I know it has been forever since I have been in chat, and I do really miss you
all. However, I have been in such an emotional turmoil here that I am not fit
for man nor beast.
I wanted to let you all know about the medication that I was put on for pain
management.
The name of this pain medication is Sativex. It is a new medication put out by
Bayer, and from what I am told, I am one of the few that have used this
medication. Sativex is actually THC, which is the main ingredient of marijuana.
I was very excited to get this medication, as I believed it would be an answer
to getting off of the Oxycontin.
Sativex comes in a spray bottle about half the size of a nasal spray. I was to
take 2 squirts 4 times a day, which made 1 spray bottle last a little over 4
days. However, I was told that I could regulate the dosage as required to fight
the pain.
I was given 16 of these spray bottles and felt that I had enough to last me for
quite awhile.
I soon learned that you can build up an intolerance to this medication, and I
was soon taking more than was prescribed. I was using 1 bottle of this spray
everyday, and it leaves you with a horrible hangover if you take it at bedtime,
or I actually zoned out if I took it during the day.
This is not a good pain med, and I would advise anyone prescribed this med to
avoid it completely. It does not really help with pain after you have taken it
for a week or longer. It is very very expensive, costing $170.00 a bottle for
about 4 ounces.
My Nurse/Practitioner went back to Bayer to see if they would send more of this
medication to the clinic, and was told no. If I wanted more of this med, I would
need to purchase it from them. I don't know about you all, but I cannot afford
$170.00 everyday for a pain med.
So now I sit and wait for the Government to come through with a section 8 for my
meds ( not the section 8 Klinger was always trying to get ) If and when I get
this approval from the government for my medications I hopefully will get my
life back on an even keel again.
I tried every Insurance company in Canada trying to get Health Insurance, but
was told the same thing by all of them, " we do not cover pre-existing
conditions". So health insurance is not an option for me. When I lived in
Alberta I had no problems getting my meds, as the government had so much money
they subsidized everything.
Here in Ontario the government is quite literally broke, and they will not help
anyone.
I could pay for my meds myself, but that would mean about $3500.00 every 3
months. I really don't have the money for that.
So now I sit in front of the TV all day eating Tylenol 4's like candy.
I need my anti-depressant pills, as I am getting very very difficult to be
around the depression has me down that bad. My wife is afraid to talk to me, and
it takes very little for me to go off the deep end and get into a tantrum.
I no longer have my BP meds, so I am taking aspirin in place of it. This
combined with the Tylenol has me scared ***tless as I am getting some bleeding
in my bladder.
With this house eating up our savings, and the state of my emotions, I am sure
that if the Government says no to my section 8, I will be moving back to
Alberta, or end up eating a bottle of Tylenol to get past this situation I am
in.
I am not telling you this because I am looking for a shoulder to cry on, I just
wanted to explain why I have not been in chat for such a long time.
I hope you all are fine and enjoying this spring weather, as I think of you all
often.
I leave you with something to ponder with regards to the Sativex.
Still wasting oxygen in Canada
Jack