Lifetime Medications..
 

Just wondering if you all have to take meds for the rest of your life also, and what are they for/what are they called?

I currently take alot of meds, for schizoaffective, high blood pressure, IBS, and low thyroid. The med that I take for my schizoaffective bipolar also controls my seizures..

It'd be interesting to see how many other people have to take meds for their rest of my life, and I am not mad or anything, it just kinda sucks.. :)

(Edit)
<a href="http://spherevision.org/meds">My medication list.</a>

I have to take Prilosec for my heartburn, doesn't sound like any big deal but it is for me. I was actually diagnosed with Barrettes syndrome, which is a deterioration of the esophagus. (Caused by stomach acid) The next step is Cancer.
So, I take it pretty seriously. But the docs say that it will heal itself over time as long as I keep taking Prilosec.
Heartburn can kill you, the only reason I got checked out is because my dad died of throat cancer after suffering from severe heartburn most of his adult life.

supposedly my asthma meds

i've been slowly stopping taking them daily just to see how I react to them... we'll see also what the change of moving from the suburbs to the city do.

I don't take anything, but I work at a pharmacy and see plenty of people who do. We have a couple of patients who get not quite 30 prescriptions every month. It's a sad thing.

cnor - You'll be happy to know (if you didn't already) that Prilosec just got a lot cheaper. The OTC version costs 75-80% less that the prescription version and is exactly the same thing.

But anyone with insurance coverage just pays copayment of $5 or so for month supply. Since insurance companies do not pay copay for OTC drugs, having a drug become OTC makes it significantly more expensive for most people. What do you think?

That's true, especially because my insurance pays everything for meds.. Sometimes I hate it when things become OTC because then I have to pay out of my pocket :(

Being Manic-Depressive, it looks like I'll be on Zoloft for the rest of my life. Tried to lower the dosage once and it didn't work out too well.

I'm not mad about it either. It's just something I have to do to keep from killing myself. :crazy:

That depends on your insurance company. Some people pay a percentage of the cost; some pay at multi-tier copay (for instance $15 on generics, $30 on formulary (preferred) brandname drugs, and $45 on non-formulary. Senior citizens with only medicare often have no prescription coverage. For people like that it's great. If you simply have a $5 copay, have your doctor switch you to Nexium or Prevacid. Once ingisted, those and Prilosec all metabolize to the exact same chemical.

i take nexium. i used to take prilosec, but i think this stuff is so much better. not that there's any real difference, but when i was on prilosec it was twice a day about 45-60 minutes before eating, and on nexium i just take it in the morning and i'm done for the day. it's a lot simpler for to do that, and i love it. i think i might actually be able to go off it soon too. i started getting the massive heartburn from stress. not that the stress is gone, but if i start watching what i eat (for stuff that aggrivates and increases stomach acid) and the amounts, and get rid of my gut (the extra abdominal pressure helps push acid up the esophogus) then i'll probably be okay without it. but that's a big IF.

I only use Astelin.

While we're on the subject of meds, are there any meds out there that say you shouldn't masturbate while taking? Yes, random question. Just curious. :)

I've never heard of anything that would have such a warning. I can't even imagine why that would hurt. There are some medications that would interfere with your ability, but I don't think that even then it could be harmful.

Thanks, digby. I definately agree and couldn't find any logical reason that it'd be harmful, but you never know. Crazy doctors.

I sure hope not, lol

Prevacid for acid reflex -- well worth it!

I had a liver transplant a couple years back so I'll be taking medications for the rest of my life. I don't mind it much, since it does allow me to live and all that. It does suck some that I'll never be able to go deep in the jungle or venture out into the middle of nowhere since I always have to take my meds.

Right after my transplant, I took about 45 pills a day. Now I'm down to about 26 a day. It's a big difference. I take Prograf, Cellcept, Niphidipine, magnesium plus (8 pills, morning and evening...), and Wellbutrin. About half of the meds I take are to counter act side effects of the other medications I take.

I know the feeling :(