We’ve got medications like Lyrica and gabapentin being used for chronic pain when they are designed to help relieve diabetic neuropathy and really, from experience, I can tell you that they don’t do much (for chronic back pain anyway) but make you care a little less because they make you a little sedated.

Rather than treat my severe chronic lower back pain adequately while it took me 2 years to find out what was causing it, and undergoing needless injections, physical therapy and nerve ablations to try to make it stop, I was left to suffer every day, all day long. Thankfully, eventually I was found to have a large fibroid on my uterus (doc said it was the size of a softball) and since my uterus was retroverted and the fibroid was on the posterior surface of my uterus, the fibroid was pressing directly on my spine, which would have never been found if it weren’t for a prolapsed uterus. I put all those worthless (for me) drugs like Cymbalta, Neurontin and Lyrica, along with some others, into my body and the only thing that really helped was Vicodin but nobody was willing to prescribe it because I was “still young”. I understand the addiction complications but I would have risked them to have adequate relief which, 2 years postop, after the nerves calmed down from being impinged for so long, I now have. I am very thankful to have an active, pain-free life again but I am very upset at how all of this was handled. I know my body pretty well and can tell you when something does not work.

All this use of neuro and psychiatric drugs for uses other than originally intended worries me. Now they have a prescription med that “grows lashes”? It’s a glaucoma medication, folks. Are you willing to take that kind of stuff early in your adult life for longer lashes? Without knowing what the long term effects may be? Sure, it may have been out for awhile under a different name but how many people under age 30 use glaucoma medication long term? Do research and weigh the facts.

Two things need to happen, in my opinion: 1. Patients need to do research and not blindly take medications prescribed. Research your condition and alternate cures. If something is not working, tell your doctor. If he ignores it, ask to be referred to a specialist and purse it! 2. Doctors need to ignore the pressure from the DEA (yes, I’ve worked for enough doctors to know how many of them are actually afraid to prescribe controlled substances because the DEA is stepping on their necks not to give out too many for fear of risking losing their licenses) and treat their patients how they know, in their hearts, is right. Patients also must be educated when being given a medication that was formulated for another purpose. They should know that they are being given the medication for a new indication.

As for me, I’ll stick with what has been out there awhile. I am over 40, an intelligent adult, and very capable of making my own decisions. If the doctor feels addiction is becoming an issue with a patient, they can address it then. I’ll go with the older stuff that I know works.

Sorry for the rampage. Touchy subject.