People who know me know that I am trying to lose weight and get faster this year. Well - I can definitely tell you one way NOT to do that. I had a stomach bug that basically took me out for a week (I managed maybe 16 hours of on and off working over the entire week...)
I worked some of those hours on Tuesday. By Wednesday it was clear I was headed for worse trouble, so I made an appointment for Thursday morning. Having been without solid food for days at this point, I literally dragged myself to the doctor's office, which wore me out. (My wife was running our children around to their various functions.) The doctor looked me over and said I looked 'very bad' -gastritis. She ordered up a slew of tests to be on the safe side. I drove to the lab and revived in their waiting room somewhat.
I decided to go over to the local pharmacy and try to fill my Carafate prescription. I told the pharmacist I was a Celiac and asked her if the Carafate had any gluten. She was holding a bottle in her hand, but she didn't know and said she would need to call the manufacturer - could I wait or come back? At that point, I was wondering if I could drive home. I called my wife, and she offered to check and pick it up. So I drove straight home and went to the futon, where I lay for about four hours in misery, too tired to move. Meanwhile, my wife came home, we found out it was gluten free, and finally got the prescription -- about five hours later and honestly the best we could do, given our circumstances. I finally had my first dose around 6.
The point is - for Celiacs - the "inactive ingredients" may or may not be. If there was better information, I wouldn't have had to suffer for those five hours. Has anyone else out there suffered a similar lag between prescription and acquisition? What coping approaches to you use?
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I can so relate- Only it took me a couple of months to figure out that the scrip that was supposed to help reduce the inflammation in my knee was actually causing everything else to be completely painful and unpleasant.
Until labeling and awareness/education on the parts of doctors and pharmacists is available, I've found a few lists online that have been helpful. Best bet, however, is to call the company, but a couple of these lists make it so that you (or your doc) can do it BEFORE you go to pick up the meds. I've actually taken to have the nurse call the company to make sure any meds I get are GF before I leave the office.
A few links:
http://www.clanthompson.com/res_info_lists.php?status=list_items&coded_category=Prescription%20Drugs&coded_category_id=6
http://homepage.mac.com/sholland/celiac/GFmedlist.pdf
Also, you can call the CVS customer relations line- they have a pretty comprehensive list, especially when it comes to OTC meds.
Best to you!
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