Sickle Cell and Getting Prescriptions Filled

Have you ever found yourself having a hard time when it came to getting a prescription filled by your doctor? It can be a bitter moment when you are having a pain crisis and in search of pain relief. We all understand that treatment of this intense pain requires us to take high doses of painkillers to eliminate our pain. So the use of these prescriptions is very much needed to control and manage our pain. However sometimes they may not work right away so we find ourselves continually taking pain medicine until we no longer can take the pain. There is a good chance we can go through a prescription rather easily given our levels of pain and how often we have pain.

That can be a hard thing for doctors and nurse to grasp because some people with sickle cell may have pain every day while others may be fortunate enough to only have pain once a week, month, or year etc. It just depends on the person but no two people with this illness are alike. And since we all have dealt with having pain crisis our entire lives we have probably tried every pill for pain relief that you can imagine. So many of us have come to find out what works best when we are in pain and what doesn’t work when we are in pain. Simply stating this information or innocently requesting prescriptions that work sometimes can be taken negatively. Because This type of scenario could possibly be seen as a drug seeking behavior by some doctors and can make them more hesitant and less eager to write prescriptions for your pain.

What can you do about it? Well, if you are having troubles getting your prescriptions filled the first thing you can do is became aware of actions that may raise an eyebrow and be seen as drug seeking behavior. Here is a list of 5 things I think doctors will look for in identifying a drug seeker.

1. Demanding in a violent and threatening way that a certain prescription is filled.
2. Going to the ER often and refusing to be admitted or not having a regular primary care physician care.
3. Missing doctors’ appointments and only going to the doctor when you need prescriptions for pain filled.
4. Changing doctors too many times or going to multiply doctors for prescriptions.
5. Using recreational drugs or having them in your system when getting treated at the ER.

Avoid doing those things and you should have no hassles or problems getting those prescriptions filled by your doctor. But if you still find yourself having troubles then you have every right to switch doctors to make sure you get the kind of care that you deserve. In switching doctors you should get any medical records from previous doctors and have them handy, also inform your new doctor beforehand about all the medicines you take for pain and how often you take them. Always look for doctors who has treated sickle cell patients in the past and are knowledgeable about sickle cell. This way you are less likely to encounter any problems when it comes to writing your prescriptions since they should be more aware of the condition and the treatment it requires.

We all know that our health is vital and finding someone to treat us and provide us with optimum care is the key for us staying healthy and out of the hospital. Because having sickle cell requires a lot of attention and care, having the proper medications to treat it is necessary. From one sickle cell warrior to another, stay healthy and take care.