Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with health and medication

Meds from overseas?

jnnla — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 18:13:35 -0800

Prescription medication from other countries to the US - logistics? I have recently been prescribed Lexapro in combination with a CBT regimen which has been working very well in combating mild depression / anxiety. My insurance company may be reluctant to cover the drug.

This is frustrating in that it seems to be working for me very well, but I can not pay full price for it (over 100 dollars for a one-month supply) and do not want to have to discontinue using it after just starting (about 6 weeks in). As such I am looking for advice on getting it for cheap from other countries (I DO have a prescription for it).

-Is this even possible / Legal? (If not legal, I am still interested in the logistics from an educational standpoint)

-Is "generic" brand lexapro from other countries trustworthy? Is there a way to be sure? (I understand it hasn't been released as a generic in this country - which makes me suspicious of foreign generics)

- Are there reputable foreign companies that provide US customers with prescription medication? Are some more reputable than others?

-Are there people who do purchase prescription medications from other countries regularly, safely and reliably?

-What are the risks involved?

For full disclosure, I am increasingly frustrated with the US healthcare system and in my experience road-blocks are thrown up EVERY STEP of the way by insurance companies. I have never been on any sort of prescription medication before and am extremely healthy, yet I am finding it very difficult to work within the system to get the help that I need (and a treatment that is indeed working thus far). I am ignorant of the other options out there and have heard about people getting meds from overseas....so I'm wondering what the deal is.

Is drinking alcohol while taking antidepressants a serious danger?

meantime — Wed, 06 May 2009 05:25:47 -0800

I take prescription medication (paroxetine) in the morning and also enjoy an alcoholic beverage or two in the evening. The sticker on the medicine bottle warns me not to do this, but I do it anyway. How serious are consequences? I take Paroxetine (Paxil) 20mg daily (in the morning). I also drink. On average 2 beers or glasses of wine after dinner - and about once a week, I go out with friends and drink more than that.

There has always been a sticker on the medicine bottle that says "Do not drink alcoholic beverages when taking this medication." That sounds more severe than warning messages on other medications that say something like "Drinking alcohol can increase the effects of drowsiness", etc.

I am trying to assess the real effects that drinking and taking Paroxetine is having on my body.

I am an otherwise healthy male in his early 30s. I am no longer depressed (I started taking the meds about 5 years ago) but I have fought depression throughout my life and do not suffer any side effects, so I've decided to stay on them.

Will this drug kill my cat?

Braeog — Tue, 23 Sep 2008 18:20:22 -0800

Will the drug that my vet prescribed kill my cat? It's unapproved for use in the US. I have a cat that was prescribed Metacam 1.5 mg/mL oral suspension for post surgery pain after three tooth extractions. I've been reading online that Metacam in oral suspension is not approved for use in cats. I've read a lot of horror stories, and some studies saying it might not be safe for cats, notably in this dosage. Does anyone have any experience with this drug with their cats, or any evidence to support or alleviate these concerns?

There has been no blood work done to determine if there are any preexisting kidney issues, which the manufacturer's website warns against. The cats were adopted a year ago when they were about 6, so there's a fair bit of history unknown, though there have been no visible symptoms of kidney issues apparent.

deciding to be a parent with chronic illness

Anonymous — Mon, 21 Jan 2008 20:49:35 -0800

Having kids or not when you have chronic health issues: how did you decide and come to terms with it? I have severe and frequent migraines that have been interfering with my ability to hold work. I'm continuing to try different approaches to sort these things out and I'm trying to stay hopeful in this process. Now in my early 30s, I realize that I really want to have kids and finally believe that I might be okay at it. But I'm also starting to question how possible it would be for me to be pregnant and/or to be a good parent given how often my migraines affect my life. Given the medication I take preventatively and prophylactically, I can't imagine how I'd be able to endure without it for nine months no matter how much I'd want to. And given the needs of any child, let alone an infant, I really wonder how I'd be able to respond with the pain, no matter how much love, instinct, and help are involved.

These doubts and realizations have been hitting me hard lately. I've been open to being pregnant, to adopting, or choosing to not have kids at all, but I think lately it's the thought that perhaps I *shouldn't* have kids because of migraines that is the most painful to sort out. And I don't like the thread of entitlement in that reaction either. My partner would like to have kids but he'd rather see me suffer less; he is unwaveringly supportive. I feel really muddled in this and while of course, this is our decision, I'd really appreciate reading others' honest thoughts on this sort of situation.

This must happen more often than I think? How did you decide to have kids (in any way) or not if you have distracting health issues? How did you deal with medication? What do you wish you had or hadn't done? What perspectives and insights helped you accept your situation and choice? Thank you.

How much food do my pills need?

talitha_kumi — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 05:23:58 -0800

My prescribed medication needs to be taken "with or after food". How much food and how long after? I have been prescribed mefenamic acid for painful periods. The patient leaflet that came with the pills says that I need to take them "with or after food". It also says I need to take them three times a day at eight hour intervals.

Since I don't generally eat my evening meal at midnight, I'm not going to be able to simply take them alongside normal meals. So how much food is enough to satisfy the instructions? A glass of milk? One biscuit? Two?

Safe Pet Meds?

apfel — Fri, 23 Nov 2007 19:02:41 -0800

Two Part Pet Question: Is there such a thing as a safe medication for pets? AND Is there an online database that can educate me on safe med/health practices? Call me crazy, but just tell me I'm not the only one worried about medications.

My 16 year old dog just had surgery to remove a tennis ball sized tumor on her side. So now she's got some medications to take and I'm worried about possible effects on her health.
I'm generally nervous about medications, human and pet alike. At the suggestion of a vet I met recently on a trip, I've been reading books that uncover some nasty things about the pet food industry, and get the general impression that pet industries are fairly unregulated and downright unsafe at times.
It's not that I don't trust vets specifically. I just want to know exactly what I am giving to my pet.

The vet prescribed Cephalexin so she won't get an infection and she's already on Deramaxx for arthritis pain. I've looked up some information on these but do any of you know where there is a non-commercial website that can give me a full idea of what I'm getting into with these meds??

Seeking advice on choosing (or not choose) between a therapist and a psychiatrist.

Soulbee — Sat, 15 Sep 2007 10:24:09 -0800

I need help deciding whether to continue seeing my psychologist (who i really like) and see a psychiatrist (who I also really like) for med management, or see the psychiatrist for both therapy and med management? Also, does anyone have experience with Harvard Pilgrim HMO's mental health benefits? See several of my recent questions for details but basically last month my boyfriend killed himself in a very shocking way. I was already in need of mental health care, and since then have been receiving it from a psychologist with GP doing med management since the event. However, my medication needs are complex to begin with, and complexified further by the tragedy and trauma of the recent event. I need a psychiatrist and was unable to get an appointment with one until today (nearly five weeks post crisis!). The appointment went well, i thought. this doctor was worth waiting for.

I think my psychologist is great and he's been a great help, and we've recently started discussing and working on the issues that had caused me to think about getting help in the first place, before the death. it's going well and i know i could make progress with him. but i definintely need a psychiatrist and i've found a good one that i clearly connect with, who I can tell would be also very suitable for my needs and a good match in general. he doesn't want to be just a med management doc (he typically provides therapy in addition to med mgmt) but1) said he would do that for me long term if i wanted to continue seeing my therapist and 2) is not pressing me to make any decisions quickly/now about transitioning all my care to him instead of seeing both him and my therapist. However, I can immediately see the benefit in doing just that for a number of reasons -- insurance, financial, simplicity, geography, time management.

But. I'm uncertain and maybe reluctant. I know i'm feeling very attached to my therapist because he was there "at the beginning" and we've started to make real progress, thus a general reluctance to make the switch. no one's forcing me to decide immediately, and i have appointments scheduled this coming week with each. Is there any genuine benefit to continuing to see 2 professionals instead of transitioning all my care to one whom I do feel is very competent to meet all my needs? I'm in stabile but not great mode right now; I don't think I'm at risk for dramatically destabilizing if I were to make a change. But i do feel that it would in some ways be starting over to switch all my care to one, new, person.

I've been in and out of therapy, and on and off of meds, all my life and I've never commited to the process. I really want to do things right this time; one of the last things my boyfriend said to me was that he wanted me to be happy. I've been given the chance to work towards that. Any general words of advice? Comments questions and concerns? Thanks for reading.

Mean green

Anonymous — Wed, 31 Jan 2007 11:32:43 -0800

I think that marijuana may be giving me headaches, but I'm really not sure. My health history: I never get headaches. I never take any type of medication (Tylenol, Advil, etc.), and I am a vegetarian. I also smoke a lot of marijuana.

I've been using, daily, for maybe 4 or 5 months, and it has never interfered with my life negatively, and in fact has been more of a boon than anything, especially in the creative work that I do (we're talking maybe one joint or less per day).

However...

I started getting headaches about two weeks ago, and they have been prolonged, lasting two, three and four days at a time. Now, I feel like I have intermittent headaches throughout the day, with some lasting for the duration of the day. I tried to connect the headaches to something--change in diet, stress, environment--but was unable to detect anything in particular that had changed. Everything has been steady, for months. Sometimes they disappear for a day, only to return the next.

I have no reason to suspect that my marijuana use is causing these headaches--which are more dull, foggy aches rather than full-blown throbbing migranes--but I have to ask myself, is it a factor?

Everyone I know who uses marijuana at the same frequency as me has said that they have never experienced this kind of side-effect.

So, could it be the marijuana? Anecdotal answers are fine, and so are more scientific answers. Also, natural headache remedies would be welcome, too :)

I'll add one other bit here: about one week ago I found out that I have a small cavity, though my teeth are giving me hardly any pain or discomfort at all, and I hardly notice it. I'm having the cavity filled next week. I suppose it could be that, but something seems to indicate otherwise.

OUCH Why do these pain meds hurt my stomach 31 hours later??

sneakin — Thu, 18 Jan 2007 10:14:25 -0800

Ouch! Why does this medication hurt my stomach a day after I've taken it for the last time? Please explain before I have an ulcer or an alien growing inside me or something... So, I was perscribed 500 mg pills of Naproxen. The second time I took it, I got a horrible stomachache that woke me up in the middle of the night. I thought it was unrelated to the Naproxen because I had already taken it once with no ill effect. So, I took it a third time (brilliant, I know). That was yesterday (January 17 at 7:30 a.m.), about 18 hours ago. I am still experiencing really awful stomach pains, alternating with intense hunger pangs, which makes no sense since I have been eating. By the way-- every time I have taken it, I have done so with food.

The question: is this related to the Naproxen? If so, why is it still bothering me 31 hours later. Anyone else experience this?

Where can I find a US doctor prescribing medication via telephone consultation?

concourse — Sat, 04 Nov 2006 15:38:57 -0800

Legitimate online medical clinics that use US doctors to prescribe medication via telephone consultation? Which have you used and can recommend? I am out of the country and need refills on two medications but my US health insurance plan will only fill prescriptions written by US licensed doctors.

Google turned up several such online medical consultation clinics, however, I could not verify their reputability.

Should I claim my psychiatric meds on my insurance?

soulbarn — Mon, 16 Oct 2006 10:09:44 -0800

Here's the situation: I changed health insurance plans about two years ago ago. I have a good plan, based in Californa, that costs me about $250 a month. Since starting the coverage, my major medical expense - for about a year - have three monthly medications which I take for recently-diagnosed bipolar disorder. I have never claimed these expenses on my insurance, nor have I ever put any of my psychiatric costs on a claim. The reason is that I've been advised not to do this, especially with a bipolar diagnosis, since, in the words of my psychiatrist, "once that's on your record, you'll have a very hard time if you need to change insurance plans." (I should add that the diagnosis, while scary, and the resulting treatment, has changed my life so much for the better that I'd sell pretty much sell a kidney to keep paying for the meds, if I had to.) I do want to keep the option to change plans open to me - if I move, or take a job that has group coverage, or for whatever reason.

However, my medication is expensive. Of the three that I don't claim, one costs about $30 a month, because it is available generically. The other is about $125 a month, and is not on the insurance company's formulary, so I wouldn't get reimbursed for it until meeting a (high) deductible. But the third one retails for $150 a month, and is on the formuary, which means I could get it for $25...

The expense, with my premium, is getting so high that I'm very tempted to put the third medication only on my insurance. It is for Lamictal, which is used for bipolar, but is more often used as an anti-convulsant. My question is whether just putting this one - not the other two - on the policy, at a different drug store (I buy my other meds on a cash basis), will constitute that "black mark," considering that I will likely continue to take that medication for the forseeable future. Does the insurance company care or know what the purpose of the medicine is (I could get my family doc to prescribe it, rather than my psych, if need be.) Am I being paranoid?

Just one more bit of background: I've been continuously insured for about ten years; I did claim an anti-depressant for a while, on my old policy, and it did lead to me being rejected by a couple of companies when I switched insurers - though I was accepted by my current company, of couse. I also just had what is probably te first major medical claim of my life (I'm 40 years old) - I had to have surgery on my sinuses, after a year of chronic sinus infections and related asthma attacks, neither of which I'd had earlier. I take two asthma medications, one of which is non-formulary, and the other of which is costly, and which the insurance company only covers about 10% of the cost until my deductible.

So, is the savings of about $100 a month worth exposing the private part of my medical history to my insurance company?

Should I try to bill my asthma medicationto my insurance company, or will they fire me for a prexisting condition?...

soulbarn — Mon, 15 May 2006 18:24:43 -0800

Hi. I recently (about six months ago) switched health insurance providers. I filled out the application form honestly, except for one thing: I forgot to note that I'd received a prescription two years ago for an albuterol inhaler (which is an inexpensive inhaler used to relieve asthma attacks while they're occuring.) At that time, the inhaler was all I needed - I was having infrequent moments of wheezing during intense exercise, and never any other time. My doctor thought having it would be a good safety precaution, and I did end up using it. I also billed the inhaler to my own insurance (which was, in retrospect, probably not so smart, since it only costs about $15 retail.) I never refilled the prescription.

So, when I got my new insurance, I just forgot about the inhaler, since I hadn't used it in almost two years.

Last week, I started having major breathing problems - not just during exercise, but also while sleeping, and throughout the day. My doctor wants to "calm" the episode by putting me on Singulair and the Advair discus. Retail for these meds are about $300, total, for a month's supply.

I was going to put them on my insurance, but I have heard horror stories about companies retroactively cancelling a policy based on failing to reveal a pre-existing condition. Inadvertant as it was, I am clearly guilty of that - though my "pre-existing" condition was a fairly minor variant of it.

I know that insurance companies are not very forgiving. My question is whether I should just pay for the drugs (which cost more than my insurance premium) and hope that once my condition is calmed, I won't need them routinely. My doctor doesn't know how long I could or should be on them; if it turns out to be a chronic thing, then is it wise for me to file a claim - now, later, or ever? If later, then how much later?

(I don't think, btw, there's any way for my insurance company to know that I was using the inhaler back then - I shop at a different drug store, and my doctor has told me that she won't release any past records, if my company asks, and only what's neccessary to support the current diagnosis.)

I know that there are behavioral and lifestyle ways to control asthma, as well. I would like to look into those, so if anyone has advice on that - stuff that really works, please! :) - I'd be grateful, as well.

thanks!

I have a problem climaxing while on anti-anxiety meds

Anonymous — Wed, 08 Feb 2006 09:43:14 -0800

Having a problem climaxing while on anti-anxiety meds. Any suggestions? I have tried various anti-anxiety medications and I always seem to have a problem climaxing while having sex with my fiance. Once I am off them it returns to normal in a few days but then I have panic attacks again. Naturally my fiance thinks its her fault and is upset. The other day we went for over an hour and while she climaxed five times, I got nothing. I often come extremely close. I am at the top the hill but rather than plunging down I slowly cost. I can still climax when I, um, touch myself but I believe that is becasue I can adjust what I am doing very specifically in a way that is not possible while having sex.

So....any suggestions? New positions (we have tried the usual)? Different meds (I have tried Zoloft, Celexa, Xanax, Prozac)? Please help...

As a man, is there any way I can use my health insurance to pay for birth control pills?

tweebiscuit — Sun, 13 Nov 2005 12:28:18 -0800

I'm about to start my first salaried job, and will therefore have health insurance. My girlfriend has none. We'd like a method of birth control that's safer and more effective than condoms, but neither of us can afford birth control pills out of pocket. As a man, is there any way I can use my health insurance to pay for birth control pills? If not, what are my other options? Again, this is the first health insurance plan I've had since I was covered by my parents, and I haven't gotten the paperwork yet, so I'm not sure exactly what the terms are -- but in general, is this something that's doable? Alternatively, what are my other options, short of a vasectomy? It galls me that, in this situation, it seems that my ability to take responsibility for our reproductive safety is limited. (Apart from condom use, which in my mind is not a long-term solution.)

General anti-viral drug

Jimbob — Tue, 18 Oct 2005 01:08:06 -0800

Is there ever any chance of a generic anti-viral drug being developed? Currently, anti-viral innoculations are very specific - a specific one for every year's flu, for instance, generally based on dead or modified versions of the virus itself to spark recognition in your immune systems.

However viruses generally operate in the same way (with a few distinctions like retroviruses) - are there, or will there every be a drug that will kill all viruses in general based on the common structure and way viruses operate? Leading on to this - are there any good viruses that you wouldn't want to kill?

A permanent condition goes away. What's next?

dmd — Sat, 15 Jan 2005 18:50:06 -0800

After twenty years of twice-weekly migraines, Topamax has halted them completely for me; nary even a minor headache in three months. People with narcolepsy (and others with less severe sleep issues) have found a wonder drug in Provigil. Severe snorers, suffering from sleep apnea, arise from sleep studies on CPAP wondering what this strange "awake" feeling is. Cataracts disappear and vision returns. And then there's that other drug, so beloved by spammers.

What happens when a medical treatment truly changes your life? How does your life change when you've grown used to a condition over the span of years, and then in a matter of days it lifts? Any stories?