Showing posts with label pills. Show all posts
Showing posts with label pills. Show all posts

Saturday, January 17, 2009

Drugged Out


Just one of the many fun things about returning to live in my childhood home is running across relics from the past. The book above is just one of the many I have discovered. I remember reading it in the early 70s and I remember my oldies discussing it with me. In fact they continued to have the good drug v. bad drug discussion with me through my college days.

My father is still on the sick pillow. The doctor said he may continue to feel lousy while his body recovers. So, even though the antibiotic pills (usually a good drug) are done for now, he still has trouble sleeping which he needs for his recovery.

For sleep aid, the doctor prescribed something heavy duty. The kind that the pharmacist scans your eyes and your face trying to judge if you plan to sell these on the street. The kind that would not just make you forget to feed your baby -- you would forget that you had a baby.

This may be a good drug for some people but it was a bad drug for my father. He was hallucinating and having horrible nightmares. He had trouble breathing from the panic. One pill did not a good night make.

Obviously he requested a different medication and it seems to be working. Good drug! He slept well last night and has been dozing all day. He already looks better thanks to some well-needed rest. The only side effect from the new drug (other than he might not stop sleeping for the next week) is he's grasping for the proper word. He asked my mother what one of the dog's name is. When he's awake, he's grinning a lot. I attended a gathering for a friend's mother's recent death. When I came home, my father asked me, "How was the furniture?"

Then he gave me a hug and said, "See you at dinner." My mother's theory is as long as his appetite remains constant, she's not worried.

Monday, May 26, 2008

Letting Go

I don't let go easily. It may be people or things but there's a reason they're in my life and I'm a clinger. Within the past few years, I've had to let go of:
The oldies -- shocking.
The daughter who moved to Texas. Expected, but hard.
The baby who grew up and moved to the college life.
Mentors and business associates who have retired or moved on.
Friends who died too soon.
A beloved pet.

I've also had to let go of some dreams and perceptions. That "slap-you-in-the-face" reality is a downer.

I need to let go of some clutter. I'm being swallowed by books and papers.

Mostly, I need to let go of some expectations and the load of guilt I can't seem to shake. I wish they made a magic pill for that.

Friday, March 7, 2008

The Plot for The Pill

As I suspected, Hangdog has not broken his hip. There's nothing wrong with him that wasn't already wrong before the fall. What does Oliver Stone have over me? I know a conspiracy when I see one.

After conferring with the nurse and the x-ray technician, I spoke with Hangdog. I tried to be the little reporter:
What made you fall? (I turned around too fast and got dizzy.)
Why were you up in the middle of the night? (I heard a ruckus in the hallway.)
Who was around? (No one. There's never anyone around.)

Those people in the hallway must have vanished into thin air.

This conversation was a little like talking to the maniac dog. There's some barking but no one is making progress.

He wants to be drugged. If that means throwing himself on the ground for attention, he'll do it. He's doing a different conspiracy now:

Me: Pop, your x-rays look fine. Thankfully you didn't break anything.
Hangdog: Yeah, that's what they say.

Where is Oliver Stone when I need him? Forget JFK -- let's make a movie out of oldies and their conspiracies.

Wednesday, February 20, 2008

Lies and Pedicures

I'm not very good at listening. I get wrapped up in the puzzle of my mind, trying to figure out my response.

Today, I was the postman -- through rain, sleet, snow -- no measly weather situation is going to stop me. I was on a mission: Hangdog needed toothpaste and lightbulbs. (Ok, secretly, I just needed to see him.) Some warped part of me looks forward to his lies:

They made me walk ten miles today.
No one has given me any pills.
I never sleep.

The Belle would've put up with this for a nanoseond. Then she would've shoved a pill in his mouth and taken him for a danish and a pedicure.

Monday, September 10, 2007

Better Living Through Pharmaceuticals

Is it my imagination or is everyone on some happy pill?

I am not a doctor, although my doctor will tell you I like to pretend I am. There are jillions of kids being diagnosed with ADD or ADHD. (Here's a pill.) There are millions of people being diagnosed as depressed or bi-polar. (Here's a pill.) Now, there's a commercial on television about Restless Leg Syndrome. (There's a pill.) If you're jittery or on edge, I'll bet your doctor will give you a pill. And what about autism? I have no doubt it's a legitimate disease but come on. Some children are just high strung. They do not have ADD, ADHD or Autism. My leg twitches at night. I do not have Restless Leg Syndrome (if there is such a thing) and I do not take a pill. I just kick Big Daddy.

The oldies self medicate and occasionally over medicate. It's terribly frightening to me. I understand the urge to get some sleep but I can't go there. I can barely take a pill.

I had a conversation the other day with a friend and he/she said their marriage was so much better once the spouse starting taking a happy pill. I will not tell Big Daddy about this conversation because he will have me on drugs so fast I will not know what hit me. (Just kidding!)

Friday, August 10, 2007

Ice Cream Solves it All

We've all heard the phrase, "Better living through pharmaceuticals." We are a quick fix/pop a pill society. I understand the motivation but I am terribly anti-pills. I take an Advil now and then. I take sinus medication occasionally. Other than that, I'll pass on the medication -- just give me some ice cream.

I'm not making light of life altering and life saving medications. Some of the other stuff is an easy out. I'll take the ice cream.

When the baby was younger, we regularly made chocolate malts. He still says it's one of his favorite foods. We had an old-time shake mixer like they had in soda shops. We wore it out so we had it rewired plus we bought a newfangled one, just for back up.

When I was a child, ice cream was our Saturday night treat. As an adult, one of my parents would (and still does) show up when I was feeling puny. They always brought ice cream.

Dessert is an indulgence for me, one I don't do very often. But ... when I'm depressed or sad, when I have a cold, when I'm feeling old, cranky or just sorry for myself, I don't need a pill. I need some ice cream.