I've ignited a flame war with the migraine sufferers.
Let me repeat and expand on what I've said in the comments.
There is a difference between migraine and 'migraine'
People with migraines have a MD that they see regularly, they are often also followed by a neurologist and a pain specialist.
People with 'migraines' have no doctor, they may have been fired by several doctors including the 'doctor feelgood' that every area has. They may live 50 miles away and have passed up three other hospitals to come to yours.
People with migraines are on preventative, anti-nausea and abortive meds. They come to the ER as a last resort when their usual medications have been tried and failed.
People with 'migraines' are not on any migraine management meds and will often state allergies to them. In fact they are usually allergic to everything but Demerol or Dilaudid.
People with migraines come to the ER and wait patiently for their turn even though they are miserable.
People with 'migraines' come to the ER with their mom or significant other who comes to the desk every ten minutes or stands in the door of the room and glares at everyone that passes. They are abusive to the doctor and the nurses.
We get warning letters from the DEA about people with 'migraines.' Yes, they do track narcotic usage.
People with migraines, we recognize you. We will treat you, and with compassion and caring as soon as we have treated all the people with life threatening problems first. In the meantime we will give you a dark room as soon as one is free, an ice pack and a nice warm blanket.
people with 'migraines' you suck the life and spirit out of us. You waste our time in your endless search for your next high. You waste precious resources. And if you think we don't recognize the difference between someone with a valid medical complaint and someone that is drug seeking, think again.
Sunday, September 9, 2007
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32 comments:
Thank you. Most people think a migraine is just a headache. Not to understand to we would be more comfortable banging our head against the wall.
Thankfully, I never needed an ER visit for a migraine (close) and "real" narcotics only once. However I appreciate your empathy.
Migraines, fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue, and the ever-ubiquitous "slipped discs."
They all exist, and the legitimate patients with those conditions rarely show up in the ER angling for narcs.
I've said it before and I'll say it again: Really sick people do not bitch and complain.
I've been to the hospital one time for a migraine. It was a horrible experience but at 3am (after failed attempts to sleep it off and medications that would not work) I finally caved in and went.
I think it's a shame really, that people use "migraines" as an excuse to med up. It makes the legitimate people look bad and feel bad for seeking help (who wants to be considered a seeker?)
I've often wondered how people with migraines can complain so much anyhow. When mine attack I just want it to be as quiet and dark as possible.
I recently just had a 'migraine' pt check in for the second time in 36 hours wearing the same clothes (a scrub top) and dark sunglasses. He also managed to slip into the triage conversation that he just got off a 24 hour shift at the fire station. Oh what a relief to know that he is a hero, surely a hero wouldn't fake a migraine for a dose of dilaudid.
I love the little extra things 'migraine' sufferers do to get sympathy from us.
I just want to beat migraine fakers to a pulp. I've had migraines since 4th grade. I've had crappy doctors so I never got to see a neurologist or pain management. I did get a script for narcs but only would have one filled a year. 50 all year I don't think is too bad. My current primary clipped that too. It's amazing what kind of OTC concoctions you can come up with that will take out a migraine! I refuse to go to an ER for a migraine. The ER I have to go to is reallly crappy and been there once for myself and once for hubby and both times really sucked.
Awesome post! Thank you so much.
After my comments to Scalpel, too, I don't want you to think that was sarcasm. It wasn't. I appreciate that you took the time to point out your perspective and what you look for and go through with "migraine" and migraine patients.
Take care.
ERnursey,
Thank you so much for this post. It makes me feel a lot better after reading the earlier one. I understand your point of view. I hope you are not connected to "Scalpel" in any way. He is a total moron when it comes to migraines or compassion and I am very thankful I am not in Texas. I have had migraines for most of my life and I only go to the ER when nothing is helping and I can not take it anymore - usually 3 times a year max. Thank you for your understanding of real migrainers!
ERnursey,
Thank you. I realize my initial comment started a string of comments, and I appreciate the time you took and the kindness you displayed in then taking the time to write this entry.
I'll tell you something else about Migraineurs. We detest people with 'migraine.' They waste ER staff time and resources, cause others to have to wait for treatment, and have created a situation where we are subjected to extra scrutiny because of their acts. Some of us have been known to spot these cretins in ER waiting rooms when we were there because we really needed help and tell them off.
The emergency department is not a substitute for patients' own doctors offices or a drive through for people who want a quick high from an injection of Demerol. It's criminal that it is so often treated like both.
Be well,
Teri
A HUGE THANK YOU with this post. I understand how busy you are at the ER and that you have important things to do. I really hate taking up your time and do everything I can at home or in my dr's office. I honestly feel guilty every time I do come in (even though I really believe I shouldn't have to feel guilty about a legitimate medical need). Sometimes the preventatives and abortives just don't work though, and I have no where else to turn. It is absolutely a last resort though and only when all else has failed.
I've only used the ER once, and I was advised to go there by my Nurse Advisor's line after a drug reaction to a migraine medication. Ironically, by the time I saw the doctor, my 4-week long migraine symptoms had actually resolved, but she still asked me if I was in pain and needed anything. That was incredible. I didn't have to ask or push to get care. SHE BELIEVED ME. It turned a really horrible experience with a med into one where I had found a place I knew I could get help if I needed it.
The other two times I've used emergency care have been through Urgent Care Centers. When the first thing the nurse said to me when I said I had an 18 day migraine was, "we don't give out narcotics here," (in a really debasing tone) I just wanted to cry. I didn't ask for narcotics. I don't want narcotics. They only cover up the pain temporarily. I want it to STOP. Give me something else. DHE. Depacon. Magnesium. Something. (But please don't give me Toradol when I tell you for the tenth time that it makes my stomach cramp something fierce...I still ended up getting Toradol that night because I was desperate...boy was I unbearably sick).
At this point, when I go to Urgent Care, I have my migraine specialist call his dr's orders ahead of me of exactly what he wants me to have (ie: had to go yesterday for a 6 day migraine, but his office isn't open on a Sat, so his nurse reached him and sent some orders to UC). I still waited for an hour, very quietly and patiently, but they were busy, so that was okay.
Honestly, I sometimes want to kick the rumps of the drug seekers just as badly as you do to. They make both our lives difficult. You because they tie up your time and resources and me because they prevent me from getting the care I need. Really, we're in the same boat here.
I wake up every morning and try not to cry over what has happened to my life because of these constantly daily migraines. I went from a normal person one day to becoming a chronic pain patient over night at just 26 years old. I'm facing dropping out of school and losing my job. I can barely stand to do everyday things anymore like grocery shopping or going out to dinner with my husband because of all the migraine triggers they entail. I've become trapped in my own home with the curtains drawn, the lights out, the tv's turned off, etc. Migraine is a very real and terrible disease. It's much more than just headaches.
Thank you for validating the experience of the true migraine sufferer.
Hurray! Finally someone who is coming to the defense of real migraine sufferers. As someone who spent the last 24 hours in a dark room in bed, let me say you are spot on in your assessment! People who say "oh I have a migraine" and then proceed to complain loudly to all do not have a real migraine are NOT suffering enough. Whack em on the head and give them real pain!
I've had to resort to the emerg for the pain in the past. I remember hearing the nurse ask questions but could barely answer them. The effort was too much by that point. She gave me an ice pack, sympathy and a quiet spot until I could get in.
A pox on all abusers of the word migraine. Don't let a real sufferer get their hands on you. If we do then you'll have something to complain about.
To Migraineur above: For constant and long lasting migraines like you describe, if you haven't already contacted them you may want to try the Michigan Headache & Neurological Institute in Ann Arbor, Michigan (described at www.mhni.com as the nation's first comprehensive head pain treatment and research center). If you call them (734-677-6000) they will send you some info and a DVD on their center. I'm not affiliated, but my husband gets complex migraines with weird symptoms, and they've been helpful. They have a good reputation, at least locally.
Thank you! Thank you for taking the time and explaining exactly what you ment instead of just attacking us. I personally hate ER's and hate going. I had to go recently (thank god not Migraine related) but for another reason. The nurse I had was so super nice! Nicer then the ER doc! She made sure I was ok since I was by myself for a while. I know you guys sometimes have a thankless job. I understand it being rough if you have someone hounding you for narcotics every day. Thank you for leaving this post to distingush the difference between us and them. It really ment a lot.
Well, I am sure I am going to create a tidal wave here, but I have to say that many of the people seeking narcotics are every bit as sick as the people with migraines. They are addicted to narcotics and they are seeking a fix to keep them from going through withdrawals. Addiction is a disease as surely as migraine is. These people need help, not hatred. In their own way, they are suffering as surely as people with migraines are.
I once went to an ER room, begging for help to get detoxed from narcotics. They turned me away. I did not want the narcotics; I wanted to get off them, after getting addicted from having gall bladder surgery. I wanted nothing more than help to get off the drugs, but they would not help me. I ended up going back to the ER the next day, this time because I was suicidal. They admitted me into the hospital after this.
I recognize that there are drug seekers who are just out to get a quick high. But let's look at the people who are addicted and who go through painful withdrawals after not having the drugs. Did they ask to become addicted? No, not anymore than a person with a migraine asked to get migraines.
I also understand that, because of the drug seekers in the world - the people who are just out for a quick fix - people with migraines have become objects of suspicion. They are not alone; that could be said of any patient going to the ER with any chronic pain complaint, such as fibromyalgia. It isn't fair, but it happens all the time.
Doctors with any compassion and common sense can tell the difference between a faker and a person who is really suffering. If you are having a migraine, you are so sick, you can barely give them the information they need to get help. You beg for a quiet, dark place to lay your head.
So I say, before being so critical, think of what may be going on for that person who is at the ER, whether he or she is a drug seeker looking for a quick high or a true migraineur in intense pain. I have been on both sides of this coin, and neither one is any fun. Let's just hope that ER docs are savvy enough to spot the difference between the fakers and the people who are in real need of help.
Thank you for considering my viewpoint.
Sister Migraineur and Former Drug Addict
Anonymous--
Thank you for the tip on the Michigan Headache & Neurological Institute in Ann Arbor. I'll keep them in mind for when I have some extra money we can spare on treatment. I only live in Wisconsin, so it's not far away! I'm glad to hear they've been helpful with your husband:).
The best ER visits for someone with migraines are when you get a bed quickly and they turn off all the lights. The best I have ever had was when they treated my dehydration and gave me an ergot, instead of the usual and rather uneffective at that point, toradol shot.
An ER trip is best saved for a last resort, not a pleasant ordeal at the best of times (too bright and noisy). I have had bad doctors and good ones, great stories and bad ones. It is difficult for anyone to understand pain of a chronic nature, it just ends up being quite a bit worse when someone with chronic pain seeks help and is ineffectively treated. I hope to think it does not happen often, that the judgement of staff have effective means of determining who is in pain and who is seeking meds of some sort... but there is bound to be errors given the subjective nature of pain itself. I have always recieved some sort of treatment, effective or not, when I go to the ER. While I may wish there was some sort of protacol for how to treat someone with chronic migraines, I have never had trouble with nurses or doctors with their attitude.
My worst ER experience, in potential of error, was when I had chest pains at the age of twenty and got no treatment at all cause the doctor thought fibromyalgia did not exist... whether he thought that or not, I was hardly interested in his insightful opinion, thankfully I live to tell the tale... I found out from my doc at the time it was just inflamation in the chest joints, a relatively common condition with FMS. Of course, such things don't scare me anymore. And thankfully people don't doubt that migraines exist, just debate on how to treat those nasty ones... and I can hardly blame them since I have struggled to find an effective treatment for quite some time. Sometimes I think those of us enduring long lasting pain, not only wish for that ellusive pain free state, but also just want some validation of their suffering. You tolerating so much of it, that when it gets unbearable you just want someone to take it away, even for a little bit, and not doubt your level of pain or your motives. And ER staff get the blunt of that, cause by the time the patient gets there, they are having troubles containing the pain and that initself is upsetting. I find ER staff to be more sympathetic than most people. It is diffuclt to give sympathy when you don't understand what someone is going through. And that works both ways, since I rather have a hard time sympathazing with someone with a bad headache and just want to tell them to 'suck it up' like I do most of the time.... which would be why I am not a nurse. :)
Thank you! I get so annoyed with people with "migraines" or employers who think it's nothing but a bad headache.
I've wanted to cut my own head off with migraines before!
I've suffered with these since I was 21 and the very first one hospitalised me when I collapsed at work. It was Hemiplegic and I had no idea where I was or what was happening. They first thought I had suffered a stroke. I was hooked up to all sorts of equipment which beeped.
Since then I've suffered terribly with them so much so my current employer had to have a letter sent from my doctor informing them that I am safe to do my line of work.
I suffer from migraines and fibromyalgia and wouldn't dream of going to the ER!
The last time I had a serious, serious, worse than ever, could hardly walk migraine I had someone drive me to my family doctor! I figure he knows me best and can help me quickest without wasting the time of all the good people at the ER.
Maybe it's different in Hong Kong with what meds family doctors can stock, but my doc is amazing and helped me with the pain immediately (and a dark room, of course =)
I guess if my family doc was closed I would have to go to the ER, but while my family doc is around, it's him I go to.
After reading this post I couldn't believe that people actually did this! Unbelievable!
Try and see an Eye Doctor. http://NurseReview.org
Things must be really different in Hong Kong because getting into my family doctor/general practitioner on the same day I call for ANYTHING is next to impossible. Not to mention, my family doctor is not stocked with the meds that I need to break a migraine. He/she does not have IV DHE, Depacon, Compazine, Mag Sulfate, etc. Nor does he/she have an IV nurse on staff to set it all up. They may be able to give me a prescription for narcotics, but that's a temporary and inadequate solution...
If you ever are having the worst headache of your life, you really should be going to the ER. It could be a sign of a much more serious medical condition.
I choose the Urgent Care over the ER whenever I can, but Urgent Care is only open certain hours plus they never seem to be as well-prepared med-wise. Migraines are, unfortunately, unpredicatable. It won't always hit during the week or when my regular migraine dr is in the office or even with the Urgent Care is open. Sometimes the ER is necessary.
we "waste" your preciuos resources??? i am so incredibly appalled at your choice of words in your comment. you obvisiouly have not the faintest idea how torturing a migraine or headache can be. Ive had my life taken away by them,(im only 20 and no im not a drug seeker) the worst ones have brought on thoughts of suicide. but i guess you would like it if we just killed ourselves instead of using precious resources to really find a cure. If you dont want to help people than why the hell are you a nurse?
I'm in a bad place, and sympathize with ANYONE that has real migraines. I've had them for 6 years since high school and have strived through college fighting my way to class even through some of the worst episodes. This last year my trips to the ER were mostly due to hyperthyroidism.. which is rare among my age. It caused my heart to go into super ventricular tachycardia, my pulse racing to 190 beats a minute, my body convulsing off the bed, and the good people helping me hoping that like the times before, the adenosine will bring back my normal rythm before my heart is damaged.. among other unexplained and unpleasant symptoms. Since the time of my diagnosis and treatment, I've had constant severe headaches, day in and day out. The frequency of actual migraines I have though, is controlled with Elavil (non narcotic), and works well in prevention and what I recommend to others who can handle the 2 weeks of grogginess and are lucky enough to have insurance coverage to help restock meds.
My huge problem is that I have a bleeding disorder, and cannot take NSAID's or any blood thinning medications. If I have any internal or laceration typed injury, i'd bleed out. Taking celebrex after my knee scope spread the bleeding/bruising throughout my calf and caused complete incapacity of my leg. My recovery from a simple operation took 3 times as long and only started to get better by getting off that med for pain and swelling. The rehab was tough, but i've broken bones in sports and dealt with pain my whole life, and use natural and environmental methods to provide mind over body relief. Again, same scenario with my wisdom teeth extraction, I bled out of my mouth for over 2 months, amicar didn't even help me clot correctly and I was unable to take aini inflams to help. Needing more care from my dental surgeon in the ER to repair and develop propper clots.
When it comes to my current cronic headaches, migraine strength, though with no sensitivity... I'm now at a loss to find solace. I'm seeing a neurologist that simply thinks they're stress related and they'll go away. He has me on klonopin to decrease stress and help with sleep, it's a narcotic setative that I personally hate and do not take after trying it for a couple weeks. He also opted for one of the only last meds he thinks can 'dull' the pain, which is anexsia.. (a pain narcotic) I am against the use of such medications because since that's my last resort and treatment, my body would become dependent. Anexsia doesn't even help when the pain is at its peak. I do still get migraines about once a week on top of the constant pulsing behind my eyes and temples, and it makes it harder and harder to do the things I love. I am terrified because of my medical history and conditions to go to the ER or urgent care in the ongoing scenario where I am without sleep and drowned by a migraine. Even with my neurologist at the same hospital and having my records there, how do you tell doctors or nurses that you cannot take normal migrain medications or NSAID's without comming across as a narc seeker? People playing the 'faker card' would have some similar story to get narcs on an ER visit, but without the medical records to prove it. It's my only hope of correct judgement. But because of them, when I lose it and cave in to an ER visit for the migraines, which I've done only twice this year, you can imagine the response of the people in charge of my relief.
I'm a 22 year old guy... I'm patient with pain, and I'm strong as far as most go, but migraines are something that I am no match for. I'm a firefighter, I'm going to be out of college with a criminal justice major and have a pre-shot at the ATF soon, but the only uncertainty is when or how to stop my pain. If you know what it's like to walk in my shoes, you have my best. If you're the ones trivializing my condition by being weak enough to fake a migraine, then please.. just go to hell.
I've helped bring opiate abusers and overdosers back from death being in first response ems and fire, but every time I do im stuck in cognitive dissonance.. wishing I could just let them go. Maybe that makes me a bad person.. but again, try walking my path and knowing how hard it is when you have to face immense pain or the sneer of another life-saver and shame of having to accept there's no choice for you but to accept you cannot defeat the pain on your own... Knowing that around the corner in the next room, a junkie is clenching his face and covering the smile produced from defying good people to give him a fix.
I'm going to a specialized pain clinic out of town soon, I hope they have some answer for my pain, and will understand my dilema. Thank you though, to the people that have the ability to identify true pain, and give adequate help to those that need it.
update on my situation... I've recieved no answers yet, but there is a specialized head pain clinic in ann arbor, MI i'm going to head to at the end of this month seeing as the last 4 doctors had no clue as to why i'm still having intractable head pain. Luckily they are in a more liberal area and will not judge or be skeptical as most places are when it comes to migraines and cronic pain. I'm so sick of being looked at as a narc dependant, young, faker. At least I know there are people somewhere who understand what it is to have your life taken away from you due to unexplainable and excruciating pain.. and are willing to do anything to help. I recommend these head pain clinics as they will keep you at the hospital for up to 10 days and not quit the whole period until you are saved, or at least have an answer in dealing with constant or immense head pain. I'm crossing my fingers now, and hope that this is the end of my journey through all this bullshit involving skeptical doctors and a lack of support and adequate treatment for my pain. I wish that there were never people faking migraines and extreme pain so I wouldn't have to suffer even more than just constant immobilizing pain.
I'm super late to the thread, but I thought I'd weigh in, having suffered tremendous migraines since I was twelve (we're talking disoriented, hallucinating, vomiting, banging-head-on-wall migraines).
Anon sez: "we "waste" your precious resources???"
Yes buddy, that is EXACTLY what you're doing. Migraines suck, but you're not dying, you're not going to come to any particular harm, and your condition will resolve all by its little self if you lie in a dark room long enough. You'll certainly live long enough to make a visit to your GP, rather than clog up the emergency room so that people who are in real need can't get help.
ERNursey, I'm greatly enjoying your blog, I'm sure it will be one of my favorites. (BTW I'm the acute appendicitis who showed up in the ER with a novel and some homework to do in case there was a wait, and got cussed out by the mother of the hysterical flailing screaming teenage girl with a migraine when I got taken back first.)
"Yes buddy, that is EXACTLY what you're doing. Migraines suck, but you're not dying, you're not going to come to any particular harm, and your condition will resolve all by its little self if you lie in a dark room long enough. You'll certainly live long enough to make a visit to your GP, rather than clog up the emergency room so that people who are in real need can't get help."
I felt confident that everything that needed to be said had been said until I read your comment. I take it you have never had a migraine.
First, those who have been in the er due to migraine have NEVER been seen before those in "real need" as you so nicely put it. We are always seen after the heart attacks, gunshot wounds, and broken bones, etc. So I don't know how you think we are wasting resources. We always have to wait hours for someone to see us and probably not give us much help. That's why we don't go unless we absolutely have to.
Secondly, we are in real need. My migraines turned to chronic headache syndrome due to scarring on the brain because of all the migraines I have had that medication didn't help. So, yes, we are in real need, and if we don't receive help, things could actually get worse for us. Some people even have strokes and die. Rarely, but it still happens enough to make us worry. If all it took was lying in a dark room, why would we go to the hospital? What about the ones that last weeks and sometimes longer? My first lasted for over a month. What are we supposed to do? Lay in a room for a month and not move? Have you had to deal with chronic pain for days, weeks, months, pain that doesn't even cease when you finally manage to fall asleep? I'd guess not. There is no cure for this and the pain is something most people can't fathom, so I wouldn't say too much more about a subject that you are clearly ignorant about.
I have been BOTH the seeker AND the needer.
I really DO get unretractable headaches which do NOT go away with neither my daily NOR my PRN meds.
I DO have a PRE-WRITTEN protocol which is written by my REGULAR doctor that is a BACK-UP to supplement my ROUTINE treatment to PREVENT the headaches
And YES...... there HAVE been a FEW instances where I really HAVE faked a migraine & simply wanted to feel the bliss of a smack of dope.
True to the form of many ER faculty, THAT is what is focused on far MORE. The bleak HANDFUL of times that I was drug-seeking contrasted to the DOZENS AND DOZENS of times when I had an ACTUAL MIGRAINE that I sincerely DID do everything ELSE in lieu of an ER visit.
As a result of everyone's concern (including MINE!!) eventually my regular doctor drafted a protocol, which basically spells-out EVERYTHING that SHOULD and should NOT be done.
And SHE (the doc) is not ONLY referring to just ME.
In SPITE (rather LITERALLY) of this, I STILL have to endure know-it-all NURSES and naively presumptuous PHYSICIANS who INSIST on showing me how UNwelcome I am!!!
The protocol is designed to REMOVE any DOUBT as well as STREAMLINE the process in the event I that I NEED to go to the Emergency Room.
But NOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!! };'P
More often than NOT, I still encounter various attempts to make things HARDER and LONGER.
Not in the GOOD way, either!! };"0
My protocol not ONLY orders a sizeable amount of Dilaudid.....but ALSO orders BOTH Phenergan AND Zofran (I have a SEVERE sensitivity to the Sacred Compazine and to a lesser extent, Holy Reglan [aketesia!], which is the NAUSEA/VOMITING that is SOOOO awful that in REALITY I both need and WANT the ANTI-EMETICS far MORE than ANY opiate.
And ALTHOUGH that it's USELESS seeing as I have and take the PILLS @ home, I
ASKED the doc to order the MAXIMUM dose of TORADOL.
I am also ordered to get both hydration and O2 therapy as WELL as (get THIS!!)....a SANDWICH!!! Aside from the fact that at the end of an episode of "As The Migraine CHURNS" I am LITERALLY starving from not eating in 2 days, NO headache will ENTIRELY go away if one is under-nourished.
-------It SHOULD be noted JUST how RABIDLY many MD's shove the most COPIOUS doses of Toradol @ a patient in an attempts to prevent the use of the SMALLEST doses of even the tamest opiates (i.e. codiene), given that even STANDARD doses of Toradol can cause MORE bodily damage in 5 DAYS than even "LETHAL" doses of the most POTENT opioids (i.e. FENTANYL!!) can do in 5 YEARS!!!---------
The point I am TRYING to make is THIS:
YES, there ARE people who DO abuse the system AT TIMES......myself INCLUDED.
But SOME of those very abusers are not ONLY the patient's ALONE, but instead the very PROVIDERS who are accusing them of such.
In the vast majority of these instances, it are NURSES who are guilty of being ABUSING the system, in their own special little way.
Due to the fact that, ultimately, THEY have the power........ as THEY have the control over the medications. I have firsthand WITNESSED them do EVERYTHING from deliberately delay dosing (I once saw a nurse who was especially vindictive actually sit down directly across from me & CHAT with a co-worker for 20 MINUTES about GARDENING while my stomach was so queasy there might as well have been a ROCK QUARRY inside there), to PURPOSELY inflicting pain {inadequately and therefore repeatedly putting in IV lines} injecting meds INCORRECTLY (like the time a nurse pushed 25MG!! of UNDILUTED PHENERGAN into my arm, which as some of you know, WILL BURN the area of the vessel), and EVEN taking the OPIOID and switching it with something ELSE. OTHER than the no MORE than MONTHLY visits to the ER for the doses of Dilaudid, I do NOT take ANY other opioids, and therefore VERY much KNOW the FEELING of the aforementioned. And for THAT matter, I do NOT even GO every month. So not ONLY am I THAT much MORE sensitive to the Dilaudid when I DO get it, but I do NOT even SEEK it out as often as I am "ALLOWED" to!!!!
It is downright MIND-BOGGLING to encounter what dire lengths SOME nurses and doctors will go to to "Just Say NO"!!!
In the END, most OFTEN....... the patient ends up GETTING the "narcotic" (I REALLY do NOT like THAT word as it is ESSENTIALLY a way to label ONE drug into ALL "drugs", as a manner of putting a NEGATIVE and even CRIMINAL connotation onto it. The CORRECT word is OPIATE!!!
Yet, due to the unCANNY (and unNECESSARY!) effort(s) some of these providers go to circumvent something that, REGARDLESS of their doubt, I NEED, the time and energy that these very people accuse the "MALINGERERS" of are incidentally MULTIPLIED!!!
My OWN experience with my regular ER illustrates this. The admin there constantly pissed, bitched, and moaned that I NEEDED to obtain a "protocol" written by my primary that ordered everything I needed.
And the kick in THEIR teeth was that SHE (MY doc) quite HAPPILY did so. Not "happily" as in happy to make things easier for the THEM, but as in she was happy to do so FOR ME..... to make things EASIER for ME!! };"p
Apparently.... the protocol made the ADMIN at the ol' ER UNhappy!! I suppose that there were hopes that the protocol would be delayed or never carried-out at all.
I STILL get berated by the staff 3 out of 4 times I go there. My personal "favorite" is when I get one of those "Nurse Omnipotent's" (the one know in fact is MORE keen to what NEEDS to happen even more so than the Charge Nurse and/or the Department Chief) who chides me for "not calling my doctor" (even though the PROTOCOL that VERY DOCTOR wrote is in front of her face!!!) as though calling her (the doc) would MAKE any DIFFERENCE in whether or not the headache would break.
I have had nurses who have given me the aforementioned enter-to-exit stall tactics. In fact, during a RECENT visit, the nurse who was doing THIS was ALSO the one who was having the "gardening chat". The doctor had long-already done his thing, and when I "had the gall" to go to my doorway and ask what I was doing, HE said that he WAS BUSY with a "SICK" patient (nurse code for "you have NO right to be here!!) and when I walked back to my bed and made some smart-assed comment, he casually walked into the room, calmly crouched down and than non-chalantly proceded to lecture me on my composure, blah-blah-blah.
Too busy with a "sick" patient, but not TOO busy to take the 10 minutes needed to make indirect threats regarding behavior that actually WAS called for?!?!?!?!?
And there has been numerous OTHER examples, ranging from merely irritating to lawsuit-worthy.
The bottom line...........to everyone involved:
END THE MIGRAINE WARS!!!
It is a "Cold War" that NO ONE will win!!!!!
A quick little addendum to my above diatribe(.net).... I had another ER "worthy" migraine last night and encountered a physician who REFUSED to give me a medication that is ORDERED by MY doctor who is charged with being my PRIMARY....which is on my PROTOCOL.
Brace yo'selves. The doctor.....
refused.......
to......
give......
me.................
TORADOL!!!!!
He basically cited what I stated above about it, but with even MORE fervor than I have EVER had even when I was vying for ANYTHING to break the sensation of having a dog heart behind my eye!!!
He stated that even ONE max-dose can cause what he dubbed as 'boxing' the kidneys, in other words....DAMAGE.
He even mentioned dialysis once or twice.
Point being, as he stated as well have I..... Toradol is a NASTY substance which is even BANNED in some countries die to it's potency...for HAVOC!!!
Yet, you med "professionals" will thoughtlessly give even MORE than the max of SIXTY in lieu of even TRIVIAL doses of opioids.
To paraphrase ONE nurse who EPITOMIZES this (lack of) mindset:
"It's better to 'fry' your KIDNEYS (permanently) than to 'fry' your BRAIN (temporarily)!!!"
I just got back from my first ER visit for migraine. I went because my migraine doctor told me to go. I thought he was nuts.
But it was definitely worth it. I didn't feel any of the drama described here. Maybe that's because I didn't know to look for it?
Yes drug seeking 'migraine' fakers are reprehensible... Now, what would you think of an ER nurse who intentionally chose a larger needle because she knew it would inflict more pain on her "pain in the ass" patient. I'm just curious because my ER nurse girlfriend just dropped that bomb on me. And no, she's not sorry she did it.
I thank you so much for being one of the caring and compassionate nurses. I am 22 and have suffered from chronic migraines for five years. My case is slightly different though... I hate the emergency room but usually end up there 4-5 times a month. I just wanted to point out that there are true migraine sufferers who are treated frequently in the emergency room... I must also add that this is under the supervision of my neurologist. I had a really crappy neuro doctor for 3 1/2 years and finally switched to a headache specialist along with a pain management doctor also. I had been on the same preventative medications for years so before we set up a plan for emergency ha treatment at home they want me to try a few new preventatives first, so actually my neuro's plan for me is to go to the ER.... I just wanted to make you aware that there migraine sufferers that do have to spend endless nights in the er
Ok yes there are people who just go to look for drugs! Ive had bad migranes for 6 years and i am allergic to everything and irs annoying my mother is the same way..so i do not like that you state that people go seeking demerol and diludid cause there are people who are allergic to alot, im allergic to amox,erythimycin,codine,ibprofen,reglan,tordol,morphine...so please dont judge people its not right!
I went to MHNI for a long time and they are excellent!!!!
I now live in Texas (didn't know how spoiled I was being an hour away from MNHI) and am having a heck of a time finding a doctor besides my GP to work with me. Anyone have suggestions?
There are actually some of us who are severely anaphylactically allergic to all those "wonderous" triptans. But the ER would rather give us toradol than anything that would actually kill the pain. That stuff is useless.
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