[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.