wktkpdr
Journeyman
Reged: 02/16/03
Posts: 52
Loc: Midwest, USA
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Hello, yesterday I was told that my cousin in law (whom is a long term sufferer of Multiple Sclerosis) died because she had been drinking to ease her pain. The doctor would not give her anything for the pain so she just started drinking. The next thing that happened was she her liver failed(I guess that people with MS are more prone to infections too). I wish I could post the Dr.s name here or somewhere on this site, in fact if there were a spot I could probably fill it up with bad doctors. What a testament to a medical system that is supposed to be the best in the world.
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Skylark
Member
Reged: 09/01/03
Posts: 114
Loc: California
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I am so sorry to hear of your loss!!
I DO understand how some people just have to self medicate...I am being hassled by my Psych right now and it really sucks.
My thoughts are with you!!
Hugs,
Skylark
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"No one can make you feel inferior without your consent"....-E. Roosevelt
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quincy
Board Addict
Reged: 11/07/02
Posts: 333
Loc: pacific northwest
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My God!! If a person with a debilitating disease such as MS can't get any pain or anxiety meds, I don't know what kind of doc she was going to!! I hate to hear stories like this, there are go many alternatives if your doc won't give you what you need to live. Find another doc-obvious-but so many people don't realize that YOU are in charge, not the doc, you can fire him and hire another. You wouldn't keep paying a lawyer who wasn't doing anything for you would you? Doctors are NOT Gods!! They have a few more years of specialized school than the rest of us. They are not morally better than we, nor are they always right. I work in a clinic where the residents are "practicing" on the patients and they are their primary care docs. Half the time they don't know what the hell they are doing- It scares me that I have someone fresh off an internship asking me about a patients diagnosis-Im a Lab tech-and Im usually right more than they are!!
If you can't find a good doctor, then go an OP or demand a referral to a pain clinic. You can tell your PCP that you are in pain and you would like to see a specialist who deals with pain. A pain doctor is just like any other specialist a doctor should send you to if what you have is out of the scope of their knowledge. A PCP is not going to treat someone who needs a bypass or has an stroke, they would send them to a cardiologist. A pain doc consult should fall under the same principal. For those of you who have uncaring PCPs find a new one or ask for a referral to PM!! Using OP's is sometimes unecessary, and so expensive. Plus after awhile those Norco's won't hold you if you have a chronic condition.
Im sorry for your loss, I just hate to see this happen, its so unecessary and such a waste.
Sarah
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Sky_Queen
Fly Girl
Reged: 12/03/02
Posts: 1966
Loc: Texas
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How sad and I'm very sorry for your loss. What a sorry society we live in.
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DTZNuff
Board Addict
Reged: 11/16/02
Posts: 312
Loc: B.F.E.
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How terrible that that doctor wasn't willing to help. I wish you the best and I hope that justice will be done.
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 Serenity Now, Insanity Later!
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IMSUSCOT1
Threadhead
Reged: 10/23/02
Posts: 882
Loc: usa
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I'm so sorry for your loss! If your cousin was only a famous radio talk show host, famous, young, spoiled son of a 70's rock star, she could have had all the "treatement" she needed....but, she remained true to the law, and lost herself!
This makes me physically ill, it's just so awful!
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Reel_X_4U
Enthusiast
Reged: 04/24/03
Posts: 255
Loc: Queens, New York City
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I'm so sorry wktkpdr about the loss of your cousin. What so is wrong with medicla society, that someone with MS can't get meds for pain relief, for one thing MS is an auto-immune disorder, where the body's normal immune response goes awry, and attacks the myelin sheath that covers nerves for protection and to improve nerve conduction. When you're talking about nerve pain, you're talking about moderate to severe pain, since you're actually attacking the structure which is involved with transmission of sensation, pain being one of them (and the degree can vary), most Docs prescribe narcotics and muscle relaxants to treat the symptoms of MS. I don't "WHY!!!" this particular doc refused to do, forcing an individual to alcohol just so to relieve the pain, it's like taking a step backwards, like when docs used extremely high (NEAR DEATH DOSAGES, along with brute physical force by a number of individuals, to keep the person in place) dosages of alcohol for surguical purposes. It wasn't until opiates and local and general anestentics were finally discovered and produced, which made it easier for "Docs" to do their job without interference from the patient, due to the natural instinct to draw away from the source of pain. Even though I detest the legal system, I would take this to a lawyer, afterall someone lost their life, due to the neglilence of a doctor to aquedately treat a patient's pain, when a person's condition has been diagnosed, which means it was documented, and of course, the patient is in pain, and needs strong strong pain medication to control that pain, along with the fact that you probably the involvement of muscle experiencing pain and some loss of functionality, for "GODS" sake treat the patient, since there is no cure for MS, the least you can do is to keep the patient comfortable and let them live a pain-free life, as she the right to, just like those you don't have any major illnesses to contend. Anyway don't wdtkpdr take this lying-down, obtain the medical records, and find yourself a good lawyer. Once again I'm very sorry about your cousin, having to use alcohol for pain-relief. Don't worry what comes around, will go around. I hope you feel better and hopefully the "Doc" will get his, sonner or later!!!!
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Some men see things as they are and say "WHY"!!
Some men see things as they are and say "WHY"!!
I've dreamt of things that never were, and say "WHY NOT"!!
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jenbabe
Member
Reged: 02/04/02
Posts: 139
Loc: nashville TN
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I too am so sorry for your loss. I have seen this kind of thing happen too many times. As a medico myself I find that I too have been ignored, brushed off and generally treated like Best if kept off the board trying to get treatment. If I can't get decent treatment then what hope does the average CP person have?
Not to bash (love the place - esp the squirrels!) but having come from Australia to the USA, I think the politicians running this 'system' need a swift kick up the behind. They are behind what big brother tactics have forced most docs to fear prescribing meds. In NO way does this excuse this particular docs complete and utter disregard for treating an obviously suffering person. I think it's heartbreaking knowing someone didn't have to die suffering. Maybe this doc forgot the 'relieve suffering' part of their oath. Seeing a lawyer won't bring your relative back but it might save someone else from having to suffer the same cruel fate. Again, my condolences 
jen
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chevygal
Veteran
Reged: 04/28/03
Posts: 504
Loc: Way down south
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wktkpdr
I am truly sorry for your loss and what your cousin had to endure. My best to you and your family.
sincerely
chevygal
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mnpd
Journeyman
Reged: 09/25/03
Posts: 70
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My wife has MS. It's a cruel disease, sometimes she is numb, sometimes in great pain. Her dreaded but necessary Rebif injections cause severe chills, shakes and nausea 2-3 hours after each shot that last throughout the night.
Lately, I've been giving her a half-dose of left over Mepergan with each shot and her relief has been remarkable.
On the last visit, her MS doctor threw a fit over her taking the pain killer and tried to lecture us both about the horrors of addiction. I wasn't in the mood, and cut him short, reminding him that half-doses of demerol x3 weekly for genuine pain wasn't going to make a junkie out of anyone.
Also, my nephew is a pharmacist who advises for a large hospital. He assures me that doctors hold their personal pains and the pains of their family to different standards than those of their patients. Doctor's don't suffer; patients are allowed to.
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Same user as "Unreal", "Queeny", "LindaKaye", "Tammylynn" and others. Trying to create trouble at our site and to promote her interests. The main advantage of the VIP area is that we can keep these "pests" from coming back to play games.
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Jordan530
WonderWoman
Reged: 11/20/02
Posts: 597
Loc: The Left Coast of Florida
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OMG, how tragic. I am so sorry. My deepest condolences to your family.
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'A balanced diet is a cookie in each hand'
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antique
Banned
Reged: 09/01/03
Posts: 215
Loc: east coast
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Here's an article you might find interesting related to a doctor's legal liability for not treating pain.
http://www.partnersagainstpain.com/html/profed/pmc/pe_pmc4.htm?pg=7453§ion=pe_pmc4
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night_shade
Threadhead
Reged: 08/26/03
Posts: 907
Loc: The State of Hockey
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My condolences as well.
When my grandmother was in hospice dying from Stage IV ovarian cancer, the doc ordered TYLENOL 3 for her pain. My mom-in-law (a veterinarian) made the comment to my grandmother's doctor that "we give more pain medications to DOGS"...this was enough to make my gram's doc change her meds to the fentanyl patch. She passed away comfortably a few days later.
Such a sad place when doctors cease to be sympathetic to their patients' pain!
Best wishes!
night_shade
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Never underestimate the predictability of stupidity.
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prettyday
Threadhead
Reged: 02/09/03
Posts: 924
Loc: Coastal Sage Scrub
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All my wishes for her peace and happiness now go out to you and your family....I am so sorry.
What are you going to do? Please know she would not want you suffering either; make sure whatever you choose helps you heal.
Give yourself time to miss her and grieve before you choose an action, but oh! If we had a section for horror stories about this, it would be filled with a story from each of us about ourselves and someone we love.
I hope she is flying over all the lights of the most beautiful cities in the world tonight, finally free to uncurl, and see as far as she wishes!!! 
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First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win.
- Mahatma Gandhi
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phlebomom
Stranger
Reged: 09/15/03
Posts: 16
Loc: Ohio
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I am so sorry to hear what happened. This is a sick society we live in when a person like her can't even get adequate pain relief and must resort to self-medication. I hope this at least wakes someone up and no one else will have to resort to what your cousin had to do. And doctors wonder why people go to websites and order their meds!
Donna
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gracy
Newbie
Reged: 10/20/02
Posts: 42
Loc: the stars & of course, venus!
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i am also so sorry for your loss. i get a knot in my stomache when i think of docs who let their patients suffer. i'll pray for God's strength to hold you & your family up thru this if you do not take offense...
now, to your comment about wishing you could post his name. what you CAN do is report him to your ________ County Medical Board...or the equivalent of such in your area. These complaints go into the doctor's file & ARE AVAILABLE for you or ANYONE considering the use of said doc to read.
i wish i had called in regard to an oncologist who treated my father. after 2 years of declaring he had manic depressive disorder, bipolarism, depression, etc...(he & my mom lived in the boonies), they diagnosed his body as being "riddled" w/cancer & announced he had 6 weeks to live. just like that. but i think he knew he was dying.
the point here is that the oncologist said that he could extend my father's life thru chemo, maybe weeks, maybe months, maybe years. evidently, he wasn't qualified to treat his dog chemically. because the very first chemo treatment shortened my father's life to 3 days. indeed, this doctor DOES have a file.
one more sort of morbid point. yes, i did get a P.I. attorney to review his medical records...we were so STUNNED when this life extension procedure backfired, that when he actually did pass on , the medical staff asked my mom & i - if we wanted an autopsy done.
of course, that seemed SO undignified at the time, ridiculous in fact. that doctor is still out there today prescribing chemo for cancer patients because WE DIDN'T GET AN AUTOPSY.
so hindsight is 20/20, & i truly, from the bottom of my heart & thruout my soul, could care a less about financial gain in the purported lawsuit we initiated. all i wanted, is to save someone else's family the grief we experienced under this doc's so called care.
so minimally, he has a file. sorry for such a long story, but i thought it taught me a lot (unfortunately at the loss of my dad), but again, & hope others can draw from this.
again, my God ease you & your family's suffering.
thanks for letting me reply.
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be careful what you pray for...you might just get it (@ the wrong time!)
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junebug101
Journeyman
Reged: 03/27/03
Posts: 69
Loc: NY
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That's a great article, Antique. It just goes to show malpractice goes beyond the treatment into the non-treatment of patients.
I'm so sorry for the loss of your cousin Wktkpdr. There are so many pallative therapies for the terminally ill, it's unconscionable that they would be withheld. My grandmother died in hospice of ovarian cancer, and I bless the nurses who provided her with morphine patches until the day she died...I think all of us only want the chance to die with dignity. I'll say an extra prayer for you tonight.
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Kid Free and Loving It!
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