Like I said, don’t see how a person is capable of working safely while having a medical condition that requires that much pain medicine. It tells me that the condition is serious and disabling.
Let me ask you this. I assume that you told your doctor that you needed a note that would allow you to go to work. EVen if he told you he didn’t think that was a good idea. And I assume too, that you are driving yourself to and from work.
So, what if your back pain problem was worked related, and your doctor asked you if you wanted to remain off work. Would you have stayed off work or would have continued to work, and taken the pain meds?
Like I asked, is safety a concern for EVERY occupation? Sounds like ideology rather than research talking.
I assume too, that you are driving yourself to and from work.
You've not heard of public transportation?
My issues went back to being struck in my drivers door by a car travelling 45 MPH.
I struggled with episodic debilitating pain for decades, and even when my xrays showed lumbar issues the doctor blew it off, as you probably know HMO's don't make money by actually doing something.
So for almost forty years I did what I had to do to take care of my family. It wasn't until Obama destroyed the economy and there by the company I worked for, and no one would hire someone my age when cheaper younger people were plentiful that I ended up on Medi-Cal. Surprisingly the doctor I then had actually listened to me, sent me to pain management, who ordered an MRI and promptly sent me to an Orthopedist specialist. I will never know of course but maybe if my HMO's hadn't been so bottom line oriented I would have had to have surgery on three lumber and four cervical disks and a knee replacement I believe was caused by the way I walked and stood for so many years due to the pain.
By the way, I did occasionally use Vicodin over a period close to twenty five years for migraines. The number prescribed was only 15 per prescription which I almost never used before the thirty day period. The end result is that to this day I can't take Vicodin or any of it's family without being ill, one reason why I only get Tramadol.....because I don't want anything stronger, not through fear of addiction because I had no trouble dropping Vicodin but because I was raised to tough it out and do what you have to do.
I firmly believe that people with chronic pain receive the medication they need to mitigate it, no more or less. I also firmly believe that politicians need to but the hell out of medical decisions for anyone but themselves.
So, what if your back pain problem was worked related, and your doctor asked you if you wanted to remain off work. Would you have stayed off work or would have continued to work, and taken the pain meds?
The simple answer is no. I could not pay my bills and support my family by sitting on my ass at home. I have found that to be absolutely boring and aggravating since my injuries surgeries have left me disabled. The only thing that I would have done differently is if early on a doctor had made a real diagnosis and there was a less invasive way to treat and mitigate the ongoing deterioration of my spine and knee. I don't believe in opioids as the first and only therapy. But the reality is that for some, at this time there is no other relief.