Where are the doctors?

[Samandkatharine]

Where are the doctors?

Cassander;1644127 wrote: yes, Sam...we need to be more honest, too. No disagreement.

But in a (more) perfect world, alcoholism would be understood as a disease (and not some kind of moral failing) and we and our physicians would have a more open and honest dialogue about our addictions and mental health.

And we would understand that more honesty and transparency with our physicians would lead to greater health and happiness.

We would not have to fear that our doctors would pass some kind of moral judgment on us if we admitted we drink too much.

Doctors would ask us how much we drink, and we would honestly answer. And if treatment were indicated, we would be treated. And healed.

Cass, absolutely... I hate the stigma. That's why I lied.

Recently I had some bloating in my abdomen that I worried about. I went to the doctor to discuss having an u/s because I've had gall bladder issues in the past. I was frank with her about recently becoming sober and she immediately plastered on my order ALCOHOL use...how embarrassing!! She didn't ask any questions or pat me on the back congratulating me on being 3 months sober. My U/S lady was sweet. She said that this happens all the time and that the doctors do this to cover their asses. What a joke. No wonder we lie.

Sam
PS- turns out I was constipated...jeez..

[skullbabyland]

Where are the doctors?

Bumping thread for newbies/lurkers, I believe Cassander has maintained the most accurate list of doctors here that are open to baclofen (click back to first page of this thread)

[Samandkatharine]

Where are the doctors?

skullbabyland;1690815 wrote: Bumping thread for newbies/lurkers, I believe Cassander has maintained the most accurate list of doctors here that are open to baclofen (click back to first page of this thread)

Thanks Skull for dredging this up. I did call the office in San Francisco back in May of this year. They were by far the most comprehensive, but costly option for me. I did not go because of cost. They required you see their therapists as well. If you had a hefty chunk of change to hand over then it's well worth it if you are in need. It's not the handing over $400 to the doctor and here is your Rx kind of thing. It's concierge medicine, and no insurance will cover it.

Continuing on my rant, I did see an addictions doctor in May as well, covered by my PPO Blue Shield. He turned out to be a holy roller AA guy who scorned my use of Baclofen, said it was addictive and proceeded to tell me he'd wean me off of it with Gabapentin and 90 meetings and 90 days of AA meetings. I slunk out of there and felt so dirty. I proceeded to wean myself off of Bac and started drinking, albeit only 2 glasses of wine a night... I never intended to start back on my nightly drinking, but this doctor made me feel slimy... Now I'm going back up on my leftover bottles of liquid bac (thanks Loop:h) and already feel less inclined to open another bottle.

Thanks agin Skull. I do know a doctor that will Rx up to 30mg, but I wont put her name up here unless Cass wants me to. 30mg will fill in the blanks if you want it to, but it wont make you indifferent.

Sam

[Samandkatharine]

Where are the doctors?

Bump for Karen.

[spiritwolf333]

Where are the doctors?

Dr. Volkow speaks about how even many/most doctors still don't recognize alcoholism/addiction as a mental disorder and how this must change. I believe the National Institute of Health is truly on a mission to educate doctors and others about the reality of addiction. From what I understand, she recently was a speaker at a TEDTALK convention but I could not find it. Doctors have to be educated about addiction and the brain -first and foremost.

"Dr. Nora Volkow of National Institute of Drug Abuse speaks about the agency's efforts to dispel the stigma and the role of primary care providers in helping patients address their addiction sooner."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OBHBpKrXug0

[Alky]

New Bridge Recovery, Winter Park, Florida

http://www.newbridgerecovery.com

[Alky]

Thanks Skull for dredging this up. I did call the office in San Francisco back in May of this year. They were by far the most comprehensive, but costly option for me. I did not go because of cost. They required you see their therapists as well. If you had a hefty chunk of change to hand over then it's well worth it if you are in need. It's not the handing over $400 to the doctor and here is your Rx kind of thing. It's concierge medicine, and no insurance will cover it.

Continuing on my rant, I did see an addictions doctor in May as well, covered by my PPO Blue Shield. He turned out to be a holy roller AA guy who scorned my use of Baclofen, said it was addictive and proceeded to tell me he'd wean me off of it with Gabapentin and 90 meetings and 90 days of AA meetings. I slunk out of there and felt so dirty. I proceeded to wean myself off of Bac and started drinking, albeit only 2 glasses of wine a night... I never intended to start back on my nightly drinking, but this doctor made me feel slimy... Now I'm going back up on my leftover bottles of liquid bac (thanks Loop:h) and already feel less inclined to open another bottle.

Thanks agin Skull. I do know a doctor that will Rx up to 30mg, but I wont put her name up here unless Cass wants me to. 30mg will fill in the blanks if you want it to, but it wont make you indifferent.

Sam

Don't knock gabapentin until you've tried it. I'm at 900mg a day and have not felt this good as long as I can remember. I'm also at about 3.5 mos. AF. The intensive outpatient therapy (now switched over to regular outpatient) and continued attendance at 12 step meetings have helped as well.

[Spiritfree]

I believe that this thread needs to be revisited because it makes clear some very valuable points relative to the difficulty of the medical, scientific, and pharmaceutical businesses becoming greater invested in Baclofen and other methods to achieve sobriety. I hope to post more information tomorrow and a very interesting video link. But for now, I can only believe that it truly is not in the best interest of the pharmaceutical industry to sell or promote a producet that would cause one to become non-addicted to a product that they make billions from. How much money have the alcohol companies contributed to Baclofen research (or other) research?

[__serenity__]

Bump, and we miss you, Cassander! <3

[Cassander]

Bump, and we miss you, Cassander! <3

Wow! Thanks, serenity! I miss the old days around here, too. Hope all is well, or even great, with you!