Know the RISKS of Your Prescriptions!

So, you've seen the doctor due to chronic pain that is all but driving you crazy. Your diet includes a regular regimen of over-the-counter (OTC) pain killers -- Tylenol, Aspirin, Excedrin or the like, yet the pain which is a constant in your life, refuses to completely relent.

It seems that once "middle-age" sets in, every injury, however small, makes a huge impact on the body. We suddenly heal slower and re-injure easier! Yet, stoicly we keep on moving, trying to focus on something other than our pain. A big part of the problem, however, is that when we are in pain we do not get sufficient rest. On the average night, I am awakened five to seven times by pain that literally "sticks it to me" when I move about in my sleep. Improper rest decreases our body's ability to heal!

Looking Out for Number One!

Even though I have an excellent physician, I learned a long time ago that no one cares about my health as much as ME! Most doctors are dedicated to their work and truly wish to be a help to their patients, but...doctors are human too and they are sometimes stretched so thin between their families, their medical commitments and their own needs, that to expect perfection from them would be unrealistic.

In my most recent doctor visit, my chief complaint was of unrelenting leg pain. Aside from arthritis in my knees, an injury I incurred over a year ago in which my knee popped out (truly the most severe pain I've ever encountered), has stubbornly refused to heal. While it may improve somewhat to where the pain level drops to a livable 4 on a scale of 1-10, a full healing never occurs and all I have to do is move wrong and BAM -- the pain is back to the highest level possible, one I call "complete blow-out!"

Anti-inflamatory Drugs

Any number of drugs are on the market today to treat severe pain. On of the more recent favorites in use today by the medical profession is a drug by the name of Diclofenac. I had never heard of it but was recently given a prescription to help ease the severity of my pain. I obtained the bottle of pils from the clinic pharmacy and immediately took one.

I will admit I was pleasantly surprised when within six hours I was nearly pain free! The drug made me quite tired, (another side-effect), but at that point I was just happy to be relieved of the pain.

The next day I took several more doses as prescribed, and enjoyed another day of relative freedom from pain. That night, however, as I was getting ready for bed, I was shocked to see that my feet were obviously retaining fluids. Pushing my fingers into my swollen feet, I was alarmed at how my prints were clearly left embedded in my feet.

Read those Warnings!!!
The next morning, when there was still some swelling evident, I finally did what I should have done in the first place -- I read the insert from the pharmacy that had been included in the bag with my pills. This information sheet gave me a clear picture of just how dangerous this drug could be. Needless to say, I was horrified to read the sentence written in capital letters that began, "WARNING..."

I felt rather betrayed that my doctor had not mentioned that this drug could cause some very devastating heart problems, to include heart attack, stroke and death! The problem of water retention was mentioned and knowing my feet were an obvious sign of that, I promptly discontinued using these pills. To my way of looking at things, it is better to be in pain than to not be able to feel any pain at all.

Looking at various sites on the internet I learned that the warnings did indeed have some clout. Medical studies have been done which confirmed the possible devastating side effects of the pill I was prescribed. I have alerted everyone I know to keep them from possibly taking something that could hurt them.

"Do No Harm"
You may recognize this little phrase as one belonging to the medical profession. In medical school, these three little words are built into the education our medical students receive. While doctors are in the business of keeping us healthy and treating us when sickness or injury befall us, the choices they utilize to do that are always to help and never harm us!

While there's no doubt in my mind that it is certainly their ultimate goal, there are such an abundance of new drugs on the market in this day and age, that the probability of ill effects and harm affecting some of the population is nothing short of guaranteed!

Be Safe
To help your doctor keep you safe while you are under his care, make sure he knows what drugs you are allergic to and what you are currently taking. When prescribed a new drug, before taking the first pill, thoroughly read through the information the pharmacist provides you with -- before leaving for home and ask any and all questions about any concerns you have.

Don't wait for a problem to surface before you act. It's your life, your health and YOU must be an active participant in your health care!