First Do No Harm: The DEA targets Physicians who treat their patients pain.
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Dec 5th, 2015Someone from Uxbridge, MA signed.
Dec 5th, 2015Someone from Harrisonville, MO writes:
With tarlov Cyst damage to nerves as I have had surgery I am as healed as I will ever be, pain medication allows me the ability to work. Not pain free but at a level of acceptable pain to work. Without I could not work or do daily functions.Dec 5th, 2015Someone from Pauline, SC signed.
Dec 5th, 2015Someone from Corning, NY signed.
Dec 5th, 2015Someone from Sebastian, FL writes:
We are finding that it is the Insurance Companies that are making the decision as to what you can or can't have. It doesn't matter that your Dr. went to school to be able to treat you as a patient - if the insurance company decides you don't need it - you won't get it. They also decide to cut the dosage for you - not from what the Dr. wrote. I find this very disturbing - they do not sit in an office with you and listen to your pain and know what is going on with your body - only your Dr. does - so how is it that they get to say you can or can't have your medications. I blame most of this on Obamacare - every since it came into effect - patients are loosing more and more. Just not fair at all.REPORT COMMENTS
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No, CancelDec 5th, 2015Someone from Bronx, NY signed.
Dec 5th, 2015Someone from Douglas, MA writes:
In attempting to resolve an issue lawmakers cannot simply take the easy way out. They have done this with pain medication abuse. And the result is that people with legitimate pain are 'punished' and denied their freedom to choose relief from chronic pain. Apparently we in America have lost our freedoms. To prevent YOU from doing the wrong thing and overdosing and dying, I MUST PAY THE PRICE.REPORT COMMENTS
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No, CancelDec 5th, 2015Someone from Orangevale, CA signed.
Dec 5th, 2015Someone from Corning, CA signed.
Dec 5th, 2015Someone from Macclenny, FL signed.
Dec 5th, 2015Someone from Louisville, KY signed.
Dec 5th, 2015Someone from Jacksonville, FL signed.
Dec 5th, 2015Someone from Mariposa, CA signed.
Dec 5th, 2015Someone from Cape Coral, FL signed.
Dec 4th, 2015Someone from Green Cove Springs, FL signed.
Dec 4th, 2015Someone from Stuart, FL signed.
Dec 4th, 2015Someone from Newton, NJ signed.
Dec 4th, 2015Someone from Naples, FL signed.
Dec 4th, 2015Someone from Wilmington, NC writes:
NC is like a 3rd world country. Relocated here to retire, but can no longer. No doctor will help with chronic pain except to stick me with epidural needles. It's medieval! I've decided to leave and go back to my original state of origin because of it. It's that or sue for malpractice and I do not have the economic resources for a protracted fight that will just cause more distress. Can't believe this is what we are forced to put up with as educated adults in the land of the free?!REPORT COMMENTS
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No, CancelDec 4th, 2015Someone from Towner, ND signed.
Dec 4th, 2015Someone from Leander, TX writes:
My wife has had life-crushing chronic pain since 1997. She has been confined to her bed most days since 2005. The only thing that gives any relief is opioid analgesics, in high doses. When she gets enough meds, she can do some nearly normal things like come downstairs and visit with people for an hour or so. But, even on those "good" days she can't walk far, can't sit for long, and eventually has to excuse herself and go lie down. This is no way to live, but she keeps trying. Last spring, my wife's pain doctor arbitrarily cut her dose in half, because "the DEA's cracking down". She wanted to cooperate and did her best, and somehow we made it. But, her pain went up, of course, and her quality of life went down considerably. Now, today, her pain doc has reduced her dose by another 25%. Again, arbitrarily. The practice has said that they're getting all patients off the opioids because they don't want to deal with the auditing and scrutiny that they have to undergo. So, no matter what the patient's real pain is, they can't be on the meds. My wife has been the most trustworthy, honest, and compliant patient any pain doc could want. Always tests clean and volunteers for drug tests when not asked. Always follows her pain contract to the letter. Never asks for more meds, and sometimes reduces her dosage herself if she can. Never, ever has dreamt of diverting her meds to anyone else for any reason. All this should mean something, but it doesn't. It doesn't matter who she is, what kind of pain she is in, or how well she cooperates. Because of stupid politics and ignorance, the "health" of drug addicts who abuse the meds is placed above my wife's health, and she has to go without her life-giving medicine. How is that fair?REPORT COMMENTS
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No, CancelDec 4th, 2015Someone from Noble, OK signed.
Dec 4th, 2015Someone from Springfield, IL signed.
Dec 4th, 2015Someone from Alba, TX writes:
Doctors who treat patients with chronic pain can take precautionary measures. Patients can release medical records to dr and prescription list to drs. Don't punish the ones who really need treatment because some abuse their medicine.REPORT COMMENTS
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No, CancelDec 3rd, 2015Someone from Tallahassee, FL writes:
The most frightening part of this (apart, of course, from the hideous quality of life endured by chronic pain sufferers, for whom there is no relief without prescription pain medications) is how willingly US citizens will give up any and all rights to the government - rights they will never see again. Think about it: since when do mentally competent adults seriously need the government to dictate how much pain they are experiencing, how debilitating it is, and exactly how much pain medication they need per day (because the government is so much better at that than say, an educated and trained physician)?? At least look at the actual statistics relating to the "opiate public health crisis" in this country: alcohol abuse, for example, causes far more deaths each year than the grand total of deaths from all controlled substances (legal and illegal) combined!! And yet alcohol is not monitored, nor is the government stepping into tell citizens how many alcoholic drinks they may have per day. How does this make sense?? For that matter, look at hospital errors. Every year, they account for more than 10 times the deaths caused by narcotic pain medication abuse in this country. And yet the government hasn't tried to mandate how often we are allowed to go to the hospital... But somehow it makes sense to arrest and prosecute physicians for the crime of working to alleviate suffering. Somehow it makes sense to , stigmatize those already suffering from constant pain, and make them feel like criminals for wanting relief. Somehow it makes sense to have thousands of people in chronic pain commit suicide each year because they can't find a doctor willing to risk his livelihood by prescribing the single most effective tool against constant pain: an opiate-based pain medication. In fact, with numbers growing yearly, suicides committed by chronic pain sufferers denied access to narcotic pain relieving medication will soon overtake deaths caused by prescription narcotic pain medication (remember, the "Public Health Crisis" that got all this going in the first place?). So yay to the nanny state for a job well done. In conclusion, I still find myself wondering whatever happened to the country in which people valued their rights and fought to keep them - the right to live lives free of unreasonable and overreachinggovernmental intrusion. 'Cause I'm here to tell ya - they're long gone.REPORT COMMENTS
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No, CancelDec 3rd, 2015Someone from Denver, CO writes:
My daughter has had stomach pain for three months, not sleeping. Up at least once every night. The Dr doesn't want to offer her anything for pain relief or to help her sleep. She has lots very 20 lbs in this period, and the dr says she needs a shrink. I kicked the dr off as her PCP and she still accessed her files. The medical fields has gone down hill. They no longer care that a patient gets better. It's as if most feel they are God and should just do as we are told. My daughter stated why go to the Dr any more, they're not going to do anything for me. The sad thing, she's probably right. But according to them her pain is in her head. These Dr should have their licences pulled!REPORT COMMENTS
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No, CancelDec 3rd, 2015Someone from Stafford, VA writes:
I've been diagnosed with 4 different diseases. I made sure I was given every test, including biopsy and spinal tap, to make sure the diagnosis was correct for each one. I didn't want or ask to be sick. I don't drink and quit smoking. I've witnessed and experienced a BIG increase of patient shamming. I moved to Virginia leaving a state where I had lived for 8 years. The town I lived in was very small so I traveled 1 to 2 hours for doctor appointments. I was seeing a pain management doctor who was stern by fair. He didn't over medicate me nor did he allow my pain to become uncontrollable. Moving to Virginia was medically exciting. Meaning that there are lots of doctors and their close. I found and made appointments with my required physician's. With each call a statement was made saying "they do not prescribe narcotics". This was done BEFORE knowing anything about your condition. Okay. I'm thinking most had received my files and we'll have no problems. I go to my new M.D. and proceed to give her a short version regarding my health. BTW she had my file for 2 weeks. That was a requirement from all doctors. They would review and either accept you as a patient or not. I noticed that none of them knew about my current health conditions but knew about what medications I've been taking. Hmmmm.... She gave me a lookover and asked if I had questions. I advised her that along with disease related depression (in my file) I had high anxiety (in my file) and would like to get a script of something to help. Her response left me and my husband in shock. She asked me if I was suicidal. I said no. She shrugged her shoulders, said something under her breath and ended the appointment. She did give me a script for another condition I have. At this time I was also looking for a pain management doctor. I was referred to one by my Rheumatologist. I had my previous pain doc fax my records. (I had approximately 2 weeks left of my medication.) They said they would let me know when they received them. I called 4 days later and they hadn't received them. My previous doctor said they'd sent them and would try again. I called the next day and was told they still didn't have my file and cannot give me an appointment until the doctor reviews my file. I told her it was being sent and should receive them within 2 or 3 days and asked if they'd call me when they got them and she said they would. I told her that I was running out of meds and would go into withdrawl soon. Not knowing or not having any control I started cutting back on the meds I had. Now my untreated anxiety was very high and my stress was affecting my health. I kept calling. They received my file and put it on his desk for review. I remined her that I would be going through withdrawl within the week. I called everyday. I could feel the signs of withdrawl due to my drastic cutback of my meds. Two days after my script would've been out I called them and wREPORT COMMENTS
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No, CancelDec 2nd, 2015Someone from Culpeper, VA writes:
I am a drug counselor and a patient in chronic pain. I have been on opiate medication for 25 years. I have been able to work have a family and be a productive part of society. I am able to spend time with my grandchildren and walk and play with them. Without my medication I would be bed ridden and suffering terrible pain and depression. Why must people in my condition suffer because a teenager decides to take a large dose of heroin or oxycodone. Lets be intelligent in the laws we make. Millions of people like my self suffer each day and neeed narcotic medication to live a productive life. I am living proof . I have stayed on my medication for 25 years with only minor adjustments to help trigeminal neuralgia and lupus. Why must people like myself suffer? Lets have compassion.REPORT COMMENTS
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No, CancelDec 2nd, 2015Someone from Macclenny, FL signed.
Dec 2nd, 2015Someone from Ruby, SC signed.
Dec 2nd, 2015Someone from Pompton Plains, NJ writes:
I have been in chronic pain since I was in my early 30s. I am now 52. Before I received the appropriate treatment for my pain, I was suicidal. I'm not sure you can imagine why if you haven't experienced unrelenting chronic pain. But think of having a broken bone that is sticking out of your skin. Now, imagine that pain and then imagine it untreated because, well, you'll be an addict if we give you anything for pain. Well, maybe if the broken bone is fixed, the person could heal, but imagine the pain they would be in if it wasn't. Now, imagine that pain 24/7. Do you have any idea what serious ramifications this is going to have on those of us who cannot just "deal with it" or take an aspirin? Again, I was suicidal, I lost 40 lbs and didn't need to lose that much weight, but I couldn't eat. If you do this to a community who is legitimately in pain, there will be an increase in suicide. If you're training doctors how NOT to treat patients...that is BIZARRE and inhumane. Why not teach them to recognize the signs of a "seeker". Why not that? For the income they receive sounds like a reasonable request. We are now entering a situation that will become barbaric ...making people suffer and then die from their pain. Get a better program. My brother is a physician and I have heard that so many times...First DO NO HARM. Well, DEA you're forcing them to go completely against that. I would rather die than be in the pain I was before I was given the meds I needed. What if I was your daughter? Your aunt? Your sister? Mother?? Think about it!REPORT COMMENTS
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No, CancelDec 2nd, 2015Someone from Acworth, GA writes:
After a tick bite at the age of 35 left me I'll, with no apparent cause, as all Lyme and subsequent co-infection tests came back negative on several occasions, my progressively worsening symptoms were eventually diagnosed as Fibromyalgia and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, due to the parasitic bacterial infection and my own genetic predisposition. It has been five years of life shattering hell since that day of mowing my yard and being bitten by that tick. I have lost nearly everything that defined me as a person, including, but not limited to my career, my independence, my short and long term memory, my ability to function as a productive member of my household and in society, my dignity, my focus, my goals, my dreams, my rights as an honest patient, my income, my stability, my security, my will to go on. At every turn, I have explained the great suffering this illness causes me, both physically and mentally. I have been compliant with every treatment that has been handed down, to my most reasonable ability to do so, however, insurance does not cover many treatments prescribed such as physical therapy or certain prescriptions that are used off-label to treat such symptoms as severe fatigue, which I cannot afford to pay out of pocket and still live with electricity and car insurance. At one point, after trying desperately to adhere to treatments that just did not work for me due to issues such as tolerability or side effects or they simply did not effectively manage my symptoms, I was finally given opioid pain medication and for the first time in years, I had small periods of my day that went smoothly & I was able to function at 50-60%. This lasted for maybe 6 months, until a new law went into effect and my family doctor cut me off and referred me to a pain clinic. I researched said pain clinic the way I research every new medication I take, and ultimately, I chose to no longer take opioid medications nor be subjected to the demoralizing and stressful culture of becoming a pain management patient. Yes, it was a personal choice, but made from a place of honor. I chose pain over being systemically abused and mistrusted and dismissed. My thoughts and experiences as a patient are important in my care and I will not sign a contract that limits my choice to a second opinion, or that imposes limits to my choices of treatments, or limits my ability to have discourse with my doctor if I have objections. That is not medicine, it is facisim. This is not the holistic approach that doctors and patients should take to measure, study, and treat pain. Our laws are in direct conflict with our medical science. I am not sure what exactly precipitated the War on Drugs targeting doctors and patients in this country, but it is, without a doubt, killing both medical careers and patients lives. There isn't a day that goes by that I don't consider killing myself. I just turned 40. I am disabled and have nearly 40 more years ahead of me and that scares me so badly that it is unREPORT COMMENTS
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No, CancelDec 2nd, 2015Someone from Pittsburgh, PA signed.
Dec 2nd, 2015Someone from Pittsburgh, PA signed.
Dec 2nd, 2015Someone from Pittsburgh, PA signed.
Dec 2nd, 2015Someone from Noble, OK signed.
Dec 2nd, 2015Someone from Garden City, ID writes:
I have Arachnoiditis, an intractable pain condition caused from damaged arachnoid layer of the spinal cord. I've had this condition since 2004 but was not diagnosed till mid 2005. During that period I underwent two surgeries to try to alleviate the pain. Till then, my pain management doctor has prescribed opiate medications to relieve some of the pain symptoms. Without the opiates I would have committed suicide by now. The pain was so excruciating daily that I could not sleep. Sleeping pills forced me into a medicated slumber but I never felt relieved until I had opiates. I only have to take a few a day, but I need those few a day to keep me from becoming suicidal. My doctor knows this as she has prescribed these meds since 2005. She's told me that the DEA has forced her to give random quarterly urinalysis drug testing to ensure that her patients are taking their medications and not taking street drugs including cannabis which in some states is legal and helpful for this type of pain. I already have a huge problem giving urine for un-medically necessary reasons and forcing my insurance company to pay over $1900 each time. Don't make me have to find opiates on the black market or worse force me to become a suicide risk. "First Do No Harm" And get rid of government forced UA drug testing. It's another intrusion by the federal government.REPORT COMMENTS
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No, CancelDec 1st, 2015Someone from Noble, OK signed.
Dec 1st, 2015Someone from Pittsburgh, PA signed.
Dec 1st, 2015Someone from Cocoa, FL writes:
My husband has Arachnoiditis from a service connected injury. And I'm a former police officer, that's America for ya, taking care of it's Vets. Maybe if you spent a good week with someone in chronic pain, you would understand. But, my guess is the ultra righteous do gooders want to protect those from addiction? You will just cause people to go underground for the meds they need and add to drugs coming into the U.S., smart move.REPORT COMMENTS
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