The Price You Pay for Managing Pain

The Price You Pay for Managing Pain

For those who do not my “story”, I spent the earlier years of my life undergoing numerous surgries which included 10 total hip replacements. One surgery left me with slight paralysis in my left hip and as a product of a few of those surgeries, I acquired viral and staph infections in the hospital settings that took years to overcome.

In 2005, I was in a car accident that again left me with severe hip pain. This time, I decided not to seek out an orthopedic physician because, quite frankly, I didn’t want to put my body through trauma again that would take away another year of life to recover. After six treatments of acupuncture along with doing Reiki daily on myself, the pain resolved. This made me wonder-how necessary were some of these surgeries-if any?

I wondered about the amount of cost that could have been saved…

In addition, I wondered about the amount of cost that could have been saved since a hip replacement generally cost near $200,000.00. With the acupuncture and herb formulas, the total cost of treatment was approximately $700.00 and I was able to still work while being treated.

Because of the challenges and limitation I have faced with my hips, I chose early on not to live my life in a fog. I have learned to manage most of my pain issues with Reiki; and, at times, I have needed to add acupuncture. I don’t need pot and I don’t need pharmaceuticals- all of which ultimately causes the body’s organs to be compromised and shut down- especially the liver. In considering the progression of taking these meds, its difficult to determine the actual amount of cost invovled in managing your pain because you also need to consider the cost of addressing future illnesses as a product of these meds.

I was prompted to write on this subject because, lately, I am seeing the drug Cymbalta being advertised as a pain reliever of muscular-skeletal pain, diabetic nerve pain, fibromyalgia and chronic low back pain. Cymbalta is an anti-depressant medication. It’s difficutl to comprehend how this med has transitioned into a pain med. Many of my students know my concerns of using anti-depressant medications. In fact, historically, anti-depressants were dispensed extremely conservatively until about the late eighties.

Today, it is not uncommon seeing these medications passed out like candy. When a problem can’t be determined in a fifteen minute office visit or through blood work, the common protocal is to give the patient an anti-depressant/anti-anxiety med. For a profession that stakes its legitimacy on the scientific method, anti-depressant medications are dispensed without the use of labwork and are offered in a trial and error manner. From an energetic perspective, while enabling a person to be “functional”, they promote a disconnect from emotions and feeling alive. This does not enable people to live in complete health or vitality because life’s sensory experiences are deaden.

Furthering the concerns of the dispensing of meds is the amount of news coming out of medications that went through the FDA’s “rigorous” testing only to discover the dangers quite a few of them are demonstrating now. Cymbalta was originally approved as an anti-depressant medication. Now it is being promoted for pain relief. This is frightening and unnecessary because their are so many other methods of conquering pain relief that don’t always involve ingesting chemicals.

Along with their new promotion of addressing pain relief, they are also offering a 30-day supply for free with a doctor’s perscription. While this free offer may be enticing, I wanted to share the side-effects of Cymbalta with you so that you can calculate other potential costs in taking this drug before taking them up on their free offer. In addition, I encourage you to try alternative forms of pain relief before starting a drug therapy program since little to no side effects have been reported.

Before taking Cymbalta:

• talk to your doctor about all your medical conditions, including kidney or liver problems, glaucoma, diabetes, seizures, or if you have bipolar disorder. Cymbalta may worsen a type of glaucoma or diabetes

• if you have itching, right upper belly pain, dark urine, yellow skin/eyes, or unexplained flu-like symptoms while taking Cymbalta, which may be signs of liver problems. Severe liver problems, sometimes fatal, have been reported

• about your alcohol use

• about all your medicines, including those for migraine, to address a potentially life-threatening condition. Symptoms may include high fever, confusion, and stiff muscles

• if you are taking NSAID pain relievers, aspirin, or blood thinners. Use with Cymbalta may increase bleeding risk before stopping Cymbalta or changing your dose

• if you experience dizziness or fainting upon standing while taking Cymbalta. This tends to occur in the first week or when increasing the dose, but may occur at any time during treatment

• about your blood pressure. Cymbalta can increase your blood pressure. Your healthcare provider should check your blood pressure prior to and while taking Cymbalta

• if you experience headache, weakness, confusion, problems concentrating, memory problems, or feel unsteady while taking Cymbalta, which may be signs of low sodium levels

• if you develop problems with urine flow while taking Cymbalta

• if you are pregnant or plan to become pregnant during therapy, or are breast-feeding

Most common side effects of Cymbalta (this is not a complete list):

• Nausea, Dry Mouth, Sleepiness, Fatigue, Constipation, Dizziness, Decreased Appetite, and Increased Sweating

You are encouraged to report negative side effects of Prescription drugs to the FDA. Visit www.fda.gov/medwatch or call 1-800-FDA-1088.

Other safety information about Cymbalta:

• Cymbalta may cause sleepiness and dizziness. Until you know how Cymbalta affects you, you should not drive a car or operate hazardous machinery.

• People age 65 and older who took Cymbalta reported more falls, some resulting in serious injuries.