I am becoming somewhat frustrated with the way a lot of my colleagues practice medicine.  Disenchanted, angry would be the other words that could be used.  We all get ostensibly that same training and all of us are supposedly in it to help our patients.  So, how come have I been getting so many letters lately on my addiction forum from desperate people unable to quit taking the tramadol pills that their own kind doctors have so freely prescribed for them?

These doctors seem to forget their pharmacology training.  They also forget to use their independent thinking and ability to look up information for themselves.  They assume that if the medication is not a controlled substance (and it very well should be as we will discuss), then it is not an opiate, it is not addictive and they can just give it like candy without any consequence to their patient.

Here are just a few excerpts of many letters that I have been getting just in the last few weeks:

"I have discovered that if I go more than 10 or 12 hours without my tramadol I begin getting a headache which progresses to nausea, upset stomach and a generally not feeling well, to the point that I have to lie down.  Sometimes I even have cold sweats and chills.  I have found myself taking one just to relieve those symptoms I am concerned that I am dependent on the tramadol and it doesn’t look like I am going to get rid of the pain, and the need, any time soon."

Read More...