Op-ed: Chronic pain sufferers need access to opioids
My 26-year-old daughter, Madison, is an extremely intelligent, articulate, creative and beautiful young woman. Anyone blessed with these attributes should be well on their way to a wonderful and fulfilling life. But Madison is suffering in ways that most people could never imagine. Diagnosed at 13 years old with Complex Regional Pain Syndrome, formerly known as Reflex Sympathetic Dystrophy (CRPS/RSD), an incurable and progressive chronic pain disease of the sympathetic nervous system, she lives every day in severe pain.
CRPS/RSD is ranked as the most painful form of chronic pain that exists today by the McGill Pain Index. With the advice of numerous physicians over the last 13 years, we have tried every possible remedy and every possible treatment. None of them worked. So many days, I can only hold her in my arms as she cries in agony. The only thing that eases her suffering slightly is her prescription of opioid medication. Yet the government, in a short-sighted effort to combat widespread opioid abuse, wants to take Madison’s lifeline away. She, along with many others in her situation, are apparently considered collateral damage.
Collateral damage is not acceptable. Our military does the best it can to minimize collateral damage on the innocent and unintended targets even if it means sparing the intended targets. This is supported by not only by our government, but by the international community as well. And it should be that way. It’s compassionate.
Why, then, is our government inflicting cruel and unusual punishment for innocent victims here at home? They are putting extreme pressure upon physicians, under the threat of being removed from their practice, to reduce and/or eliminate the levels of prescribed opioids to all patients. But there will be collateral damage to this. Tens of thousands of people who have chronic pain will suffer. For them, there is no relief without opioid medication, and for whom the reduction or the elimination of their medication will cause unspeakable pain and even death.
The United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights states in Article 5, “No one shall be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.” Medical doctors in the United States take the Hippocratic Oath that states, “I will follow that system of regimen which, according to my ability and judgment, I consider for the benefit of my patients, and abstain from whatever is deleterious and mischievous.”
How can we be in direct conflict to both the Declaration of Human Rights and the Hippocratic Oath, and cause immense suffering to those of us who are in chronic, incurable pain? How can we reconcile the fact that, as a country, we can show compassion and lend assistance to refugees, and send food and medical aid to Third World countries, yet allow our family and friends to be denied the medication they need to survive?
It is because we are only being shown one side of this story. What we are not shown are the millions of patients in the USA alone who, but for their opioid medication, would be left in constant and excruciating pain. Taking away their right to be treated for their pain is the real opioid crisis.
Sadly, there are thousands of people who die from the over-the-counter drug ibuprofen every year. There are tens of thousands of people dying from their antidepressants and benzodiazepines. There are hundreds of thousands of people who die from complications associated with anticoagulants. Although these numbers are tragic, we would not want to see the physicians associated with these prescriptions threatened. This, however, is exactly what is happening in the case of the opioid crisis.
This is not acceptable.
Filed under: General Problems
Author of the reply is right,this is NOT acceptable.I sympathize with her and her daughter.Every month I have to worry if the docs will cut me off from the meds that have helped me for eight years now.Hydrocodone.
I suffer from degenerative discs in my neck and back,and a spinal condition.I have digressed over the eight years and went from a cane,to a walker,to a scooter.I can no longer walk any further on a walker than around my apartment,and with great difficulty.Hydro in combo with the natural herb Kratom has has made life bearable,even though I spend 98% of my time on a bed.Authorities in their cruelty and ignorance keep threatening to ban Kratom,and as I said every damn month I have the worry of the hydro being cut off.If so,what then.What the hell else is there to control this pain.This madness has got to stop.We need advocates in the medical profession to organize and fight this intrusion into our private lives.We need a government that will stop making our lives more miserable than they already are.Opioids used properly under medical supervision are safe.Physical dependency for medical conditions is not the same as addictions,and addictions are not caused by any substance.They are conditions in and of themselves in addictive prone people.Many self medicate with alcohol,the most destructive drug of them all.Cutting people off from natural safe medications like Kratom and cannabis,and from medically supervised use of opioids will lead to an increase in alcohol usage in many who will self medicate in desperation.It will also lead to suicides due to the depression that occurs from constant pain.It wil lead to some obtaining illegal black market drugs that can easily kill.These agencies need to start using some damn common sense,and showing some empathy and compassion.They need to do that starting yesterday.
I CAN TELL ALL OF U THE WHY AND THE HOW,,,THE U.S.A. IS IN DIRECT VIOLATION OF THE U.N. DECLARATION OF HUMAN RIGHTS AND WHY THEIR ALLOWED TO GET AWAY W/IT,$$$$$!!!back in 2009,,the u.s.a. government was going to be brought up on charges of torture over at gitmo,,,for water boarding,,,The U.S.A. on our dime,,,hired lawyers,,lots of them,,,to defend the right too water board,and challenged the U.N definition of torture,,,then,,,the U.S.A,, threaten’d to pull all funding to the U.N.n.,,,if they did not get off their backs about the definition of torture,,Soooo,,the u.s.a. decided for themselves,,,that ,”torture,” is what they say it is!!!Anotherswards,,,once again,,,America changed a definition that has been on the books forever,,,to justify tortureing in the U.S.A…If u are truly curios about all this,,,type in ” 2009,U.S.A challenges U.N human rights definition of torture with the word ,”lawful sanctions,”…. What the U.S.A.. is doing is saying torture is legal here in America,,if their is a lawful sanction,,ie lawful sanctions are,,all these cdc guidelines,,dea new definitions,,moving the weakest opiate up to 2,,,all of these changes to our medicines that stood for 100’s of years are all ,”lawful; sanctions,”,,,thus,,the united states believes they can longer be charged w/torture,,,ever!!!!,,,and NOT 1 HUMAN RIGHTS GROUP,,ACLU,,NO-ONE STOOD UP,,AND SAID ,,’NO” TO AMERICA,,NO-ONE EVEN TRIED TO STOP AMERICA OBVIOUS ABUSE OF POWER,TYRANNY…TO TOP IT OFF,,,,AMERICA ALSO CLAIMS IF OTHER COUNTRIES GO A LONG W/THESE,” LAWFUL SANCTION,” THEN AMERICA IS ALSO NOT GUILTY OF TORTURE!!!!
The usa has threaten’d to pull of funding before,,,to the W.H.O.,, when the WHO,, did a in depth study on recreational use of pot and Inka tea.ie coca leaf legal products,,,stating it did NO HARM,, if used very mildly,did no harm to a person abilty to have a career,,,,,the usa flipped a twig,,and told the WHO,UN.. they would pull all funding if the released and published their research
Someone should of sued the U.S. biutts when this all went down in 2009,,,,,but they all just let it happen,,,Someone need to challenge/sue in a court of law;,,the United States Of America,,,for torture and genocide of thee medically ill,,,Denial of effective medical care that causes severe physical pain,,is,thee U.N definition of torture,thus America is in direct violation of torture onto the medically ill!!!!!,,,maryw
THANK YOU!!!!
#PainPatientsAreNotAddicts. Pain patients have a right to improved quality of life using opioid meds ordered by their docs. Pain is a private medical
issue–not a CDC problem.
As an innocent physician attacked by an unscrupulous DOJ, I have developed http://www.doctorsofcourage.org to fight this evil based on propaganda and shear abuse of power. Learn the REAL cause of drug abuse, and it isn’t the drugs themselves. And pass the site on to every pain management physician. They have to stop pleading guilty and stand up to this evil. The answers are there. We just have to get the word out.