Stupid Side Effects
I'm actually writing this as I try and begin an art project (just a painting of a kitten), so please bare with me.
I think it's funny how people have to take medicine to care for the side effects of the medicines that care for the symptoms of a disease. I remember taking one NSAID that caused me headaches, severe light headedness, fatigue, muscle ache and later extreme nausea. The light head feeling was so bad that I would tip my head upside down and cover it with a pillow just to feel like I actually had blood in my head. I ended up staying home from school for about a week, with that weekend being filled with- to put it bluntly- vomit. I think the worse part about this all, was the doctor kept telling me to push on. I actually ended up in way more pain from the medicine than I ever have from the disease. My mum, being the smart woman she is, took me off of it after I couldn't move. And me, being as stubborn as ever, eventually fired that doctor after two years of him ignoring the misery of the side effects. Honestly, he did ignore them! I was on Methotrexate injections for nine months when I was about twelve, and I barely remember eight of those months: I was too sick to really remember, but that was probably due to the fact that I was able to participate much in school or do much at home since I was so ill.
I think it feels like doctors sometimes think we're exaggerating side effects, or thinks it's worth the benefits (even if there are no obvious benefits) so they'll tell us to push on. Maybe it's because all their other patients are well and they just want something interesting to listen to? Maybe it's because it's not them? Who knows, but I also have a theory that whatever number you give on the famous pain scale, they'll split it in half. Just a theory and not the majority of nurses and doctors, of course. Just the doctor I had. :)
I think it's funny how people have to take medicine to care for the side effects of the medicines that care for the symptoms of a disease. I remember taking one NSAID that caused me headaches, severe light headedness, fatigue, muscle ache and later extreme nausea. The light head feeling was so bad that I would tip my head upside down and cover it with a pillow just to feel like I actually had blood in my head. I ended up staying home from school for about a week, with that weekend being filled with- to put it bluntly- vomit. I think the worse part about this all, was the doctor kept telling me to push on. I actually ended up in way more pain from the medicine than I ever have from the disease. My mum, being the smart woman she is, took me off of it after I couldn't move. And me, being as stubborn as ever, eventually fired that doctor after two years of him ignoring the misery of the side effects. Honestly, he did ignore them! I was on Methotrexate injections for nine months when I was about twelve, and I barely remember eight of those months: I was too sick to really remember, but that was probably due to the fact that I was able to participate much in school or do much at home since I was so ill.
I think it feels like doctors sometimes think we're exaggerating side effects, or thinks it's worth the benefits (even if there are no obvious benefits) so they'll tell us to push on. Maybe it's because all their other patients are well and they just want something interesting to listen to? Maybe it's because it's not them? Who knows, but I also have a theory that whatever number you give on the famous pain scale, they'll split it in half. Just a theory and not the majority of nurses and doctors, of course. Just the doctor I had. :)
Comments
Post a Comment