Angry Angry Angry

[dstc_99]

So last year when we moved here I got assigned to the most amazing clinic. They have next to no wait for care and their pharmacy is super fast (less than 10 minutes on a bad day). This may seem like a silly thing but on a military base it is not unusual to have to wait for a few weeks to a month for a regular appointment. Lord forbid you need a specialist. Tdocs and psychiatrists are easy to get if your a Soldier but not if you are a family member. The pharmacy has a minimum of a two hour wait for new prescriptions. There is a 3 day wait for a refill. You get one emergency oops refill and then after that they refuse.

Anyway the only draw back of this clinic is the doctor I got assigned. (Nope we don't get to pick). I have long term insomnia, depression, and migraine treatments documented in my records. So far though she keeps giving me referrals to a Psychiatrist and the neurologists for treatment. The referrals for the Psychiatrist have all been wrong. 1st I got a clinic that only did psychiatrist appts for emergency medicine therapy. The 2nd referral was to a pain management clinic????? Those are just the two I remember there were a couple that I only made a call and got the information that the referral was wrong. I have tried to be patient and work with her though since it is difficult to get a doctor change.

The first six months I was lucky because I saw a urgent care doctor who wrote my sleeping pills, depression medications, and migraine medications for me. The second six months I got lucky and when I went in for a sinus infection I got the same urgent care doctor. My doctor refused to and write the referrals even after I told her I was having some episodes of deeper depression. I went to the referrals and did the sleep hygiene stuff but still wants those docs to write the medications. She has only willingly treated me for high blood pressure and a pap smear.

So last week I called for a refill of my sleeping pills and the flexeril I take nightly for muscle tension migraines. I get an email saying NO she won't fill them and that I need to see the psychiatrist. So I am out of medication. I emailed the patient advocate for help and finally after four days got a call. I then reminded the patient advocate I had filed a complaint about 2-3 months ago about the same doctor and gotten no return calls even after calling them back for support. I got a call within 3 hours and got a new doctor but still no medications. (I was so happy to get a new doctor I didn't even think to get medications).

Now on to why I am angry. For the first 48 hours without medications I was unable to sleep. I still had to work and carpool my easy child though and I am sure I was not safe to drive. I was also extremely angry for no reason. When I finally did get sleep I kept having weird dreams and waking up sweating to the point my sheets were wet. My joints were really sore so I had to shift a lot or I was in pain. No matter how much coffee I drank the next day I was exhausted and felt like I had a mild case of the flu. Oh yeah and my stomach was upset.

Anyone recognize the symptoms of withdrawal. Yep I just did the research and it is well known that Lunesta has to be weaned off of and that flexeril should not be given long term. Thank goodness I am a stickler about taking medications the way they are prescribed after years of working in pharmacy. It took me 2 minutes to google it and find that these are normal symptoms that are not related to addiction just withdrawal without medical supervision!

I am so pissed! Seriously I only started taking the flexeril six months ago when the urgent care doctor suggested having less muscle tension would decrease the onset of muscle tension migraines. I saw the neurologist after that and he changed my migraine medications but left me on the flexeril. I took one low dose at night not the much higher dose people take when they have injuries. I have been on Lunesta for over 5 years and the doctor simply refuses to refill it without researching if it has to be weaned off of. Her freaking clinic Commander called me and never mentioned it. I had to do the research. Thank God I didn't have the severe anxiety attacks and the seizures that are also often related with stopping Lunesta without weaning off.

I am so angry they put my life in jeopardy for no reason!

 

[Wiped Out]

Argh!!! I feel your frustration! How awful! I am so sorry you have had to experience this! ((((hugs)))) I do hope the new doctor will be better!

 

[Scent of Cedar *]

I am angry for you.

Physicians have become arrogant and holier than thou, and I am not sure how that happened.

It could help someone else if you write your experiences out and submit them...but I have had my own dealings with "patient advocates." Their primary function seems to be to keep the wronged patient from accessing anyone outside the system.

Though I was never able to reach anyone, there must be someone in the chain of command who could address these issues.

Someone not connected to patient advocacy.

It is a powerless, scary thing, to be someone's patient, these days.

Cedar

 

[SuZir]

Ouch, your certainly have every reason to be angry! And let me guess: Only way to get them moving would be wrecking public havoc and that is not in your interest. And they know that.

It is awful how much of bad and lazy practising physicians can get away with, because no one listens the patient. or patient doesn't even know they are being mistreated.

 

[BusynMember]

Bah. My first couple jobs ever (and this was thirty years ago) were newspapers and hospitals. I worked at three hospitals in a row for a span of about twelve years and doctors were always arrogant. You should have heard the stories from the nurses, aides, and even housekeepers.Yes, THOSE stories. The pinching, the propositioning, even the sex that took place on the hospital premises and those women who felt under pressure to comply. I hope it isn't like that today. I really do.

I remember standing by the elevator once where two doctors, slightinly in front of me, were talking to one another. One was cracking some sort of joke that I couldn't hear, but I heard the words, "...and other fellow Gods..." and the other doctor laughed. I don't think there was a time since physicians made house calls that being a doctor didn't thrust many of them into major arrogance.

Having said that, the thing about the fear of prescribing certain medications is because so many people abuse prescription drugs. I take Clonazapan, which is considered a controlled substance, and even though I've taken it since forever and the pharmcists know I don't abuse drugs, they have to see my driver's license before I can pick up that script. Many over the counter drugs are now behind the counter too, because THEY are abused. We can thank our drug abusers in this world for making pharmacists and doctors VERY nervous...not to mention the lgal system which probably has many richer clients saying that it is the doctor's fault somebody is addicted and overdosed.

I feel badly for you. I have my nurse practitioner prescribe my psychiatric medications because I've taken them for decades and they are'n't going to change and she is willing to do that. Do you think your primary would prescribe your medication so you can get some relief and not suffer while you figure out who you can go to who will continue your treatment long term?

 

[dstc_99]

Thankfully I should be able to see the new doctor on Wednesday. They are closed Monday and Tuesday for the Holiday.

No way would my current PCM write the medications even for the few days. I'll just keep having craZy dreams. Thankfully the body aches aren't too bad.