Prescription Addiction: Are Your Parents at Risk?

Alabama Nana­

over 1 year ago

I feel your pain! I too have the same problem, with my mom. I can't even get her to the rehab point. She says she doesn't have a problem that it's everybody else that has the problem. I tried power of attorney so that her Dr.'s would talk to me. One Dr. wrote her a letter (firing her) as you put it. Her therapist confirmed she is OCD and Bi-polar and he suggested hospitalization, especially after I showed him the printout from her pharmacy. It was unreal the number of Dr.s and the amount of meds she was on. Apparently he confronted her on her next appt. and told her of his conversation with me. She must have somehow voided the power of attorney because now he will not return my calls. She would blow my cell phone up everyday calling and leaving messages of 10-30 per day. I tried to have her committed through the probate judge in her county. He and the sheriff are very familiar with her case. She has had multiple car wrecks at least 4 her fault and she still has her license. One ins. co. has already cancelled her policy and I would think after this last wreck the company she's using now will cancel her policy too. Unfortunately, the Judge could not help me because of the fact she does have a long standing prescription drug problem in addition to being Bi-polar & OCD. He could have helped if it were only the mental illness. I think law enforcement have gone easy on her simply because they see this elderly woman missing a leg and is a widow. (If they only knew! I honestly think if they were to touch her purse that contains about thirty pill bottles she would harm them!) I worry about the innocent people that cross her path when she's driving but there is nothing I can do. I finally had to have her phone numbers blocked so she would stop calling. Until she is ready to change.....I can't help her. It's absolutely a horrible position to be in. You are all in my prayers!

If you are a mom and have even older children you just shouldn't be on pain meds that knock you out. At 59 my mom fell and had 2 seizures due to hitting her head and was in the ICU for 5 days, she has no health problems and was Rx'd all of the pain meds, she still says the same BS about don't judge chronic pain but she is on nothing but medicinal marijuana (which I begged her to start trying) and she has just had her year anniversary of no prescriptions but blood pressure meds. Does she still crave? YES. but we beg her to not go to a DOCTOR of all people so we don't see her eyes roll back and her not be able to be alone with her grand kids and live a great life again! We lost her for more than 3 years on pain-pills. If you think it is okay, your just giving your mind and body to the drug companies laughing all the way to the bank. Pain has been around forever and there are natural remedies.

If you have never experienced chronic, unrelenting pain, then don't judge people. so what if someone gets addicted to pain medicines if that is the only way they can have a emi-normal life.

Cathie

over 3 years ago

My mom is a prescription ADDICT. I fear for her. She takes alot of medications and is always looking for an illness or condition to go to the doctor for so that she can get new and improved medications. Anything/everything not just pain meds. I think she believes that there is a pill that will fix everything/anything. She's aware that she reaching the end of her life and I think she is just so very afraid, confussed, and not ready to be old enough to die. I think she is in so much pain physically, mentally, and emotionally and doesn't want to lose control of who she is/was and wants to remain, that she HOPES with all she is/has that it doesn't have to be this way she has turned to prescription drugs. I mean after all they do help her get through each day with some kind of pleasure God knows that life for her is painful and scary as hell. The ones that deal with her physical pain, the ones that keep her from getting so nervous when she gets confused going out to the doctors,dentist, or just out, the ones that help her not be so scared to be by herself, or the ones that just make her sit-watch t.v.-and not think about life at all, the ones that help her not remember where she's at or how many things are different than what she remembers or believes things are and the doctors aren't shy about giving strong medications to the elderly to ease suffering for them. The medications help our elderly ignore the fact that they are being pushed aside by this world because they are elderly. Seriously, think about it. I visited my natural father shortly before he passed away and the nurse at the nursing home brought him in the two cartons of cigarettes that his friend had dropped off for him and she says to him, "you know these are not good for your health? You shouldn't smoke." He said to her. "Shoot lady, You gotta die of something and old age just takes to damn long." His age brought him several illnesses that made his life so painful and uncomfortable that he just hated every single day, every day, no matter what, rain or shine he was in pain all day every day. If I could take some of mom's confussion, fear, and-or her pain so that she could enjoy her days better, I'd do it in a minute cause I rather go through the pain for her than see her go through it. Or feel like a real piece of work because I lose my patience, or get to busy to just be with her and make her feel safer or loved. I feel like such a horrid person for being so selfish and uncompassionate towards her sometimes. She probably feels exactly the same way about me sometimes. I need to stop and love my mom everything I have and remember every second of every day, that confussion, fear, pain, and death are horrid enough, I don't want to be just another horrid thing she has to deal with every day. I kinda got off base a little here, but to end this. So what if they are dependant on prescription drugs, it's probably the only thing left in their lives that they can depend on.