I was started on nortriptyline about 2 weeks ago. After a week I called to ask when I should start feeling some relief because I wasn't told that and my pain was worse than ever. It took them 2 days to call back and tell me to double my dosage. I did for 2 days and then the sleepiness was HORRIBLE! I lay down with my children to give them a nap and I was the only one who fell asleep!! I mean conked out and dreaming. And they are 2 and 3. NOT OK!! So I called them again yesterday morning and left a message saying I wanted to talk about my medication. I hear back at 5 til 5 and the assistant says the doctor wants me to double my dosage. Huh? How is that going to help? The assistant ASSUMED I was complaining the med wasn't working again and that is the message the doctor received. I explained to the assistant that wasn't why I was calling and she told me to just try it on the weekend or something when I had help. This makes NO sense to me since 20 mg had me falling asleep way too quickly and left me way too often. Not even an explanation as to whether or not the fatigue will pass. I guess she just didn't want to admit her mistake to the doctor. IDK.
What should I do now? I feel like such a pest calling again today. But I don't feel comfortable taking this medication and the only other option is to not take anything. I have for sure thought about going med free but I think I would at least TRY to see if something is going to help. I really like my doctor but I'm not crazy about her nurse. She didn't even call me about the 1st med increase I had to call them and ask if the doctor had made any recommendations. A different woman tells me "oh, the dr wanted you to start taking 2, didn't you get a call?"
hi,
i would make another appt. i'd quit the pills and tell doc i did. i would tell the doc about the nurse and my experience. i would tell the nurse not to ever call me again and i would tell the doc from now on only you call me doc. if that did not resolve the issue i would find another doc with a better staff.
i would go get some otc meds to get me thru till i saw my doc. tho i would be demanding and see the doc today. if you are willing to sit and wait often the doc can squeeze you in. sometimes in the past with staff like you are dealing with i just walked in the door and said i am here to see the doc. i will be sitting over there. squeeze me in, thank you.
you asked what i would do. glad you did not ask me what you should do. giggle.
your body does not like this med. please quit.
peace,
blue
__________________
life does not wait for one to get back on their feet.
hi, I took that drug years ago to help w my migraines plus I have fibro. But I only took it at night. You didn't say what MG they started you on? My suggestion is to start on the lowest dose possible and to only take it at night time and slowly move up to avoid the side effects. I'd probably take it around 8 pm so I wouldn't feel to groggy in the am.
now as far as the nurses, yeah they totally messed up. but I was just trying to help you out w/ that med because lots of the meds we have to take work that way and you have to be careful how you start out on them, the drs don't realize it half the time I don't think.
I would make an appt w/ the dr. and talk to him/her about starting on the lowest dose and just taking it at night and see what they say. good luck Cathy
Last edited by noevr; 10-02-2012 at 10:12 AM.
Reason: misspelling
Ha! yes, i did ask what you would do. And your answer is hilarious because that is exactly what my husband said we should do! Go into the office and say "since I can't get messages through to the doc the way I intended, I'm here to deliver them myself!"
Me, I'm not that tough. I have yet to call them because I am a chicken, lol.
And I did stop taking the med. The same day that I fell asleep on my poor babies! I was only taking it at night and I started on 10mg. I'm not sure if this is the lowest dose or not. But then a week later started taking 2 (20 mg). I was then instructed to take 50 mg when I called to tell them I didn't want to take it anymore. grrr... I didn't so much feel groggy, I mean I was a LITTLE more sleepy than normal but it was more that I could fall asleep at the drop of a hat. A deep sleep. Before taking this medicine I was always aware of my children's every breath. On it, not so much.
take hubby with you??? sounds like he is a lot like me. take it on and get it done. learning to be your own advocate is very important. what can they do to you for you to have fear? nothing. remember the world is full of doctors. you can always pick a new one.
i was a shy one when i was small. my daddy told me to imagine people sitting on the toilet in the morning with sleep gunk in their eyes going poop. works every time! giggle. tho i often have to explain why i am laughing. that's the best part. telling them what my daddy said. giggle.
yea, i'm a brat. giggle.
peace,
blue
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life does not wait for one to get back on their feet.
Oh my goodness!!! I will have to try that. lol. I admit I do get terribly intimidated. My husband is definitely one to speak his mind. He's brutally honest and doesn't take crap. I am going to try the phone one more time. I would hate to drive over an hour one way each time I need to get a message to my doctor because her nurse is incompetant!! Well, I called yesterday after posting my message and left a message that I did not feel comfortable upping the dosage when I was having problems on the lower dose. Of course, I didn't get a call back until this morning. She pretty much said that I was misleading in my message and had called to ask exactly what the problem was. Grrr.... I told her exactly what the problem was when she told me to start taking 50 mg. And I don't know how "please call me because I have a problem with my medication" is misleading. She ASSUMED I was going to say it wasn't working and then had to cover her own butt by first telling me to go ahead and take it and then making it my fault. She couldn't have gone back to the doc and said "oh, btw, I didn't bother to find out what this girl really has to say so, I got it wrong." Oh well. Hopefully, they will have some helpful advice when she calls back. Luckily ever since the other evening when I was hurting head to toe, I haven't felt too bad. I do have tramadol to help but I would really rather get started on something that will maybe prevent a little of the pain. I don't know. I'm such a wimp.
You are not a wimp! I feel like that sometimes as well but seriously, anyone who had to deal with constant pain would understand. I have explained away so many of my symptoms for so long and felt like I was apologizing every time I saw my doctor. No more! I hurt, I'm tired of hurting and it's depressing! Speak up for yourself because no one else will do it for you! Good luck!
Thanks Poookie! And you described me to a T. I always feel guilty for going to the doctor and then I only went when I couldn't stand it any longer. Even when I called this nurse back I was apologizing over and over for the misunderstanding. IT WAS HERS!! Oh well. They are switching me to Cymbalta. Maybe that will work better for me.
The Following User Says Thank You to Elmbabies3 For This Useful Post: Agenda (10-13-2012)
so you did get results? hope the cymbalta helps you. i remember beating the i'm sorry bit to death. now i only say it if i am wrong or in empathy.
peace,
blue
exwimpyoldchick, giggle.
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life does not wait for one to get back on their feet.
The Following User Says Thank You to bluelakelady For This Useful Post: Brookietrip (10-05-2012)
bluelakelady-
Someday I'm gonna be signing exwimpyoldchick#2!!! HA!!
I LOVE your positive attitude and am currently trying to be more like you I am very newly diagnosed and still trying to deal with the fact I can't swallow a magic pill and it will all go away. (A hope I was holding on to until the big D was finally made) BUT- I WILL accept it, and move on and live harmoniously with fibro the rest of my life. Besides, I don't have the strength or energy to fight it, right? And it could be so much worse...
The following user gives a hug of support to Elmbabies3: Kaseyjcf (10-04-2012)
blush, thank you. you are right, fighting it just makes it worse. attitude is everything. giggle, i remember the magic pill phase! i can look back now and laugh about it, but oh at the time i was really bummed out they had no magic pill.
now i am so glad they don't. i would have missed out on learning so many precious lessons about life and joy.
peace,
blue
__________________
life does not wait for one to get back on their feet.
So I was prescribed Cymbalta over a week ago. The pharmacy sent a request for prior auth back to the doctor's office. The nurse sent the request to the insurance office and we waited.
I FINALLY get a call from the nurse yesterday and she says that the medicine has been denied because I have no coverage with the specialty pharmacy that my walmart uses. I had no idea what all that meant and the nurse said she didnt either. She recommended I call the insurance company myself and told me she didn't know what else to tell me.
I call the insurance company today and they say that 1.Cymbalta is not a specialty drug 2. with our plan and the pharmacy we use it shouldn't be denied and 3. All that is needed is a medical review which involves this nurse to call and answer a couple of questions.
This is so frustrating!! My actual rheumatologist is so sweet and caring and (I feel) competant. Her assisstant frustrates me to no end. I am torn between finding another doctor and actually talking to this one about the issues I am having. I am so non confrontational. But there are things that make me think that the doc has hangups too. My 1st appt she apologized for all the nonsense going on.(I am assuming because of the wait I had and then she had to leave the room 2 or 3 times to get things) And she looked annoyed. My second appt she told me my vit D was low and said "Well, I am sure we called you about that" They hadn't. So I kinda feel like I should say something. Ugh!
hey girl,
i'm gonna say something that is not very lady like. grow a pair! you can do this! you pay them for good service so demand it. go see your doc again and tell what's going on. my doc calls herself and not her nurses. ask your doc to call the ins co or pharmacy or whatever. tell her the nurse rides a broom. doctors need to know those things and if we don't tell, who will?
i have gotten 2 fired personally and the doctor thanked me. so did the rest of the staff. giggle. one rode an industrial size broom. giggle. we got into it.
peace,
blue
__________________
life does not wait for one to get back on their feet.
Grow a pair. CHECK!!! Will do first thing Monday morning. Ha!!
I KNOW you are right. I really do. And I AM going to address this. IF I do decide to run away and find a different doctor it will be AFTER I bring these issues to light with the doctor.
that's what i love to hear. when a woman finds her power she is unstopable, by man or health. i have always been very vocal, nicely, but if i think it i usually say it. giggle.
you and only you are the driving force in your life. you decide what you will and will not do to be healthy, feel loved, have security, know peace. it took me 40 years to realize the full potential of my power as a woman. that was 17 years ago. the past 7 have been heaven and i expect it to continue no matter how my health changes or the world around me. i decide my actions, no one else.
rock it girl. go kick some fanny. it's all in the tone of voice. you ask in a telling tone. learned it from my dad. my mom showed me by example how to be equal to all on the planet.
peace,
blue
__________________
life does not wait for one to get back on their feet.
If you really like your doctor and want to stick with her, when you call the office you NEED to tell them you WANT to speak with the Doc personally. Of course they will ask about what...you can either tell them in a few words that it's about the medication and leave it at that but insist that you want a call back from the doc and NOT a nurse. If they tell you that is not procedure in their office or tell you that the doctor does not call patients back then you find a new doctor. Any respectable doctor who truly cares about his profession and his/her patients WILL call you back, if they don't or won't then they don't care and are just shuffling you through the mill. I have been through so many doctors until I finally got it "right" for me. They are not "Gods" as much as some like to think they are. They are people just like you and me.
Another thing I will not do is wait more than an hour to be seen as these are also docs who don't care and are just shuffling you in and out...gotta get that quota of people in one day. I understand there are exceptions to that rule, many many years ago in my working days that is what I did...I worked in the medical field. I was referred to a VERY respected doc in the neuro field but his office was always 2 hours behind. There is NO excuse for that to happen every single visit....it just means he's overbooking for the money and could care less about your needs. After my third visit of waiting over 2 hours to be seen I told them when I checked out to give me a form to sign giving my permission to send them to the next doctor I picked as I would not be coming back to them..told them to expect a letter to the doc confirming that. I did write the doc and told him exactly why I left his practice. The doctors work for us, not the other way around. If you owned a business would you allow your employees to do things you did not like? You'd fire them if they did not live up to your expectations of what the job called for - same for doctors...if they don't live up to what we want and expect from a doc then fire them and move on.
One thing I would suggest is that when you get a prescription for a new medication that before you have it filled look it up on the internet and find out all you can about the drug, what to expect from the drug, what the side effects are, etc.... Nothing goes in my body unless I know first what to expect. Doctors are not perfect and make mistakes on the dose, etc. Perfect example that happened just recently, my niece went to a weight loss clinic, the doc gave her a prescription and the dose was WAY WAY OFF, could have killed my niece. My niece was telling me about how the meds made her feel and such and that there was no way she could take three in one day...after I looked up the info on the drug it clearly stated in BOLD letters that the 75mg should NEVER be taken more than once a day, only the 25 mg could be taken up to 3 times a day. My niece already had high blood pressure and the 75mg was making it worse - that is what her symptoms were, her BP going off the charts, she could have had a stroke.
Sorry for getting side-tracked but I can't stress enough to be your own advocate because only YOU are going to care enough about you.
Please please do yourself a favor and stop being shy, speak up for yourself. There is NO excuse for a doctors office to not call you back the same day, absolutely no excuse, even if it's just to tell you they have not forgotten you and are still waiting on an answer. Communication with your doc is everything!!!
Good Luck to you!!
hi kc,
i hear what you are saying and for the most part agree. some of my docs i will not wait for. i have 3 that i am willing to wait for. why? because they are the best and they have so much heart they cannot refuse a patient so they are overwhelmed with patients. however, when it is my turn i get their undivided attention for as long as i require, i do not feel rushed and i know i am heard. i have waited as long as 4 hours for my opthamologist. he is a gem. he saved my eyesight. been with him 22 years.
in closing i want to say it does depend on how i am treated, the quality of the doctor and am i properly cared for that is my deciding factor. i do not wait for them to call me. i call them. i am not their only patient. i get that.
i have fired 17 doctors over the years for a multitude of reasons. i currently have 15 doctors.
i like to juggle. giggle.
peace,
blue
__________________
life does not wait for one to get back on their feet.
Hey Blue...I agree with you that is why I said there are certain circumstances to those long waits. For some annoying reason my fingers don't always convey what my brain is telling them to write....something to do with that danged ole Fibro Fog <--- Evil stuff I tell ya. Today is one of those really foggy days, well the last few days really. I keep waiting for the fog to lift....I'm still waiting.
My PM doctor is one that I'd wait unlimited hours for and have but not very often. She is compassionate and knows I'm not a typical pain patient. She also will not pawn me off on her NP because of that.
When I got Viral Meningitis in 2002 and was left with Fibro afterwards, I was also left with a few other changes such as my metabolism and the way my body processes things such as certain drugs changed. She would love to find a study for me to go to and is on the look out.
My GYN is another doctor that I would wait hours to see....Not sure what I will do when she retires but hopefully she won't retire for a while. She's the same age as me 54 so hopefully I've got her for a few more years.
A person just has to do what feels right to them but I definitely would not keep seeing a doctor who refused to talk on the phone.
I finally got my medication!! I have been taking it about a week and I'm sure it can't be from the meds yet but I've had an awesome couple of days. That's why I'm just now getting back on. I've been busy!! Cleaning the house, grocery shopping, playing in the yard with three rugrats in the GORGEOUS fall weather!! Things I don't get to do every day and things that I REFUSE to take for granted!
kc1958- So much good advice. I do need to take more control of my health. I'm not used to all of this. Before this I have only ever been to the doc for the occasional UTI or strep throat or whatever. You know, make the appt, take the medicine, get better. And then of course to have my babies. But that was all normal stuff. I'm not really used to having these ongoing problems that I am going to need to manage. Ugh! It wears me out to think about it.
I did have to wait for this doctor for over an hour ay my 1st appt. I was a little comforted in the fact that she spent a lot ot time with me and wasn't rushed at all though once she got into the room. That kinda made up for it. One thing that rubbed me the wrong way was when I went back for my 2nd appt she gave me my test results, my diagnoses and prescriptions and said "see ya in 4 months". Does that sound about right? I would have thought I would be seen more regularly at first until I found some kind of relief. I have been miserable the last few months. (well until the last couple of days).
I am very newly diagnosed and still trying to deal with the fact I can't swallow a magic pill and it will all go away. (A hope I was holding on to until the big D was finally made) BUT- I WILL accept it, and move on and live harmoniously with fibro the rest of my life. Besides, I don't have the strength or energy to fight it, right? And it could be so much worse...
