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Doc's And Drugs

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Science - Medicine

Written by Sominus Nexus

Wednesday, 02 April 2008

Having recently caught some of the abundant sickness going around, I have spent my fair share of time in the Doctors office, as well as in the pharmacy. I dislike doctors, and even more so prescription drugs.

    Admittedly, Doctors and prescription drugs are a life essential, and while I think that there is a lot of good being done, there is also a lot of bad. The human body is an amazing biological machine. Far more sophisticated than any machine man can (and probobly ever will) build. That being said, I think it's foolish of us to believe that man (or woman) could possible fix every little thing that can go wrong with it. Be that as it may, anyone who watches even a half hour of Television on any given day/night will see at least 3 or more commercials advertising precription drugs. First of all: Why the hell do they need to advertise for these drugs? Is it possible that the woman who has Firbromialga will watch the commercial and suddenly realise "whoa! hey, I have those symptoms! I need that stuff!" Possibly......But realistically, She realized something was wrong and went to the doctor long before she ever saw the stupid commercial. People (generally) are not stupid, they feel sick, or notice something is wrong and get it taken care of. If there is any reason for these advertisments, then it probobly is that there are people out there who can be convinced they need this drug simply by watching these commercials.

   These commercials themselves Irritate me beyond control (all commercials do, but not as much as these). In any given drug commercial, you see completely healthy normal looking people "claiming" to be miserable due to (insert sickness here). Then, (Amazingly!) they are absolutely fine after taking this miracle drug! They go on to have the time of their lives! And of course, they owe it all to this miracle drug. Of course I'm not foolish enough to believe that these people are actually suffering from these sicknesses, they are actors, but this just adds to my frustration. I hate the way television attempts to make real life look. I hate the way it makes people act, and live.

   I belive that a lot of these drugs are good, but that a lot of them are unessesary, and even unsafe. I don't recall ever seeing nearly as many commercials for drugs when i was younger. Hell, I don't remember seeing nearly as many five years ago. What really freaks me out is the grocery list of side effects. I cannot even believe that anyone would even consider taking some of these drugs! You know it's crazy when it takes over a minute to speak out loud (in a commercial) all the side effects! Drowsyness, dizzyness, sore throat, swelling (of various areas) Dementia! Unnatural bleeding! Trouble breathing, Accelerated heartrate, and the list just keeps going on and on. In all this, was is worth treating your original problem? They always state "most people have no problems", and this is supposed to make me feel comfortable? I'm not most people, and I don't appreciate being lumped into a generalized group.

   Naturally, there are always more people who need healthcare, than there are available doctors, hence the wait. While I understand this, I think the healthcare system has become very cold and Impersonal. Every time I've had to go into the doctor recently, I've felt like a number. On top of this, I've felt like the doctor was trying to "hurry" me through the appointment. Is it too much to ask that the doctor actually give a fuck about you? Maybe, oh i dunno, treat you like a human being? Obviously, I cannot say this is the way it is everywhere, I have a feeling that 80% or more doctors offices operate like this. I have even had some doctors who have become "irritated" with me, just for attempting to make a joke to lighten the mood. I'm sorry, but when a man has to feel your testicals, and your penis, and then put his finger up your ass, telling him you usually get dinner first is a hell of a joke! It's funny you bastard!! laugh!

   I have major problems with our healthcare system as a whole. I think it all revolves around money, and nobody really gives a fuck about the people who are suffering. I realize it costs money to produce these drugs, but I know for a fact it costs nowhere near the price they are charging. So what are we paying for? The fantastic service? Research and Development? Or are we paying for the right to live? Who puts a price on the right to live? How is even close to right that the middle and lower classes of our society have to pay through the ass for shitty service, and medications they need to live? While i'm sure the wealthy are treated like royalty, they obviously have the money to take care of anything they should need. I'd be willing to bet they have their own "high class" clinics.   I am sure it is possible to make a profit on these drugs, and still make them affordable enough so that everyone can get them.

   I think people have become too comfortable with the Idea that if something is wrong, there is a drug to fix it. We saw it abundantly in the 90's with Ritalin, and the "ADHD" bullshit. I myself was diagnosed with ADHD, and forced to take Ritalin. While I'm sure there are people out there who have and will benefit from it, there are probobly three times as many that have not. Anytime your kid acts up, give him the miracle drug....Period. Let's not look into why he's acting up, or see if there is anything we can do without drugging him, let's make a profit. Speaking from personal experience with this drug, I can honestly say that I felt worse when on it. It made me feel like I was looking at the world from outside. It gave me a terrible headache, and stomach ache every single time I took it. Eventually, I stopped taking it, against the wishes of basically every adult in my life. In addition to this is Depression. While I agree there are some people who probobly need medication for this, have you ever seen the list of "warning signs" for depression? I'm sure every single person on this planet can say they have some of those symptoms. It's not because we're all depressed, it's because most of these feelings and behaviors are Human nature! Not naturally, but look at what our society has become, look at the unrealistic pressures put on people, look the the state of the world, of course your depressed!! your supposed to be!

         Just for fun, I'm going to end this article with a list of possible side effects for one of the Antibiotics I was prescribed for my Bronchitis.                                                                                                                                                It is as follows:

Generic Drug name:            Sulfamethoxazole & Trimethoprim

            Upset stomach, nausea, vomiting, loss of appetite, hives, joint pain, cough, vaginal irritation or discharge, paleness, unusual bleeding or bruising, the severe peeling skin rash known as Stevens-Johnson syndrome, blood disorders EG: agranulocytosis, aplastic anemia, or liver damage,blisters, unusual fatigue, persistent sore throat or fever, yellowing eyes or skin, dark urine, severe stomach pain or cramping, severe diarrhea, bloody stools, swelling of the tongue, trouble breathing.

       Needless to say I was a little less than happy with this ridiculous list, and probobly drove the pharmacist, and nurses crazy calling them every few days telling them how much I hated taking this crap, and how I thought It was going to kill me! Of course I ended up taking a medication anyways (but not this one!) and I have recovered. However, I still think lists of side effects like this are ridiculous, and unsafe. Is it just me, or is this not okay? Why do I have to pay ridiculous exorborent prices for the opportunity to suffer horribly?

   I think what it all comes down to is that doctors, and the makers of these drugs don't know enough about the human body. They are forced to basically "gamble" with our lives. While the majority will heal due to them "spamming" our bodys with drugs, some will suffer horribly, and others fatally.

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Genki

| Publisher | 04-07-2008 05:38

I here ya man. When I severely injured my thumb earlier this year I got the same feeling, feeling like a number that is. I cut my thumb in half the long way...pretty bad. Well I wasn't seen by a doctor for two and a half hours after doing it. The first clinic I went to was closed. The next one said they don't see people in need of urgent care. Not to mention the paramedics I called who advised me not to take a trip with them due to the enormous bill it would generate. I thank them for that by the way. Anyway, when I finally arrived at the third clinic, a UW Health clinic at East Towne, they made me wait 45 minutes there to be seen. The whole time my thumb being split in two and luckily not bleeding too heavily because I know how to deal with that sort of injury. If I didn't have that knowledge I probably would have passed out from blood loss long before being treated.

Then when it was all said and done they gave me a prescription for antibiotics and painkillers. I did not have enough cash for both. I went to the pharmacy to see if I could get just the antibiotics they informed me I had to buy them both at the same time! They made a compromise by selling me half the amount of antibiotics and the full amount of painkillers. The painkillers were completely unnecessary, though I did have a good time with them.

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