Soon to need a prescription for Nurofen/Solphadine/etc?

gbee

Vladidim wrote: »

In that case get it on prescription. Your wife has a serious addiction problem and taking codeine for this purpose is against the over the counter licence. Also I'd suggest you get a second opinion if the best treatment your doctor came up was for her to stay on them.

She's 38 years on these things. It has come up in the past more than once. I took her credit cards and her money and she went like a daemon.

Problem, you can't go cold turkey on these things, problem with prescription, he can't trust her to take the dose.

Now, it may sound bizarre, but she used to buy 60 pill packs.

Some of ye doubting me, ye'd want to go and read up on it.

The sale of these things have been gradually curtailed for the last ten years. I mean, can you imagine anyone being able to buy a 60 pill pack?

ynul31f47k6b59

gbee wrote: »

She's 38 years on these things. It has come up in the past more than once. I took her credit cards and her money and she went like a daemon.

Problem, you can't go cold turkey on these things, problem with prescription, he can't trust her to take the dose.

Now, it may sound bizarre, but she used to buy 60 pill packs.

Some of ye doubting me, ye'd want to go and read up on it.

The sale of these things have been gradually curtailed for the last ten years. I mean, can you imagine anyone being able to buy a 60 pill pack?

Utter rubbish. I took Solpadeine every single day for five years, and I came off them cold turkey. I understand that that's nothing compared to 38 years, but that doesn't mean it can't be done, it's not as if she has 38 years worth of Codeine still in her system - she has the same amount as someone who's only been taking it a few months. Yes, she'll have withdrawal symptoms, no matter what method she chooses to get off the codeine, but she'll get better. Treatment is NOT always a methadone or detox programme, here's a guide to tapering off codeine in order to become free of it in 9 weeks: http://www.codeinefree.me.uk/howto.php - There are support forums there too.

Shoesa

This is crap. I have tendonitis in all my limbs and bone bruising in my knees. Before I started taking solpadeine when I was a teen I sometimes had to be half-carried out of town by my friends because I couldn't walk from the pain.

My parents brought me to every doctor under the sun, even abroad. I've had xrays of my hips, knees, etc and I've been to physio and chiropractors. Nothing has helped. With the pain in my arms I can't even hold a pen properly sometimes, great for exams. It might be from the unexplainable pain from CFS, or just bad genes. Who knows. The treatments offered to me to help my legs, ended up giving me horrible back pain (the kind of backpain that leads you to buy a terrible macbook air just to avoid more pain from carrying extra weight).

But neurofen makes me sick, paracaetomal takes a bloody hour to start working (which is of no use to me whatsoever when I'm in agony) and this was fine. This was ok. I could get on with me life.

I started crying yesterday in boots when the (lovely) pharmacist explained this debacle to me. With CFS, Tinnitus and this horrendous pain, THIS was the one part of my stupid body I can control. Pain? Here, drink this. Fine.

This is crap. When I'm shaking in pain a bloody paracaetomal doesn't help. That's for headaches. This is just sh*tting on the people who actually benefit from the use of codeine. It's incredibly fast, and only half a dose does me for hours. Not even the two tablets like. FFS.

sesna

Shoesa wrote: »

This is crap. I have tendonitis in all my limbs and bone bruising in my knees. Before I started taking solpadeine when I was a teen I sometimes had to be half-carried out of town by my friends because I couldn't walk from the pain.

My parents brought me to every doctor under the sun, even abroad. I've had xrays of my hips, knees, etc and I've been to physio and chiropractors. Nothing has helped. With the pain in my arms I can't even hold a pen properly sometimes, great for exams. It might be from the unexplainable pain from CFS, or just bad genes. Who knows. The treatments offered to me to help my legs, ended up giving me horrible back pain (the kind of backpain that leads you to buy a terrible macbook air just to avoid more pain from carrying extra weight).

But neurofen makes me sick, paracaetomal takes a bloody hour to start working (which is of no use to me whatsoever when I'm in agony) and this was fine. This was ok. I could get on with me life.

I started crying yesterday in boots when the (lovely) pharmacist explained this debacle to me. With CFS, Tinnitus and this horrendous pain, THIS was the one part of my stupid body I can control. Pain? Here, drink this. Fine.

This is crap. When I'm shaking in pain a bloody paracaetomal doesn't help. That's for headaches. This is just sh*tting on the people who actually benefit from the use of codeine. It's incredibly fast, and only half a dose does me for hours. Not even the two tablets like. FFS.

Once again, get it on prescription if it works for you like that, and your doctor is happy to prescribe it. Its not licencsed to be sold over the counter in the manner you are taking it.

gbee

Shoesa wrote: »

It's incredibly fast, and only half a dose does me for hours. Not even the two tablets like. FFS.

I fully empathise, my wife's been told that the apparently allowed two tables is too much.

I can tell you that if my wife had said she was taking a half tables she'd have got her supplies.

I'll be switching our pharmacy over this.

Alicat

gbee wrote: »

I fully empathise, my wife's been told that the apparently allowed two tables is too much.

I can tell you that if my wife had said she was taking a half tables she'd have got her supplies.

I'll be switching our pharmacy over this.

And after your 'new' pharmacy spot you and/or your wife coming in repeatedly for Solpadeine, they will soon be refusing you too. So, you'll move along to the next one?

The answer is not to get in a huff and switch pharmacies. The answer is to get your wife some help.

bleg

This is why they don't allow the discussion of personal medical problems on the health sciences forum.

yogy

Shoesa wrote: »

This is crap. I have tendonitis in all my limbs and bone bruising in my knees. Before I started taking solpadeine when I was a teen I sometimes had to be half-carried out of town by my friends because I couldn't walk from the pain.

My parents brought me to every doctor under the sun, even abroad. I've had xrays of my hips, knees, etc and I've been to physio and chiropractors. Nothing has helped. With the pain in my arms I can't even hold a pen properly sometimes, great for exams. It might be from the unexplainable pain from CFS, or just bad genes. Who knows. The treatments offered to me to help my legs, ended up giving me horrible back pain (the kind of backpain that leads you to buy a terrible macbook air just to avoid more pain from carrying extra weight).

But neurofen makes me sick, paracaetomal takes a bloody hour to start working (which is of no use to me whatsoever when I'm in agony) and this was fine. This was ok. I could get on with me life.

I started crying yesterday in boots when the (lovely) pharmacist explained this debacle to me. With CFS, Tinnitus and this horrendous pain, THIS was the one part of my stupid body I can control. Pain? Here, drink this. Fine.

This is crap. When I'm shaking in pain a bloody paracaetomal doesn't help. That's for headaches. This is just sh*tting on the people who actually benefit from the use of codeine. It's incredibly fast, and only half a dose does me for hours. Not even the two tablets like. FFS.

You are addicted to Solpadeine and need help asap. Codeine is of no benefit to you no matter what you think.

yogy

gbee wrote: »

I fully empathise, my wife's been told that the apparently allowed two tables is too much.

I can tell you that if my wife had said she was taking a half tables she'd have got her supplies.

I'll be switching our pharmacy over this.

Your wife is a drug addict and you are encouraging her to continue her drug abuse. That is disturbing. Please get her to get help.

yogy

gbee wrote: »

I was delighted with the restricted dispensation of this drug, we have had a personal battle with it for a long time, in that time and under medical card some it, the government services all agreed that it was better that she stays on the drug, this also includes consultant in Cork REGIONAL HOSPITAL, or CUH, now ... and now, despite Government advice, and with TD Kathleen Lynch's support, the treatment programme that was recommended to support this initiative, HAS NOT BEEN IMPLEMENTED.

I can guarantee, that with said TD's support this act will be rescinded, especially wilt my wife's personal difficulty with numerous pharmacists and we will be objecting to their licence renewal.

IT IS NOT ILLEGAL TO SELL SOLPADEINE

Why do they think that it is better not to treat a drug addict? That sounds bizarre. Thousands of people are receiving help for heroin/alcohol/gambling addiction everyday. Why can't your wife?

It is not illegal to sell solpadeine but it is not advisable to abuse the drug and immoral to allow an addict to continue with their addiction. Not to mention the fact that her liver must be in bits.

sesna

gbee wrote: »

IT IS NOT ILLEGAL TO SELL SOLPADEINE

Selling solpadeine over the counter to treat a drug addict is against the product licence and illegal.

yogy

gbee wrote: »

yogy, it sounds bizarre, I'm catching a TD by the throat, she used to live next door, then moved to the Neanderthal North Side so she could get elected.

Finger up to nose now, OK.

I'm sorry but what exactly do you expect your local TD to you. The only thing that needs to be done is for your wife to go into rehab and treat her codeine addiction. It sounds like your wife (and you) have given up on the idea of trying to treat her addiction.

Heroin is much more addictive than codeine. So are cigarettes I would think. Yet people successfully kick these addictions everyday.

Why would it be any different for your wife to stop taking solppadeine??

Herbal Deity

Jett Orange Strangeness wrote: »

Guys this might be a teeny bit OT, but I just thought I'd share my story about Solpadeine while I have the balls to do so:

I started taking Solpadeine about 5 years ago, initally for migraine/period pain/back pain whatever pain I happened to have at the time. Up to last year, I was taking two in the morning for absolutely no reason, and as time went on, it gradually went from two in the morning to two in the morning, two in the afternoon, and two in the evening. And an extra two if i felt nervous, anxious, or annoyed. I'd even started to go to different chemists to get it. I knew it was ridiculous, and expensive, but I used to panic if i was running low on it. I hid the wrappers so that my other half wouldn't find them.

Then, last November, my son was rushed to hospital after a bad breathing attack. I had to stay with him in Mullingar for a week. I can honestly say, that I didn't think of the Solpadeine once after the first day - the first night, I had a banging headache, but I could hardly ask the Nurse for some Solpadeine, so I just drank lots of water and went to sleep. The worry of the whole situation surpassed the worry about the solpadeine, and I haven't bought them since.

I think that in one way, the new regulations are good, because they prevent people from doing long-term damage to their livers, and it makes them face up to the fact that they have a problem. I know it's very, very hard to beat any kind of addiction, but for those who find it hard - try a placebo. If you were taking two soluble tablets at a certain time, then try a glass of 7up or water at that same time - keep the routine, but cut the codeine out of it. That sounds so stupid, but anyone who can trick themself into thinking they have a headache just so that they can take painkillers is more than capable of tricking themself into thinking that they've just taken some.

I hope the chemists don't ease up, and that might sound harsh, but I was completely addicted and I would have continued on buying them every couple of days. I know that it's really, really inconvenient for those who weren't addicted, and genuinely just buy them when they need them, but for others, it could mean the difference between a lifelong addiction and facing up to it. Sorry for rambling, just thought I'd share x

As a matter of interest, did taking solpadeine directly affect your life negatively in any way?

Do you realise that Codeine does no damage to your liver? It's the paracetamol that comes with it.

People always perceive addiction to be a really, really bad thing. In reality is it so bad if someone has a mild codeine addiction?

I honestly think that people addicted to codeine as a result of taking Solpadeine or Neurofen+ should be given a prescription for codeine only tablets.

yogy

Herbal Deity wrote: »

I honestly think that people addicted to codeine as a result of taking Solpadeine or Neurofen+ should be given a prescription for codeine only tablets.

This is by far the most idiotic thing that has been said by anyone so far. In the same vain, do you think people who are addicted to heroin (diamorhpine) should be given a prescription for diamorphine only tablets? Idiot.

mikemac

gbee wrote: »

My addicted wife is going up the walls, three chemist have refused, one demanding a prescription, one a doctor's note and after filling out a few forms was told she was taking too much so would not get any.

gbee wrote: »

I fully empathise, my wife's been told that the apparently allowed two tables is too much.

I can tell you that if my wife had said she was taking a half tables she'd have got her supplies.

I'll be switching our pharmacy over this.

The solution isn't to keep changing pharmacies.
And if they see you and your wife constantly they'll be asking questions and may refuse you again.
Do you then travel to the next town, city or county to stock up?

Your wife has a drug addiction and needs help

Get medical advice, maybe try also
http://www.na-ireland.org/

Herbal Deity

yogy wrote: »

This is by far the most idiotic thing that has been said by anyone so far. In the same vain, do you think people who are addicted to heroin (diamorhpine) should be given a prescription for diamorphine only tablets? Idiot.

There's a very strong argument for giving heroin addicts prescription heroin, and in fact, they do just this in countries such as in the UK, Netherlands, Switzerland, Germany and Denmark.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heroin_maintenance
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/4607233.stm
http://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/2009/jun/05/europe_german_parliament_approve
http://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/2008/feb/29/europe_denmark_parliament_approv

Idiotic indeed.

dr.bollocko

yogy wrote: »

This is by far the most idiotic thing that has been said by anyone so far. In the same vain, do you think people who are addicted to heroin (diamorhpine) should be given a prescription for diamorphine only tablets? Idiot.

Banned.

Wibbs

And if implemented would seriously impact side effects of heroin abuse especially crime. Its only idiotic to be blinkered and keep doing the same old thing and expecting different results.

sesna

yogy wrote: »

This is by far the most idiotic thing that has been said by anyone so far. In the same vain, do you think people who are addicted to heroin (diamorhpine) should be given a prescription for diamorphine only tablets? Idiot.

I noticed that from yogy earlier on - good points but nasty, unnecessary outbursts when not in agreement with something.

moonboy52

Wibbs wrote: »

And if implemented would seriously impact side effects of heroin abuse especially crime. Its only idiotic to be blinkered and keep doing the same old thing and expecting different results.

+1

RATM

These new regulations are a joke. Here's a letter I wrote to my TD about them explaining the situation I found myself in today. I have since ordered pain killers over the web- I won't be caught on the hop by these stupid laws again.

With the no off license sales after 10pm rule the government forced my hand and I now have way more booze in the house than I ever did before. And so it will go the same way with painkillers.

Dear XXX TD,

It is with great anger and annoyance that I am writing to you. Last afternoon I crashed my motorcycle on my way home from work. The accident happened because there was split oil all over the road and my wheels just slipped from underneath of me. That, however, isn't my issue.


During the accident my right arm and shoulder took most of the hit on the hard concrete. Immediately afterwards my arm seized up and moving it was quite painful. I gathered myself and headed straight to my local pharmacy as I realised that the pain would only get worse in the hours after the accident. Here I asked for Nurofen Plus painkillers. The pharmacist refused to serve me this product on the basis that it has codine in it and said under the new regulations they could not sell codine products for my complaint. Instead I was sold normal Nurofen. After 3 hours of taking these they had absolutely no effect on the pain in my arm, which had actually gotten worse by this stage. I went back to the pharmacy and explained this and requested for the second time to be sold Nurofen Plus to get some pain relief. I explained to her that when I had back and muscular pain last year the only painkiller that worked for me was Nurofen Plus and that my arm and shoulder was giving me the exact same problems- muscular pain. Again I was refused, as if I were some sort of drug addict. I can't recall feeling so little in all my life. Here I was in a pharmacy trying to get pain relief for a very sore arm and these new regulations are preventing me from doing so. At this point it was 5.55pm and every other pharmacy in my area was closed, I now had to go home to face a night of agony with no painkillers.

As a result of these new rules I spent the whole of last night writhing in pain. I got no sleep and I have missed a days work because of something so trivial and completely unnecessary. With the price of doctors so high I cannot afford to call one out, especially at night when charges are higher. Nor am I prepared to wait 6-12+ hours to be seen in the warzone that is A&E over a problem that some basic pain killers with codine would have solved.

These new regulations are a complete farce and they were brought in by your party. If someone wants to commit suicide on painkillers these regulations do absolutely nothing to stop that happening as anyone can just go from pharmacy to pharmacy to stock up to their hearts content. Yet someone in genuine need of them gets refused? I am beginning to wonder how far this nanny state wishes to dictate to citizens what they can and can't put in their own bodies. The state has no claim over my body and I take personal responsibility for what goes in it. So why is the state acting in this way? Is it just to annoy people and leave them in a completely unnecessary pain?

I'm not being smart but I voted for you last time out, I even met you on the canvass trail and you seemed like a very genuine person. However this for me is a step too far. I take personal responsibility for my actions and deeds and believe that the state should allow me to do so- Im an adult and I don't need my hand to be held. Yet your party seems to think otherwise. Unless this law is recinded between now and the next election I will have no other option but to find a party who is more along my line of thinking. I really cannot stress enough the irony of this situation- one can buy alcohol and cigarettes without question, the head shops are still open (despite two rounds of legislation) yet I can't get anything to relieve my pain. This situation is ridiculous and absurd. In future these rules now give me no other choice but to purchase painkillers without prescription from the internet. I do not like proceeding in this manner but I refuse point blank to put up with the levels of pain I had to deal with last night.

I await your reply.

bleg

It was the pharmaceutical society of Ireland (PSI) the pharmacy regulator that brought this in. Most people (including the majority of TDs I would imagine) don't even know this body exists so writing to your TD was probably a waste of time. He'll probably email you back that the issue has nothing to do with him and his party (which it doesn't) and direct you to the PSI, that is, if he gets back to you at all.

It's not even a law by the way, it's a guideline that is being enforced by the PSI on pharmacists. There was a public consultation process in advance of these guidelines being enforced.

http://www.pharmaceuticalsociety.ie/

SeaFields

The guidelines on the sale of codeine products were brought in by the Pharmaceutical Society of Ireland (which regulates pharmacies), not by any of the government parties.

Edit: beaten by Bleg!

PirateShampoo

It a bloody disgrace, €46 euro for a box of solpdine...

Mr Trade In

Thats what you get for buying Knock Off misspelled pills on a street corner.I fell on the way into an exam last week and later in the day in great pain made my way into a chemist and was able to buy a box of solpadeine, 24 pills for €5.50.

RATM

bleg wrote: »

It was the pharmaceutical society of Ireland (PSI) the pharmacy regulator that brought this in. Most people (including the majority of TDs I would imagine) don't even know this body exists so writing to your TD was probably a waste of time. He'll probably email you back that the issue has nothing to do with him and his party (which it doesn't) and direct you to the PSI, that is, if he gets back to you at all.

It's not even a law by the way, it's a guideline that is being enforced by the PSI on pharmacists. There was a public consultation process in advance of these guidelines being enforced.

http://www.pharmaceuticalsociety.ie/

In that case Im wanting to know:-
a) what my TD did during the public consultation
b) what he intends to do now these stupid guidelines are in

As previosly stated there isn't one single peer reviewed journal article outlining codine addiction in Ireland. These rules are absurd, do the PSI want people buying heroin as a painkiller? Because as it stands heroin is easier to get in this country than Nurofen Plus.

RATM

Incidentially the press release by the PSI contains the following

The guidance is to ensure compliance with new regulations under the Pharmacy Act 2007 and with the Code of Conduct for pharmacists which places the patient as the primary concern of a pharmacist.

So it now appears that pharmacists are to be so concerned for the patient as to not issue them the pain killers they clearly need when they are standing right there in front of them in pain

Madness. Pure madness. Take a bow PSI, you've just forced a patient who you supposedly are concerned about into buying pain killers off the web. Twats.

bleg

I dunno what he did, it was probably very low on his list of priorities if he knew about it though.

What did you do during the consultation?

There's not much a TD can do, the PSI are an independent regulator for the public. Therefore they're supposed to act in the best interest of the public. Politicians can't interfere with them any more than they can with another regulator such as comreg. As far as I know most of the PSI's substantial funding comes from pharmacists and pharmacies who pay a fee every year to be registered as pharmacists and retail pharmacy businesses respectively.

admiralofthefleet

i was in the chemist last week and a fella was buying some nurofen when the questions started
when the girl (eastern euorpean) asked him 'are they for you' he replied 'no, im going to sell them' she didnt know what to do
it was hilarious but me laughing out loud in the middle mof the shop probably looked a bit weird

ebixa82

RATM wrote: »

These new regulations are a joke. Here's a letter I wrote to my TD about them explaining the situation I found myself in today. I have since ordered pain killers over the web- I won't be caught on the hop by these stupid laws again.

With the no off license sales after 10pm rule the government forced my hand and I now have way more booze in the house than I ever did before. And so it will go the same way with painkillers.

Dear XXX TD,

It is with great anger and annoyance that I am writing to you. Last afternoon I crashed my motorcycle on my way home from work. The accident happened because there was split oil all over the road and my wheels just slipped from underneath of me. That, however, isn't my issue.


During the accident my right arm and shoulder took most of the hit on the hard concrete. Immediately afterwards my arm seized up and moving it was quite painful. I gathered myself and headed straight to my local pharmacy as I realised that the pain would only get worse in the hours after the accident. Here I asked for Nurofen Plus painkillers. The pharmacist refused to serve me this product on the basis that it has codine in it and said under the new regulations they could not sell codine products for my complaint. Instead I was sold normal Nurofen. After 3 hours of taking these they had absolutely no effect on the pain in my arm, which had actually gotten worse by this stage. I went back to the pharmacy and explained this and requested for the second time to be sold Nurofen Plus to get some pain relief. I explained to her that when I had back and muscular pain last year the only painkiller that worked for me was Nurofen Plus and that my arm and shoulder was giving me the exact same problems- muscular pain. Again I was refused, as if I were some sort of drug addict. I can't recall feeling so little in all my life. Here I was in a pharmacy trying to get pain relief for a very sore arm and these new regulations are preventing me from doing so. At this point it was 5.55pm and every other pharmacy in my area was closed, I now had to go home to face a night of agony with no painkillers.

As a result of these new rules I spent the whole of last night writhing in pain. I got no sleep and I have missed a days work because of something so trivial and completely unnecessary. With the price of doctors so high I cannot afford to call one out, especially at night when charges are higher. Nor am I prepared to wait 6-12+ hours to be seen in the warzone that is A&E over a problem that some basic pain killers with codine would have solved.

These new regulations are a complete farce and they were brought in by your party. If someone wants to commit suicide on painkillers these regulations do absolutely nothing to stop that happening as anyone can just go from pharmacy to pharmacy to stock up to their hearts content. Yet someone in genuine need of them gets refused? I am beginning to wonder how far this nanny state wishes to dictate to citizens what they can and can't put in their own bodies. The state has no claim over my body and I take personal responsibility for what goes in it. So why is the state acting in this way? Is it just to annoy people and leave them in a completely unnecessary pain?

I'm not being smart but I voted for you last time out, I even met you on the canvass trail and you seemed like a very genuine person. However this for me is a step too far. I take personal responsibility for my actions and deeds and believe that the state should allow me to do so- Im an adult and I don't need my hand to be held. Yet your party seems to think otherwise. Unless this law is recinded between now and the next election I will have no other option but to find a party who is more along my line of thinking. I really cannot stress enough the irony of this situation- one can buy alcohol and cigarettes without question, the head shops are still open (despite two rounds of legislation) yet I can't get anything to relieve my pain. This situation is ridiculous and absurd. In future these rules now give me no other choice but to purchase painkillers without prescription from the internet. I do not like proceeding in this manner but I refuse point blank to put up with the levels of pain I had to deal with last night.

I await your reply.

1) Why did you not buy Paracetamol along with the ibuprofen? Much more effective than Nurofen Plus.

2) Do you really think 25mg of codeine would have stopped you "writhing in pain"?

3) You were in a motorcycle accident and you chose not to seek medical attention from a GP or at a hospital? You have a job and so should have paid 60-70e to do so. How much money did you lose by not going to work?

4) Why did you not try another pharmacy?

RATM

Oh christ, what is this- the Spanish Inquisition?

Why did you not buy Paracetamol along with the ibuprofen? Much more effective than Nurofen Plus.

As I already stated, and I quote:

I explained to her that when I had back and muscular pain last year the only painkiller that worked for me was Nurofen Plus and that my arm and shoulder was giving me the exact same problems- muscular pain

2) Do you really think 25mg of codeine would have stopped you "writhing in pain"?

I was in pain simply because everytime I rolled over in bed my whole arm sparked up in throbbing. I've had this type of pain in my back before and yes, Nurofen worked FOR ME.

You were in a motorcycle accident and you chose not to seek medical attention from a GP or at a hospital?
As I said and say yet again (is there a theme developing here?) I was not prepared to wait crazy hours at A&E. My sister ( a doctor in Beaumount ) informed me it was a minimum 4 hour wait yesterday. A doctor call out would have cost me at least 70 quid and thats money I don't have. Welcome to Ireland 2010.

You have a job and so should have paid 60-70e to do so. How much money did you lose by not going to work?

I lost no money. I work for free on the FAS Work PLacement Scheme. So I can't lose what I never had.


4) Why did you not try another pharmacy?

Simply because by this stage my arm was so stiff that riding my (crashed) motorbike 2 miles to the next pharmacy was a completely bad idea. I just wanted to get home, felt ragged and disorientatied ,was in shock, not thinking straight and just wanted to lie down. Thats how you feel after coming off a motorbike and smashing your body off tarmac, you don't have the luxury of a cage around you like in a car.
I took the Nurofen for 3 hours and still felt pain so went back to the pharmacy at 5.55pm to be refused again. By that stage even I couldve gone to another pharmacy I couldn't have- she said all pharmacies around close at 6pm.
.

I had gone to the same pharmacy to see the same pharmacist- twice. Was that not enough for the pharmacist to see I was clearly in pain and distress after crashing a motorbike? Or perhaps my ripped and soiled jacket might have made her click that I was telling the truth about coming off my motorbike? Or the look of shock and my disorientated demeanor?

Over-zealous tbh, I'm still considering lodging a complaint. Becasue what she thought was 'in my best interests' clearly wasn't in my best interests. I informed her Nurofen Plus are what works for me when I have muscular pain which I clearly had there and then. I was polite at all points in our conversation and yet I got no-where. My only regret now is I didn't scream my head off in the shop and tear my clothes off to reveal my bleeding knees and elbows.

Alicat

TBH, when anyone says that Solpadeine or Nurofen plus are the "only ones that work for [them]" my suspicions are aroused immediately. The codeine doesn't give that much of a kick to the analgesic properties of either tablet. Why not try the suggested combination of Nurofen and Paracetamol? Just because you felt that they didn't work for you before, doesn't mean they wouldn't work this time.

I know you were distressed after the crash, but the sensible thing would be to follow the initial advice of the pharmacist, and if that failed you could either consult the pharmacist again or see a doctor. As none of this is quite law yet, you are perfectly entitled to try another pharmacy. Pharmacists must act upon their own initiative and decide what is best for each and every one of their patients. It is a HUGE responsibility and one that must be taken seriously.

If they reclassified Nurofen Plus and Solpadeine as prescription-only-items (which has been talked about), what would you do? You would have no other option than to try the suggested over-the-counter remedies or go see a doctor. This is nearly the same; the new regulations have strict guidelines to the sale of all codeine-containing products. You can kick up as much stink as you like, but codeine-containing products have been very much abused over the past years and need to be controlled more. Unfortunately for the rest of us, it means that we lose the option of these products.

You have absolutely NO idea at the sheer amount of codeine junkies we see every day, that don't even realise that that is what they are. Flat out denial. And they are not your typical 'junkies', they range right up to the most respectable looking men and women, which makes it very difficult to manage. If we refuse one of these more 'respectable' customers, they get extremely indignant and start writing letters to TDs and complaining to anyone who will the listen.

The pharmacist's job is to make a decision on what is best for your health. If you don't like it, you are certainly free to gather a second opinion from another health professional. If you decide to buy pills from the internet, that is your own choice, and one that could be detrimental to your health if you are not careful. Nobody forces you to do that. You 'force' yourself to do that by not acknowledging the pharmacist or doctor's professional advice/opinion.

psycho-hope

im not a pharmacist or a technition(sp?) but i do work part time as an OTC assistant, over the last week we have run the gauntlet of people throwin an absoulte hissy fit when we refused to sell them nurofern+ or solpadeine etc, to having customers thank us for explaining why and quite happily taking the alternative offered.
I wish people would realise that just because you get your perscription off us every month and we know you only buy codeine containing products once in a blue moon we still have to go thru the whole questioning why you need it because even though we know you we dont know if the other people in the shop could be inspectors checking up on the pharmacy.

ebixa82

RATM wrote: »

Oh christ, what is this- the Spanish Inquisition?

Why did you not buy Paracetamol along with the ibuprofen? Much more effective than Nurofen Plus.

As I already stated, and I quote:

2) Do you really think 25mg of codeine would have stopped you "writhing in pain"?

I was in pain simply because everytime I rolled over in bed my whole arm sparked up in throbbing. I've had this type of pain in my back before and yes, Nurofen worked FOR ME.

You were in a motorcycle accident and you chose not to seek medical attention from a GP or at a hospital?
As I said and say yet again (is there a theme developing here?) I was not prepared to wait crazy hours at A&E. My sister ( a doctor in Beaumount ) informed me it was a minimum 4 hour wait yesterday. A doctor call out would have cost me at least 70 quid and thats money I don't have. Welcome to Ireland 2010.

You have a job and so should have paid 60-70e to do so. How much money did you lose by not going to work?

I lost no money. I work for free on the FAS Work PLacement Scheme. So I can't lose what I never had.


4) Why did you not try another pharmacy?

Simply because by this stage my arm was so stiff that riding my (crashed) motorbike 2 miles to the next pharmacy was a completely bad idea. I just wanted to get home, felt ragged and disorientatied ,was in shock, not thinking straight and just wanted to lie down. Thats how you feel after coming off a motorbike and smashing your body off tarmac, you don't have the luxury of a cage around you like in a car.
I took the Nurofen for 3 hours and still felt pain so went back to the pharmacy at 5.55pm to be refused again. By that stage even I couldve gone to another pharmacy I couldn't have- she said all pharmacies around close at 6pm.
.

I had gone to the same pharmacy to see the same pharmacist- twice. Was that not enough for the pharmacist to see I was clearly in pain and distress after crashing a motorbike? Or perhaps my ripped and soiled jacket might have made her click that I was telling the truth about coming off my motorbike? Or the look of shock and my disorientated demeanor?

Over-zealous tbh, I'm still considering lodging a complaint. Becasue what she thought was 'in my best interests' clearly wasn't in my best interests. I informed her Nurofen Plus are what works for me when I have muscular pain which I clearly had there and then. I was polite at all points in our conversation and yet I got no-where. My only regret now is I didn't scream my head off in the shop and tear my clothes off to reveal my bleeding knees and elbows.

Agree with above poster, when you say "Nurofen Plus is the only thing that works for me" alarms tend to ring. Why? Because that would rarely be the case. You couldn't possibly know that an Ibuprofen/Paracetamol combination wouldn't work if you didn't try it. I'm pretty sure it would work better than Nurofen plus btw.

I am a bit shocked that any Doctor in their right mind would tell somebody who has just been involved in a motorcycle accident not to get checked by a Doctor. Extreme negligence.

I just wanted to get home, felt ragged and disorientatied ,was in shock, not thinking straight and just wanted to lie down.

You should have gone to A&E if you were anywhere near as bad as the above comment you made.
Do you not know anyone at all who could give you the loan of cash to cover the Doctor's fee and you could arrange to repay them over a period of time?

What had you hoped to achieve by "screaming your head off"? You would simply have been kicked out, barred, made a fool of in front of all the other customers and make yourself appear like somebody who was hell bent on needing their codeine fix.

Who do you plan on making a complaint too and on what grounds? Pharmacists are within their rights to refuse to sell any product they feel necessary while exercising their professional judgement.

Also, have you discussed buying painkillers off the internet with anyone else? You are aware that these are all fake don't you?

Wibbs

ebixa82 wrote: »

I just wanted to get home, felt ragged and disorientatied ,was in shock, not thinking straight and just wanted to lie down.

You should have gone to A&E if you were anywhere near as bad as the above comment you made.

I presume he means not in clinical shock. TBH having fallen off various things in my time, unless I hit my head or a limb was at a jaunty angle, I'd avoid the average Irish A&E like the very plague. Certainly in the evening when the drunks and junkies can be out en masse. So I can well understand him on that score.

Also, have you discussed buying painkillers off the internet with anyone else? You are aware that these are all fake don't you?

I'd be very dubious about buying stuff like that alright. I know a health nut who buys all her vitamin stuff online, but that's a different thing and its all branded stuff from europe.

I do have sympathy for RATM though. Walking into a pharmacy clearly in a jock after a crash, is a little different to some middle aged woman or man with no obvious problems looking to buy 2 bumper packs of solpadeine. She could have exercised some cop and given him a ten pack of the nurofen + or some such, to tide him over until morning.

It's all a bit of turnaround from a few months ago when the same, now responsible model pharmacists were only to happy to have them in plain site handing them out like smarties with zero warnings that I've ever heard. Hell they were even pushing the generic stuff and happy to do so in any number of chemists I've been in and with an aged relative that rattles like a pill box I've been in my fair share. I've seen the same faces go into my local one and ask for the big bumper pack of generic goodness on a near daily basis. It was enough for me to notice and I've rarely taken the stuff myself.

I think this is overall a good idea, as too many were and are addicted to this stuff, but where was this "professional judgement" 6 months ago? Where was it when this stuff was the biggest seller in the average pharmacy? Where was it when they were buying in generic to sell even more at a cheaper price? Where was it when they saw the same faces come in day after day after day looking for this stuff? Did they think there was some weird headache epidemic? If the average pharmacist was exercising this "professional judgement" beforehand why do we need the regulations? So like I say I do think this is a good idea but pardon me if I raise a wry smirk at this sudden appearance of "professional judgement" in the trade.

Noffles

Boots.co.uk... they deliver and surely they'll deliver to Eire and you can get all the Solpadeine you want there...

deelite

I went to the chemist on Monday morning to buy solphadine and was asked all the questions. I was offered 12 tablets (soluable) at a cost of 4.90 - which I said no to as I felt I was being ripped off - 24 tablets is 6.49 (Boots) - that's what is really annoying me.

wolfpawnat

All of this is giving me a headache! Too tight to pay for GP!!!! Anyone got a spare tablet??

Liam Byrne

Biggins wrote: »

I did. Illegal ones that are listed as class "A" or "B" etc...
Gripe water (liquid) is in a whole different ball game altogether.

Yes, it could hardly be described as a hard drug.

Unless, maybe, you froze it!

ebixa82

Wibbs wrote: »

I presume he means not in clinical shock. TBH having fallen off various things in my time, unless I hit my head or a limb was at a jaunty angle, I'd avoid the average Irish A&E like the very plague. Certainly in the evening when the drunks and junkies can be out en masse. So I can well understand him on that score.


I'd be very dubious about buying stuff like that alright. I know a health nut who buys all her vitamin stuff online, but that's a different thing and its all branded stuff from europe.

I do have sympathy for RATM though. Walking into a pharmacy clearly in a jock after a crash, is a little different to some middle aged woman or man with no obvious problems looking to buy 2 bumper packs of solpadeine. She could have exercised some cop and given him a ten pack of the nurofen + or some such, to tide him over until morning.

It's all a bit of turnaround from a few months ago when the same, now responsible model pharmacists were only to happy to have them in plain site handing them out like smarties with zero warnings that I've ever heard. Hell they were even pushing the generic stuff and happy to do so in any number of chemists I've been in and with an aged relative that rattles like a pill box I've been in my fair share. I've seen the same faces go into my local one and ask for the big bumper pack of generic goodness on a near daily basis. It was enough for me to notice and I've rarely taken the stuff myself.

I think this is overall a good idea, as too many were and are addicted to this stuff, but where was this "professional judgement" 6 months ago? Where was it when this stuff was the biggest seller in the average pharmacy? Where was it when they were buying in generic to sell even more at a cheaper price? Where was it when they saw the same faces come in day after day after day looking for this stuff? Did they think there was some weird headache epidemic? If the average pharmacist was exercising this "professional judgement" beforehand why do we need the regulations? So like I say I do think this is a good idea but pardon me if I raise a wry smirk at this sudden appearance of "professional judgement" in the trade.

WELL SAID..

fakearms123

Next they will be telling us you need a prescription for contraceptive pill, why doc! Is paint stripper and a funnel too good for you! Damn fancy pants!

mathepac

RATM wrote: »

These new regulations are a joke. Here's a letter I wrote to my TD about them explaining the situation I found myself in today. I have since ordered pain killers over the web- I won't be caught on the hop by these stupid laws again.

With the no off license sales after 10pm rule the government forced my hand and I now have way more booze in the house than I ever did before. And so it will go the same way with painkillers.
...

Sorry to hear about your accident and your injuries. I hope you recover soon and that you managed to avoid sending that pointless letter to your TD (who is also probably pointless from other perspectives).

It seems that authority is conspiring against you - you can't buy booze when you want and you can't buy painkillers (or certain cough medicines BTW) so your answer is to stockpile both, sourcing the drugs from cyberspace.

You mentioned you have a medic in the family. Given your fragile monetary state and your understandable reluctance to go the A&E route, would a quick phone-call to your sister not have in order for some advice? It might have saved you a lot of anger and frustration, a painfilled, sleepless night and a day off work.

ebixa82

mathepac wrote: »

Sorry to hear about your accident and your injuries. I hope you recover soon and that you managed to avoid sending that pointless letter to your TD (who is also probably pointless from other perspectives).

It seems that authority is conspiring against you - you can't buy booze when you want and you can't buy painkillers (or certain cough medicines BTW) so your answer is to stockpile both, sourcing the drugs from cyberspace.

You mentioned you have a medic in the family. Given your fragile monetary state and your understandable reluctance to go the A&E route, would a quick phone-call to your sister not have in order for some advice? It might have saved you a lot of anger and frustration, a painfilled, sleepless night and a day off work.

ynul31f47k6b59

RATM wrote: »

These new regulations are a joke. Here's a letter I wrote to my TD about them explaining the situation I found myself in today. I have since ordered pain killers over the web- I won't be caught on the hop by these stupid laws again.

I'm honestly not being smart, but haven't you got a MIDOC or whatever near you??? Any time I've had an emergency, accident, or medical problem out-of-hours, I ring MIDOC (NOWDOC in North West, don't know what it's called in other areas) and a nurse rings back with an appointment time. If you can't attend, they will send a Doctor on Call out to you, I've used the service before when I couldn't attend. I was given an injection to kill the pain and a prescription for the morning. I was charged €50 and they allowed me to pay it in two instalments of €25 as I was not working at the time.

I do have sympathy for you, it's agonising to be in pain and not have any painkillers, but I really don't understand why you think that codeine would have solved your problem. Ibuprofen, Paracetamol - there are a lot of other options. If I was in your situation, I'd have taken advantage of the stockpiled booze if I had trouble sleeping. I do hope you recovered, and I do have great sympathy for you, but I don't see why people automatically go into meltdown when there's no codeine available. It's not the only painkiller and it's by no means the strongest.

Herbal Deity

Personally, I find Codeine to be the only thing that does anything if I'm in any kind of serious pain.

bleg

Wibbs wrote: »

I'd be very dubious about buying stuff like that alright. I know a health nut who buys all her vitamin stuff online, but that's a different thing and its all branded stuff from europe.

Importing drugs without a licence is not only dodgey regarding the actual meds, it is also illegal.

I do have sympathy for RATM though. Walking into a pharmacy clearly in a jock after a crash, is a little different to some middle aged woman or man with no obvious problems looking to buy 2 bumper packs of solpadeine. She could have exercised some cop and given him a ten pack of the nurofen + or some such, to tide him over until morning.

It's all a bit of turnaround from a few months ago when the same, now responsible model pharmacists were only to happy to have them in plain site handing them out like smarties with zero warnings that I've ever heard. Hell they were even pushing the generic stuff and happy to do so in any number of chemists I've been in and with an aged relative that rattles like a pill box I've been in my fair share. I've seen the same faces go into my local one and ask for the big bumper pack of generic goodness on a near daily basis. It was enough for me to notice and I've rarely taken the stuff myself.

I think this is overall a good idea, as too many were and are addicted to this stuff, but where was this "professional judgement" 6 months ago? Where was it when this stuff was the biggest seller in the average pharmacy? Where was it when they were buying in generic to sell even more at a cheaper price? Where was it when they saw the same faces come in day after day after day looking for this stuff? Did they think there was some weird headache epidemic? If the average pharmacist was exercising this "professional judgement" beforehand why do we need the regulations? So like I say I do think this is a good idea but pardon me if I raise a wry smirk at this sudden appearance of "professional judgement" in the trade.

Different superintendent pharmacists are going to have a different interpretation on the law. Hence in one shop you could go in and get a bottle of codinex no problem but another would only supply it on foot of a prescription. There was definitely a blind eye turned to some patients, I have prevented the sale of codiene to some addicts and lost those patients' business because of it. My boss wasn't too happy with me.

I'm pretty happy with the new guidelines. It levels the playing field for all pharmacies who will have to have similar policies in place in order to comply with the guidelines. It will help stamp out the oversupply of codeine medications by some of the profession.

The guidelines force the pharmacist to personally deal with the sale of codeine meds, not a technician or OTC assistant. Saying that, I still would have preferred if all codeine meds were made POM.

Herbal Deity

To somewhat reiterate an earlier point, what are the negative effects of a codeine addiction, besides damage done to one's stomach/liver by the paracetamol/ibuprofen which is contained in all OTC codeine tablets and excessive quantities of which would be ingested by those who are addicted to codeine and do not know how to perform a simple cold water extraction?

policeman

Ok, so codeine works for people cos it metabolises into morphine/binds to opiate receptors in our bodies, and mimics the body's own 'opiates' -endorphin/dopamine. It is a very good painkiller despite what we are being led to believe. That's why morphine and its derivatives are used extensively in hospitals. NSAIDS [aspirin/paracetamol/ibuprof] block the prostaglandin production in the body, but somethimes that's not enough relief for people with classic migraine, severe muscle pain/injuries, etc. Yes-codeine creates tolerance, yes-codeine is addictive, but for many it'll kill any pain dead. Anyone who has been prescribed the likes of 'tylex' will know just how powerful it is.

As long as opium has been on this planet [millenia], man has enjoyed it's effects but grappled with its' addictive qualities. Something that mimics the bodies own pain reliever [produced in moments of trauma/shock to body] so well, is always going to be battled with. Why should anyone be denied such relief though or be demonized for reliance on said drugs? There have also been medical experiments using opiates as a relief for severe depression. Perhaps all these people are self medicating? However,what does it say about society that people are in a state of constant pain/mental distress that they need chemical assistance/ways to escape? These are questions that should be asked on a grand scale, rather than "Have you tried plain paracetamol instead?"

Drugs, legitimate or otherwise dull the senses to alot of the nonsense going in our world.Kids will always take them, adults will always take them. There needs to be a global shift from the simplistic "You are bad, drug taking is bad" to "Why are millions of people on this planet shoving pills into them everyday just to get by?" All is not well my friends. We need a rethink. To use all the cliches, lets talk to the elephant in the room, and lets ask the ostrich to take his head out his arse. Over and out.

ebixa82

policeman wrote: »

Ok, so codeine works for people cos it metabolises into morphine/binds to opiate receptors in our bodies, and mimics the body's own 'opiates' -endorphin/dopamine. It is a very good painkiller despite what we are being led to believe. That's why morphine and its derivatives are used extensively in hospitals. NSAIDS [aspirin/paracetamol/ibuprof] block the prostaglandin production in the body, but somethimes that's not enough relief for people with classic migraine, severe muscle pain/injuries, etc. Yes-codeine creates tolerance, yes-codeine is addictive, but for many it'll kill any pain dead. Anyone who has been prescribed the likes of 'tylex' will know just how powerful it is.

As long as opium has been on this planet [millenia], man has enjoyed it's effects but grappled with its' addictive qualities. Something that mimics the bodies own pain reliever [produced in moments of trauma/shock to body] so well, is always going to be battled with. Why should anyone be denied such relief though or be demonized for reliance on said drugs? There have also been medical experiments using opiates as a relief for severe depression. Perhaps all these people are self medicating? However,what does it say about society that people are in a state of constant pain/mental distress that they need chemical assistance/ways to escape? These are questions that should be asked on a grand scale, rather than "Have you tried plain paracetamol instead?"

Drugs, legitimate or otherwise dull the senses to alot of the nonsense going in our world.Kids will always take them, adults will always take them. There needs to be a global shift from the simplistic "You are bad, drug taking is bad" to "Why are millions of people on this planet shoving pills into them everyday just to get by?" All is not well my friends. We need a rethink. To use all the cliches, lets talk to the elephant in the room, and lets ask the ostrich to take his head out his arse. Over and out.

Fail. The rest was all the usual cliched bollix I'm guessing!

My name is URL

Herbal Deity wrote: »

To somewhat reiterate an earlier point, what are the negative effects of a codeine addiction, besides damage done to one's stomach/liver by the paracetamol/ibuprofen which is contained in all OTC codeine tablets and excessive quantities of which would be ingested by those who are addicted to codeine and do not know how to perform a simple cold water extraction?

It'd be best for people suffering an addiction to get help for that rather than to rely on easily available or home prepared batches. If someone is deemed to genuinely need a chemical then let it be prescribed to them.

If there were no controls then more people would become addicted, and increased abuse is a step back as opposed to recovery from addiction.