I am to the point of not wanting to deal with any medications or medical devices. Listening to the ads on TV for meds is a horror show when they list the potential side effects which often include death or permanent tics, twitches, or the inability to move some or all of your body.

I also have to wonder about the new medication for hot flashes for menopausal women that has a side effect of....hot flashes. How are you to know if your hot flashes are the from menopause or the cure?

This is why I challenge my cardiologist on the meds he wants me to take. I have so far won the fight on blood thinners and also on the BP med that contained a diuretic. I take enough aspirin to negate the need for blood thinners and I am so not retaining fluid that I had to put my wedding ring in a drawer because I can't keep it on my finger. Add to that my history of kidney stones and I really think it's better for me to keep some fluids sloshing around in my kidneys for a while.

We have to really advocate for our own health. What works for a thousand patients doesn't mean it will also work for you.

The idea of TV ads for medication seems weird to me, surely your doctor with years of training and experience is better qualified to decide on the best medication for you than some random untrained salesman?

(February 2, 2024 at 12:24 pm)arewethereyet Wrote: I am to the point of not wanting to deal with any medications or medical devices.  Listening to the ads on TV for meds is a horror show when they list the potential side effects which often include death or permanent tics, twitches, or the inability to move some or all of your body.

This is the result of wanting extensive testing and fast time to market. During human trials for new drugs, any adverse condition must be reported. On a trial for Xanatific and get a rash on your legs? Report it, even if you goth the rash immediately after walking through poison oak. Got an itchy bump on your arm? Report it, even if you were sitting on the porch swing on summer evening swatting at flies. Got run over and killed by a car? Report it...

If there is a non-zero chance, no matter how miniscule, that whatever you're experiencing could be caused by the drug under testing it's included as a possible side effect until it can be ruled out. Of course, they stop testing as soon as they have approval, so those potential side effect lists never change. It's also why there's so little variation in the laundry list between Xanatific, Choleforica, Mylantrix, and Zynafixit.

(February 2, 2024 at 12:57 pm)zebo-the-fat Wrote: The idea of TV ads for medication seems weird to me, surely your doctor with years of training and experience is better qualified to decide on the best medication for you than some random untrained salesman?

It's gotten so bad here that I would say about half the ads on TV are medication ads.  And every damn one is depressing when they get to the possible side effect that they used to whisper and now say quite clearly.

(February 2, 2024 at 12:57 pm)zebo-the-fat Wrote: The idea of TV ads for medication seems weird to me, surely your doctor with years of training and experience is better qualified to decide on the best medication for you than some random untrained salesman?

Direct advertisement of prescription drugs used to be heavily regulated. Big Pharma lobbying for the... win?

I am not on any medication, unless ibuprofen counts.

As a former cancer patient and heart attack survivor, I don't think I am doing too bad medication-wise. Out of the 4 meds I am prescribed for daily use, three are from the cardiologist and we are still arguing about one of them.

I do have migraine meds on hand for just in case. And sometimes this damn breast reconstruction combined with ribs that didn't heal right cause muscle spasms. For that I have a very mild muscle relaxant also for just in case. One of them will do almost nothing to other people I know...one of them will knock me out. So a refill lasts me a very, very long time and I only take one at night when nothing else works.

Between cholesterol, blood pressure, side effects from donating plasma, acid reflux, and mental illness, I take a lot of medication.

I'm lucky, at 57 I have no need for regular medications. I could get an opiate 'script for the pain of my disabled hip, but with my addiction issues that is a serious no go -- so I learned to live with the pain instead. Outside of that, no need for meds to correct physical dysfunction or chronic ailment.

As an official old fart, I am on pills for for blood pressure and cholesterol, decided by a trained doctor not a quack advertising man. (I no longer watch TV due to the number of ads ruining anything I want to watch)