I agree with you about the resources bit.
I have rheumatoid arthritis, have had since 1998, and during the warmer months of the year suffer little because I take DMARDS which are serious drugs. Serious enough to cause grotesque fetal defects if I slipped up and got pregnant, which is the main reason I believe in keeping early abortions legal. I mostly take methotrexate, which is also used for cancer chemotherapy.
Anyway, what pain I do have from time to time is excruciating, but controlled by steroid injections, and codeine. If I ever need stronger drugs, I know I can have them. My HMO, Kaiser, has a pain clinic. I know someone who is given methadone. Knock wood that I will never need that, but I know it's there if I do.
Why is it easy for me to get strong drugs? Well, I am middle aged, no criminal record, and I have a well-documented disease that causes chronic pain, is well known to cause chronic pain.
People with rheumatoid arthritis, to a man and woman, talk about "the pain." It's a fact of life, like the sun rising in the morning, and the leaves falling in the autumn. Kinda like demons attacking your joints with various hardware implements.
I still get guff from the pharmacists, but not from the physicians.
Opiates are our friends. There are doctors out there who understand that. Heck, there are even crooked doctors who overprescribe prescription drugs because they are corrupt. Bottom line is that you don't need illegal drugs if you suffer from chronic pain, especially if you are respectable and reasonably well heeled. |
