(no subject)
My primary care doctor referred me to a Neurologist just to cover my headaches from all angles. The appointment was today. I showed up at 2:45 because he was supposed to see me at 3:00. At around 4:05, he finally came in and spent about four solid minutes with me before rushing me out the door. I mean, I know that this guy sees REAL cranial problems every day, the life-threatening scary ones, but I honestly felt like he didn't give two shits about my problem. He asked me a few basic questions and didn't give me a chance to answer them at length, then he threw three different migraine pill samples in my direction, recommended that I get an MRI just to make sure everything looks okay, and wrote me a prescription for Topamax twice a day without telling me anything about it besides: "You might lose weight on this, so be careful."
Luckily I had already heard bad things about Topamax from friends and acquaintances with migraine issues. It's commonly referred to as "Dopamax" because it can turn you into a confused zombie. I read some more about it online when I got home, and I will NOT be filling this prescription OR taking this medication. EVER. It's supposed to help prevent migraines, but the side effects are nightmarish. They range from tasting things differently to pins and needles in the hands and feet to loss of short term memory and possible vision problems and hair loss. WTF?! I'd rather have headaches every day! The fact that this doctor so casually and hurriedly prescribed something like that to me kinda freaked me out. He really didn't take the time to explore what's been going on, but he didn't think twice about giving me something that has the potential to poison my brain into numbness and stupidity? I don't get it.
I'm wondering if I should actually go through with this MRI or not. I don't think it's really necessary because my migraines aren't that serious. Should I find out what the copay would be and decide based on that?
Arg. I basically have a headache every day. Granted, it's not always extreme or intrusive to what I'm doing, but it's still annoying. I wish I could just take ONE pill ONCE a day that would make my melon feel all better without risking other crazy things happening.
Oh, well! This weekend is going to be AMAZING because I'm seeing They Might Be Giants in Northampton on Friday night, then again in NYC on Saturday night. Dear Johns, please save my life again. Thanks.
Luckily I had already heard bad things about Topamax from friends and acquaintances with migraine issues. It's commonly referred to as "Dopamax" because it can turn you into a confused zombie. I read some more about it online when I got home, and I will NOT be filling this prescription OR taking this medication. EVER. It's supposed to help prevent migraines, but the side effects are nightmarish. They range from tasting things differently to pins and needles in the hands and feet to loss of short term memory and possible vision problems and hair loss. WTF?! I'd rather have headaches every day! The fact that this doctor so casually and hurriedly prescribed something like that to me kinda freaked me out. He really didn't take the time to explore what's been going on, but he didn't think twice about giving me something that has the potential to poison my brain into numbness and stupidity? I don't get it.
I'm wondering if I should actually go through with this MRI or not. I don't think it's really necessary because my migraines aren't that serious. Should I find out what the copay would be and decide based on that?
Arg. I basically have a headache every day. Granted, it's not always extreme or intrusive to what I'm doing, but it's still annoying. I wish I could just take ONE pill ONCE a day that would make my melon feel all better without risking other crazy things happening.
Oh, well! This weekend is going to be AMAZING because I'm seeing They Might Be Giants in Northampton on Friday night, then again in NYC on Saturday night. Dear Johns, please save my life again. Thanks.