Raging pissed off
Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Nov 2012
Location: Wisconsin
Posts: 539
Originally Posted by EverySngleNight 
I'm sorry, but unless I'm missing something- I don't think this doc is handling your case well at all.
Why do you have to wait until the 17th? (sry if you already explained and I missed it!)
Why do you have to wait until the 17th? (sry if you already explained and I missed it!)
I called to see if she could just fax the rx to the pharmacy, figured once she looked at my chart, she would see that Ive had it before, to take as needed, and had no problems. Especially since she is seeing me in a week.
And no, shes still not handling it well as I explained I am in the middle of withdrawal and am having anxiety.
But nahhhh, she just wants to save face is all.
Member
Join Date: May 2013
Location: Mid-Atlantic
Posts: 552
Oh, I see! I don't know where my head is at today. Sorry!! Jeeze louise! 8-P
I understand why a doc wouldn't want to call that one in without seeing you- But, i DON'T understand why they would not a) make room to see a patient who is potentially in alcohol withdrawal, or b)refer you somewhere where you can be seen immediately. That's a lil cray-cray IMO.
If you think you can wait it out- by all means! But, you have every reason in the world to seek help elsewhere if you think you need it. Don't hesitate if that's the case.
Sending my best!!
I understand why a doc wouldn't want to call that one in without seeing you- But, i DON'T understand why they would not a) make room to see a patient who is potentially in alcohol withdrawal, or b)refer you somewhere where you can be seen immediately. That's a lil cray-cray IMO.
If you think you can wait it out- by all means! But, you have every reason in the world to seek help elsewhere if you think you need it. Don't hesitate if that's the case.
Sending my best!!
Sober from 11/19/13-1/18/14
Join Date: Nov 2013
Location: Los Angeles CA
Posts: 177
About 50 days ago (yay I've lost exact count of the days) I went through it. I quit xanax (about 1.5 - 2 mg a day), alcohol and norco/vicodin. I was in hell for about a week. Now I'm ok. Nothing has been as tough as that first week but I made it through. You can too if you just remember "this too shall pass". Good luck and we're here for you!!!
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Join Date: Nov 2012
Location: Central America/Florida USA
Posts: 4,064
You have every reason to be angry and upset. I suffer from anxiety too, and as a recovering alcoholic and also a former benzo user, I know the feeling.
But the fact that your brain is kicking and screaming for klonopin - specifically...well, I hate to say it but I'd be a bit crestfallen to hear if you acquire some. Your brain knows exactly how to get that high, and it's convinced you that you need this medication. Your brain is literally rattled here and you're trying to come up with something that will feed your addiction centers. I think if you can just get through these next few days, you'll be really happy that you did this drug-free. If you can make it through this without adding more fuel to the fire, I think a clean break will really help your recovery chances.
Unless you need to go to the ER, or fear you might have seizures, then I'd suggest you ride this out and just be uncomfortable for the next couple of days. Things will settle down, you'll see.
Good luck.
But the fact that your brain is kicking and screaming for klonopin - specifically...well, I hate to say it but I'd be a bit crestfallen to hear if you acquire some. Your brain knows exactly how to get that high, and it's convinced you that you need this medication. Your brain is literally rattled here and you're trying to come up with something that will feed your addiction centers. I think if you can just get through these next few days, you'll be really happy that you did this drug-free. If you can make it through this without adding more fuel to the fire, I think a clean break will really help your recovery chances.
Unless you need to go to the ER, or fear you might have seizures, then I'd suggest you ride this out and just be uncomfortable for the next couple of days. Things will settle down, you'll see.
Good luck.
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Thread Starter
Join Date: Nov 2012
Location: Wisconsin
Posts: 539
Originally Posted by bigsombrero
You have every reason to be angry and upset. I suffer from anxiety too, and as a recovering alcoholic and also a former benzo user, I know the feeling.
But the fact that your brain is kicking and screaming for klonopin - specifically...well, I hate to say it but I'd be a bit crestfallen to hear if you acquire some. Your brain knows exactly how to get that high, and it's convinced you that you need this medication. Your brain is literally rattled here and you're trying to come up with something that will feed your addiction centers. I think if you can just get through these next few days, you'll be really happy that you did this drug-free. If you can make it through this without adding more fuel to the fire, I think a clean break will really help your recovery chances.
Unless you need to go to the ER, or fear you might have seizures, then I'd suggest you ride this out and just be uncomfortable for the next couple of days. Things will settle down, you'll see.
Good luck.
But the fact that your brain is kicking and screaming for klonopin - specifically...well, I hate to say it but I'd be a bit crestfallen to hear if you acquire some. Your brain knows exactly how to get that high, and it's convinced you that you need this medication. Your brain is literally rattled here and you're trying to come up with something that will feed your addiction centers. I think if you can just get through these next few days, you'll be really happy that you did this drug-free. If you can make it through this without adding more fuel to the fire, I think a clean break will really help your recovery chances.
Unless you need to go to the ER, or fear you might have seizures, then I'd suggest you ride this out and just be uncomfortable for the next couple of days. Things will settle down, you'll see.
Good luck.
Grateful to be free
Join Date: May 2009
Location: Arizona
Posts: 3,680
might sound crazy, but I think that biting your lips and feel crazy but making it without meds might really be better.
Then you know that you can get through even uncomfortable times without meds! And you have broken one more habit of "feel like crap/take a pill"
In all your posts I hear the mindset of "stupid dr should be making this easy for me"...ending addiction isn't really an easy or comfortable thing. The idea that if this time we don't stay sober...eh...if I need to detox again no biggie Dr will write me a script...isn't condusive to long term sobriety.
The mindset that you realize that you can live without booze or drugs, even when it's uncomfortable and you form a healthy relationship with a dr and work WITH them towards your own well being...rather than tell them what they should be prescribing you...gets most of us farther in recovery.
I mean, you are DOING it! Focus on that, that YOU are doing this great thing yourself...instead of focusing on how the dr didn't do what you told them to.
You are in the midst of a huge win! Keep it going!
It's great that there are meds when we need them, but it's great to learn when we don't need them. No need to get a cast on before we go skiing because we aniticipate a broken leg.
Keep posting
Then you know that you can get through even uncomfortable times without meds! And you have broken one more habit of "feel like crap/take a pill"
In all your posts I hear the mindset of "stupid dr should be making this easy for me"...ending addiction isn't really an easy or comfortable thing. The idea that if this time we don't stay sober...eh...if I need to detox again no biggie Dr will write me a script...isn't condusive to long term sobriety.
The mindset that you realize that you can live without booze or drugs, even when it's uncomfortable and you form a healthy relationship with a dr and work WITH them towards your own well being...rather than tell them what they should be prescribing you...gets most of us farther in recovery.
I mean, you are DOING it! Focus on that, that YOU are doing this great thing yourself...instead of focusing on how the dr didn't do what you told them to.
You are in the midst of a huge win! Keep it going!
It's great that there are meds when we need them, but it's great to learn when we don't need them. No need to get a cast on before we go skiing because we aniticipate a broken leg.
Keep posting
Member
Join Date: May 2013
Location: Mid-Atlantic
Posts: 552
It's interesting to consider that the AV may be what's causing the craving for relief via pills during your detox. It crossed my mind as well.
I just can't help but err on the side of caution with posts where someone is in their acute phase of withdrawal. It's hard to know, without being a doctor, or being there with someone personally- whether the situation could turn into an emergency. IMO it's really important to keep that in mind on this site- because it honestly COULD be serious and potentially deadly. We can't know through looking at our computer screens what the potential outcome could be. For those reasons, I think it's important that anyone experiencing withdrawal should be HIGHLY encouraged to seek medical treatment. JMHO
I hope you are feeling better today. Glad you're still sober and staying strong! Keep posting! :-)
I just can't help but err on the side of caution with posts where someone is in their acute phase of withdrawal. It's hard to know, without being a doctor, or being there with someone personally- whether the situation could turn into an emergency. IMO it's really important to keep that in mind on this site- because it honestly COULD be serious and potentially deadly. We can't know through looking at our computer screens what the potential outcome could be. For those reasons, I think it's important that anyone experiencing withdrawal should be HIGHLY encouraged to seek medical treatment. JMHO
I hope you are feeling better today. Glad you're still sober and staying strong! Keep posting! :-)
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Join Date: Oct 2013
Location: Midwest
Posts: 4,860
Hey Arctic --
First and foremost, congrats on your accomplishments so far and your commitment to sober living! I'm a Wisconsin native so I've got a special place in my thoughts for another Badger girl working her way toward a healthier life! You can do this, Arctic.
Having worked in health care for many years, and with many physicians I consider to be some of the finest people I know, I write the following with some trepidation. It may not be well received by all. But your post is not the first physician-bashing one I've read on SR, not by a long shot. So, with a deep breath, here goes.
Your physician is not an ******, nor is she stupid.
Is she well trained on addiction? In all likelihood, no. Most physicians, especially primary care docs (family medicine, internal medicine and pediatrics) are focused on the ability to care for a wide range of medical need. All things to almost all patients. The encounters she had before and after you were probably everything under the sun, from infants to the elderly, chronic illness to minor trauma to preventive care. That is health care.
If I am following the thread correctly, you made your request via phone. My guess? She was following a guarded protocol in which blithely signing off on your request went against her instincts, that acquiescing without a physical examination is in itself poor practice. Just "calling it in" to the pharmacy is not good practice, either. Whether you agree or not, I think she had your best interests at heart.
I used to work with a board-certified addiction medicine physician (irony not lost on me, considering I was an alcoholic). He told me physicians are indeed a large part of the reason an addiction to prescription drugs has become so widespread. Their prescribing habits are mostly rooted in a genuine desire to help those in pain. Some stem from simply "caving in" to get an addict patient off their backs.
Regardless of the cause, physicians are increasingly aware of their responsibility to responsibly prescribe. It is a hot topic these days. And, if you look at the disciplinary actions taken against physicians by state regulatory boards, a huge amount of them involve physicians' inappropriate prescribing habits. Reinstatement of their licenses usually involves intense training on prescribing -- or limiting their practice.
Addiction is profoundly complicated, an illness that, as I said, most physicians are poorly trained in treating. Picture a pediatric oncologist being prevailed upon to prescribe the proper course of treatment for an elderly patient with a heart condition. Or a sports medicine doc caring for a pregnant woman. That's how far away addiction medicine is for most primary care practitioners. That's why more training *is* needed because primary care docs must increasingly help meet the needs of the addicted. Does that help in a situation like yours? No. But, again, that is health care.
Please consider visiting the American Board of Addiction Medicine site at abam.net to see if there is an addiction medicine specialist in your area and try to get a referral. If you live near any of the larger Wisconsin cities, you are likely to be within driving distance. Many psychiatrists, too, are better trained in helping treat addicts.
I don't know if this helps right now. I hope that when you look back, you may recognize that your physician -- far from being an ******* -- had your back.
My kindest wishes go to you. The first days are the hardest.
Remember the Wisconsin state motto: "Forward."
You can do this.
First and foremost, congrats on your accomplishments so far and your commitment to sober living! I'm a Wisconsin native so I've got a special place in my thoughts for another Badger girl working her way toward a healthier life! You can do this, Arctic.
Having worked in health care for many years, and with many physicians I consider to be some of the finest people I know, I write the following with some trepidation. It may not be well received by all. But your post is not the first physician-bashing one I've read on SR, not by a long shot. So, with a deep breath, here goes.
Your physician is not an ******, nor is she stupid.
Is she well trained on addiction? In all likelihood, no. Most physicians, especially primary care docs (family medicine, internal medicine and pediatrics) are focused on the ability to care for a wide range of medical need. All things to almost all patients. The encounters she had before and after you were probably everything under the sun, from infants to the elderly, chronic illness to minor trauma to preventive care. That is health care.
If I am following the thread correctly, you made your request via phone. My guess? She was following a guarded protocol in which blithely signing off on your request went against her instincts, that acquiescing without a physical examination is in itself poor practice. Just "calling it in" to the pharmacy is not good practice, either. Whether you agree or not, I think she had your best interests at heart.
I used to work with a board-certified addiction medicine physician (irony not lost on me, considering I was an alcoholic). He told me physicians are indeed a large part of the reason an addiction to prescription drugs has become so widespread. Their prescribing habits are mostly rooted in a genuine desire to help those in pain. Some stem from simply "caving in" to get an addict patient off their backs.
Regardless of the cause, physicians are increasingly aware of their responsibility to responsibly prescribe. It is a hot topic these days. And, if you look at the disciplinary actions taken against physicians by state regulatory boards, a huge amount of them involve physicians' inappropriate prescribing habits. Reinstatement of their licenses usually involves intense training on prescribing -- or limiting their practice.
Addiction is profoundly complicated, an illness that, as I said, most physicians are poorly trained in treating. Picture a pediatric oncologist being prevailed upon to prescribe the proper course of treatment for an elderly patient with a heart condition. Or a sports medicine doc caring for a pregnant woman. That's how far away addiction medicine is for most primary care practitioners. That's why more training *is* needed because primary care docs must increasingly help meet the needs of the addicted. Does that help in a situation like yours? No. But, again, that is health care.
Please consider visiting the American Board of Addiction Medicine site at abam.net to see if there is an addiction medicine specialist in your area and try to get a referral. If you live near any of the larger Wisconsin cities, you are likely to be within driving distance. Many psychiatrists, too, are better trained in helping treat addicts.
I don't know if this helps right now. I hope that when you look back, you may recognize that your physician -- far from being an ******* -- had your back.
My kindest wishes go to you. The first days are the hardest.
Remember the Wisconsin state motto: "Forward."
You can do this.
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Thread Starter
Join Date: Nov 2012
Location: Wisconsin
Posts: 539
I suppose your'e right Venecia I'm really not even an angry person, I don't even usually swear, but in these heights of withdrawal, that changes.
Maybe I am expecting too much out of her, but she also seems to have complete lack of concern for the whole situation, didn't even talk to me, I had to talk through her nurses, so that really added to it too.
I think the right thing to do would be to see a psychiatrist.
Today things are going a little better, and yeah, maybe by the 17th I won't even feel like I need them?
Maybe I am expecting too much out of her, but she also seems to have complete lack of concern for the whole situation, didn't even talk to me, I had to talk through her nurses, so that really added to it too.
I think the right thing to do would be to see a psychiatrist.
Today things are going a little better, and yeah, maybe by the 17th I won't even feel like I need them?
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