over the counter paracetamol.. nothing else in terms of painkillers.


to get real painkillers , you have to be seriously damaged here not just some cuts and grazes.