Dear Pharmacy Customer

[Andara Bledin]

Tylenol (acetaminophen) and Motrin (ibuprofen) actually work better than narcotics for specific types of pain, a fact many people don't realize.

I'd much rather take Tylenol for a toothache than ibuprophen. It works better. For joint/muscle pain ibuprofen works better, ditto for menstrual cramps.

I have some left-over ibuprofen from a couple of years back. I got it for a muscle ache issue I was having. I had a stiff neck, which hurt, so I was holding it in a strange position, which was making the muscles stiffen, which made my neck hurt which made me hold it in a strange position.... You can see where this goes. One ibuprofen later, and I was right as rain. I think I've taken about a dozen of them, now. Twice more for the stiff neck issue (wish I could determine what it is I'm doing that causes it), and a couple of times for cramps. Since it's also an anti-inflammatory, it works wonders.

Acetaminophen, on the other hand, does absolutely bupkiss for me. But I can't be certain if it just doesn't work on me, or if I'm somehow preventing it from working, known as the nocebo effect.

A fascinating article from 2009 regarding how one can think oneself into health or sickness.

^-.-^

[Mikkel]

A fascinating article from 2009 regarding how one can think oneself into health or sickness.

^-.-^

Interesting. I get nauseous whenever I go into the clinic where I had chemotherapy, I suppose that's some kind of learned effect too.
Strangely I don't get any symptoms when I'm at the hospital where I was operated. My subconscious must not have minded my getting cut open twice in a week so much .

[trailerparkmedic]

I get nauseous whenever I go into the clinic where I had chemotherapy, I suppose that's some kind of learned effect too.

It's called anticipatory nausea and it's so common that some cancer hospitals will give outpatients anti-nausea medication to take before they come in for chemo to prevent it.

Another example: some people can taste IV medications. One of my patients was a former chemo patient and I gave her some medication. She got nauseous because it tasted like her chemo.

The body is a crazy thing.

[Mikkel]

I could taste the salt water when they washed my portacath out before and after the chemo, but only the water from the prefilled syringes. My usual nurse knew that effect and would usually draw the water from a bag.
I had a CT scan a few weeks ago and I got contrast intravenously. The taste was the same, and yes, I had to fight to keep my breakfast down.
I wonder how you can taste water which is injected directly into your bloodstream, anyway. It's a very distinct taste. Almost like the smell of brackish water with rotted seaweed in it.
I could smell it as soon as the nurses pressed the plunger, too.

[Sapphire Silk]

I could taste the salt water when they washed my portacath out before and after the chemo, but only the water from the prefilled syringes. My usual nurse knew that effect and would usually draw the water from a bag.
I had a CT scan a few weeks ago and I got contrast intravenously. The taste was the same, and yes, I had to fight to keep my breakfast down.
I wonder how you can taste water which is injected directly into your bloodstream, anyway. It's a very distinct taste. Almost like the smell of brackish water with rotted seaweed in it.
I could smell it as soon as the nurses pressed the plunger, too.

It's not water, it's normal saline solution (sodium cloride, 0.9%). Saline is a metallic salt, which is why some people can taste it

[Andara Bledin]

I could smell it as soon as the nurses pressed the plunger, too.

Most likely, it's the smell that's triggering the taste memory. Much of what we taste is tied up in how we smell, which is why food tastes either bland or off when we're sick enough that we can't smell at all.

^-.-^

[Mikkel]

It's not water, it's normal saline solution (sodium cloride, 0.9%). Saline is a metallic salt, which is why some people can taste it

Yes, I called it salt water, I think the nurses did call it saline solution, though.
But why would it only be the prefilled syringes? The saline solution drawn from a bag didn't taste like that, though it was the same strength.
Of course that could be a nice example of placebo, I was told that it would prevent the taste and then I didn't taste it. Too bad I'm well now . Should I get a relapse I shall ask the nurses to conduct a blind testing.

[Just Ace]

Controlled substances might be another story; I'd have to look up the laws regarding that. I do know that the DEA no longer accepts narcotics for disposal, and non-institutional dispensers aren't allowed to dispose of them ourselves. (Hospitals may destroy narcotics on-site, in the presence of a pharmacist and one other licensed professional such as an MD or an RN, but we retail guys don't have that option.)

Here in Oz we will take back all drugs that are being disposed. It is placed in a RUM bin (yellow bin with bag) and sent back to our wholesalers who pass it onto another company who disposes of it. Our dispensary assistants have the task of taking all the pills out of the packets so that the bin is just full of pills not boxes.

Interesting note - many years ago the RUM bin was actually donated to third world countries but not anymore.

With regards to DD's (Dangerous Drugs, S8's) two pharmacists have to be present when all the pills are crushed together and poured down the sink. It needs to be recorded and signed off. Same goes with injectables - signed off and poured down the sink.

So why can't I take it back? Well, how do I know what happened to them in the interim? Maybe you didn't trust my count, so you poured them out on your kitchen table and fondled them one at a time. Maybe some rolled off onto the floor and under the radiator. Maybe you spilled them into your pocketbook. I'm sure any of us here can come up with a dozen scenarios as to why it might not be a great idea to take medicines that were out of the control of the pharmacist. I've even asked would-be returners, "Would you take a medicine that someone else had in their house?" Of course they wouldn't, but they're not worried about other people.

One of the things that shits me the most with medication returns. Once it leaves the pharmacy I can not guarantee that that medication was stored correctly for public consumption therefore I can not on sell it. Just because you have changed your mind about taking the prescribed medication doesn't mean I have to wear the loss.

[morgana]

My anesthesiologist when I had my first carpal tunnel surgery was apparently familiar with the taste-the-IV-meds phenomenon. He identified the look on my face immediately, and commiserated with me on the fact that I was getting a bad taste. He was quite amused when I told him, no, it tasted like caramels.