The Over- Doping of America - Are Doctors OverPrescribing Medication?

Remember when you were young? Your parents took you to the family practitioner, and he actually remembered you, your name, and intimate details about your life? He would ask how your family is doing, and sometimes even offer some friendly advice. Well a lot has changed since then. Now office visits are limited to about five minutes, and you leave with more questions than you came in with. If your visit lingers past the allotted time, most doctors become agitated and constantly check their watch, even though they're running behind and your actual appointment time was an hour earlier. Now a days overbooked appointments are common, they cram as many people though their offices, making you feel rushed and intimidated by the pressures. I call this the "Slam Bam Thank you Mam" syndrome; one minute your there for a specific ailment, then bam you leave so quickly you can't remember if you listed all the symptoms correctly.

Having suffered from depression for well over ten years, I have had my fair share of doctor-patient run ins. I currently am seeing a general practitioner, and have been for years. He started me with the lowest dose of Prozac, then gradually raising the dose to well over forty milligrams daily. I didn't think much about it, and continued to take it presently. Years later I found myself suffering from an apparent nervous breakdown. My doctor then proceeded to prescribe a low dose of Xanex, an ant-anxiety drug, and adding to it, a sleep aid. Even in the beginning I felt a little dependent on these drugs, but eventually went back, complaining about constant stress headaches. This time he prescribed a known narcotic, Darvocet. The effects of all the medications in turn caused gastrointestinal problems, leading to yet another helper, xantec, to relieve me of unwanted acid eating away at my stomach. Today the melody of drugs continues and includes, Darvocet, Xanex, Sleeping pills, Xantec, Prozac, and a prescription for acne.

Years later I would suffer yet another low point in life and attempt to take my life, you guessed it, with the aid of my prescribed downers. To my dismay I was urged too make another appointment with my doctor. After the whole five minute visit, I left with a doctor's note in hand and still having access to the drugs that almost ended it all. Not really solving the problem, some of my medications ceased to be effective, and the doses were raised on a continual basis. Hence then the cycle repeats itself, lending and feeding more to my growing addiction and pill popping habits.

Now I need a daily dose of anti-depressants, just to cope with everyday life. In between the Xanex and sleeping pills, I now have to add NyQuil just to get to sleep. I eat Xantec and Gaviscon(a chew-able over the counter anti-acid medication) by the handful, and Darvocet for the occasional headache or stressful situation, which ever comes first. Alas along with downers there has to be something to wake you up; so I keep a constant supply of coffee and Mountain Dew handy for those bad pill hangover days.

I often find myself worrying about running out of certain pills, and without them I am not enjoyable to be around, let alone to live with. My doctor has prescribed so much medication he can't keep straight what I'm taking now versus a year ago. Even more alarming, he never mentions the possibility of counter active effects of mixing several drugs. Thus, could explain why certain prescriptions are not working as well as they should.

A typical day may go something like this: My mother calls and stresses me out, I take a pill, my girlfriend does something so alarming I don't know how to react, so I take a pill, I get to thinking about how I hate to have to go to work, so I take a pill, and the cycle repeats itself with other scenarios and precursors.

Finally, do I think my doctor over prescribes? Yes. Do I think it's my own responsibility to research the prescribed medications? No. In the end I am paying a professional, who should know more about these drugs than I ever could, and besides friends and co-workers are not always the best advice givers concerning prescribed medications. Do I think I need to get another doctor? Yes, definitely. Though there is always the fear another doctor will take all these crutches away and leave me, under medicated and a total emotional wreck. In the end we all have to make decisions to best suit our individual needs, but I think we all can agree most doctors today could give a hill of beans about whether or not they are over prescribing. I believe our generations theme should be "Dope'em and let'em go!", today its not so much caring for your patients individually, but sum up the symptoms and prescribe the "Latest and Greatest" to mask the real problems buried deep within our subconscious.