My friend is dying from a drug overdose.

[leftyladyfrommo]

She has taken pain meds for years. And then she started mixing them up when one kind quit working.

I guess she just accidentally took too many. Her husband didn't find her until it was too late. She is in ICU, totally unresponsive and unable to breathe on her own.

Her brother-in-law told me that their bathroom cabinet was completely full of meds of all sorts. They knew she has been mixing things for years.

What a waste of a perfectly good life. Just so sad for everyone. I keep wondering if she will just live on in a coma. Am waiting to hear.

[ScreamingMeemie]

1. Oh leftylady... I am so, so sorry.

There are no words. My heart goes out to you today.

[leftyladyfrommo]

5. I just feel so sorry for her husband.

She has been addicted to pain meds for so long. I think this is the 3rd time he found her unresponsive.

Both of their lives just sucked. Hers because she was in so much pain and his because he just kept on trying to help her.

[Vinnie From Indy]

2. That sucks

I hope your friend recovers!!!

[TuxedoKat]

3. How sad

so sorry to hear this. (((HUGS)))

[LittleBlue]

4. How awful

Life can be too much for some people. I'll pray that she makes a miraculous recovery.

[leftyladyfrommo]

6. I don't think she did it on purpose.

But you never really know, do you?

[closeupready]

13. I do think with some people in chronic pain, when

the meds stop working, all they can think about is ending that pain, and on a bad day, when your thoughts are dark, it's scary to think about what goes through the heads of our loved ones.

Sending you hugs.

[LiberalEsto]

7. Dear heavens, how sad.

blessings and hugs to all

[question everything]

8. I am so sorry. How sad

Not to pile any guilt feeling on the husband but family members have to talk to the doctors to address such a problem. Perhaps something else, besides pills, can be used with medical devices.

[leftyladyfrommo]

10. I know.

I thought doctors kept closer watch on things like that. But I think she kind of went to a lot of doctors. I don't think it was their fault at all.

People who are addicted to perscription drugs shop doctors.

Her poor family.

[leftyladyfrommo]

11. She had a bad shoulder.

It was operated on several times and then she got a staff infection in it. I think it all started as a rotator cuff injury. She hasn't been able to use that arm at all for a long time.

[Auntie Bush]

16. I hear that's a very painful injury and surgery

Drs. are very hesitant to prescribe pain killers. Maybe if they were more vigilant in caring for pain patients they could prevent this. Drs. should know when a patient is addicted and take appropriate action...rehab if necessary. No one should have to deal with pain control on there own.

Drs. just don't want it on their records that they prescribe too many Opiates. So maybe the Gov is at fault for going after Drs. It's a hard problem to solve, but something must be done. Too many people are in chronic pain.

We need a new and powerful pain killer that isn't addictive. I wonder if anyone is researching this?

[REP]

20. The surgery is painful

I had two of them last year (rotator cuff repair along with AC joint resections on both shoulders).

[Auntie Bush]

24. I'm sorry REP!

That must have been torture! Hope your all well and pain free now.

[REP]

39. Well, it wasn't fun ... but I did ask for it!

I'll probably never be pain free (weird arthritis) but I no longer have a 3" bone spur tearing my muscle every time I move my right arm, which is a vast improvement!

The left was just done a few months ago, so it's still cranky (the recovery is over a year for what I had done).

And thanks!

[leftyladyfrommo]

22. I just read something about a new pain killer

but it's something like ten times more potent than vicodin and way more dangerous. It's called Zohydro. Raw story has an article on it today.

[truedelphi]

29. That is some seriously scarey

Medication.

But the tools over at FDA don't care as long as they keep their jobs. And industry helps them keep family members supplied with cushey jobs as well.

[leftyladyfrommo]

31. There was a letter in the KC Star today

from someone who has a kind of rare disease. There is a medicine to treat it that is available in several countries but the FDA has not given approval. It is impossible to get here and illegal for him to buy it from another country.

And yet they will OK something like this drug.

[magical thyme]

38. The painkiller in question is intended for end of life care

when pain can be so great that nothing else touches it.

I am so sorry for your friend.

[truedelphi]

42. One thing I learned from taking care of people dealing with being quadrepalegics

Is that when a person suffers from unremitting pain, a device called a morphine pump can be used. It is inserted in the person's body cavity and administers a needed dose of morphine to the area of the body afflicted. The person does not get high from this dosage, but they do not ever notice the pain again either!

I haven't known of anyone in California who has gone this route. The pumps were more common in Oregon for some reason.

Why this is not used more often by physicians in helping people deal with pain, I do not know.

[REP]

40. There's a lot of misinformation and scare tactics about pain relief

Most people do not understand the difference between dependency and addiction. People with chronic, severe pain may become dependent on painkillers, but rarely do they become addicted. But if you were to ask someone like me if I were willing to become addicted to have enough pain reduction be able to function, I'd do it.

Fortunately, my doctors do understand the need to treat chronic pain. If you think Vicodin is scary, what I take would make you faint.

[zabet]

41. Too true....

The dosage per pill, the amount of pills per day and what kind they are generally blow peoples' minds when I tell them. It is absolutely necessary for me to function for I have a rare condition where my body makes far too much spinal fluid so the pressure gets too high....it causes severe double vision and migraines on par with someone with a large brain tumor. Condition is so rare, no known cause and no standard treatment so, one med for pulling excess spinal fluid out of my system and the pain meds so I can function as a human being.
I have seen lots of addicts who are just in it for the high. Myself personally, I would give everything I own, even my home, to be pain free and 'normal' for a change. Intra-cranial hypertension is a walk through hell itself.

[cally]

49. I'm so sorry with what you live with

Puts my own small pains in perspective.

[zabet]

52. Thank you ...

[leftyladyfrommo]

45. One of my friends has horrible chronic back pain

and she uses powerful stuff. She says she addicted but I think it's more like what you use. She never seems stoned and she can function pretty well as long as she can take her pills. I think she is very careful.

[herding cats]

9. I'm so sorry.

Hopefully she'll still recover and get a chance to straighten up.

[JJChambers]

12. I'm so sorry

Cases like this reinforce my personal choice to deal with pain rather than deal with pills. The risks of addiction, overdose (accidental or intentional), etc, are just too great. I would rather just deal with pain.

[Auntie Bush]

25. That's a good attitude, but

what if the pain was too bad to bare?

[leftyladyfrommo]

27. Too true. Some pain is just so awful that it's impossible

to make it without drugs of some kind.

[Auntie Bush]

28. Yes, It's either drugs or......................

[Squinch]

14. I am so sorry.

Trying to think of something else to say to offer something to you right now, but I can't. One of life's hardest things is that we can't stop the people we love from doing things that are harmful to them.

[smokey775]

15. Good vibes sent to your friend.

Here's to hoping that she recovers and has a good life.

[polly7]

17. I'm so sorry.

Accidental overdose with prescription meds is so easy to do .... mixing them up, or forgetting when they've last been taken or how many. Best wishes for her recovery, so sad.

[Auntie Bush]

26. Yes, once you've had a few you can forget or get confused easily.

[giftedgirl77]

18. I'm sorry to hear this...

My sister died of an overdose at 28. Her's was recreational though, I didn't make it out of Kuwait before my mom took her off of life support. My thoughts are with you.

[adirondacker]

19. So sorry to hear this. nt

[winter is coming]

21. I'm terribly sorry. I lost a friend that way.

[leftyladyfrommo]

23. I haven't been able to get ahold of anyone in the family today.

That's not a good sign.

[truedelphi]

34. My sympathy to you and also of course to your

Friend and her family.

[bigwillq]

30. Very sad.

I've lost several friends and acquaintances to drugs.

Addiction is a horrible disease.

[leftyladyfrommo]

32. It's just horrible.

And it completely destroys everyone around it.

I saw not too long ago that the recovery rate for heroin addiction is something like 5%. Think about that. I think it's even worse for meth. And if you do manage to get off you spend just about every second of every day trying not to think about it.

[shenmue]

33. Mercy

I am so sorry.

[davidpdx]

35. I'm sorry to hear that

I wish someone had intervened. Please keep us updated and I'll send good vibes.

[mylye2222]

36. My thoughs and heart goes to you, families and friend.

Hold on. Keep faith.

Bless you and bless her.

[pinto]

37. So sorry to hear this leftladyfrommo. Support Narcan availability in your state.

California has recently legalized Narcan (naloxone) possession and use outside of strictly medical settings. It's a standard intervention in ER's and by EMT's in response to an overdose. CA has expanded access to friends and family of those at risk for an opiod overdose.

In CA, it's approved county-by-county under a blanket authorization (prescription) by a licensed medical professional. Training for administration is fairly straightforward, logical and clear. And brief.

Anyone who has personal experience with insulin or epinephrine injection gets it right away. Narcan differs in that it is an intra-muscular injection, usually in the upper thigh. So the needle gauge is larger and longer, yet it's a quick delivery like the others and a life saving, on-site possibility.

Narcan is an "opiate antagonist" in that it blocks the opiate. Coupled with basic body positioning, rescue breathing and informed attention (plus the essential 911 call for EMT support) it saves lives.

Your friend's situation is a silent epidemic of unintentional overdose. Folks often see overdose solely in the realm of injection drug users. Yet that's not the case. And, truth be told, most all don't want to OD, whether they're shooting heroin or using prescribed meds. Save for the intentional suicides, I would wager that most of the OD deaths just happened in the course of events. It's sad and avoidable to an extent.

Other states have provided expanded legal standards for Narcan. Check with your state to see where it's at on Narcan availability.

Oh, Sanjay Gupta had a great piece on opiate overdose intervention on CNN recently. It's probably available on-line at CNN's website.

Take care.

[leftyladyfrommo]

43. An update: She made it thru the weekend.

Her kidneys are working fine. They have her sedated and are trying to bring her up just a little at a time. And she opened her eys once.

Just taking it a little at a time here. At this point any news is good news. I think they are going to do some brain scans today.

[Barack_America]

46. Intubation is pretty much mandatory for narcotics overdoses...

...narcotics block the parts of our brain that remind us to breathe. The fact they felt it necessary to sedate her in order to allow her to tolerate the vent is also a good sign.

Bottom line, don't give up on her yet. Hopefully she'll pull through and this will serve as one hell of a wake up call for all involved.

[leftyladyfrommo]

48. I guess she tried to breathe on her own but couldn't yet. n/t

[jwirr]

44. My grandson is doing much the same thing. What I learned from his case is that prolonged use

causes a liver disease that will kill unless the user quits. He is trying very hard to quit. He uses pain pills, meth, and mj. The latter actually works to help him stay away from the others.

[leftyladyfrommo]

47. Wow. There is just so much about this that I don't know.

I remember a program a long time ago that stated that terminally ill patients who are in a lot of pain in the UK get heroin. It works and these people have a much better quality of life right up to the end.

Have you heard of that?

[jwirr]

50. Yes, addiction in the case of a person who was terminally ill used to be a concern because doctors

did not want to prescribe addictive drugs. Many of us simply asked - what is the difference - they are dying. When my father died I insisted they continue the pain medications so that he would just go to sleep. The nurse looked at me and asked "Do you know what you are doing?" I nodded and she kept my father from being in endless pain. I am assuming that they use any type of pain reliever that works including heroin.