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The doctor could not actually see into my inner ear-for that I would have needed a CT scan, but since I was paying out of pocket, I declined.\u0026nbsp; I felt terrified, I had never felt this dizzy in my whole life.\u0026nbsp; I also started to experience other symptoms; an increase in anxiety and tingling in my hands and feet.\u0026nbsp; It did not even occur to me that I could be taking the wrong pill.\u0026nbsp; \u003C\/span\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cspan style=\"font-family: \u0026quot;Courier New\u0026quot;,Courier,monospace;\"\u003EI felt out of sorts, just didn’t feel normal that whole week, \u003C\/span\u003E\u003Cspan style=\"font-family: \u0026quot;Courier New\u0026quot;,Courier,monospace;\"\u003Euntil I was out to dinner while visiting my sister in Florida, a week and a half after I had started the new pill.\u0026nbsp; It finally dawned on me that that could be the source of my problems.\u0026nbsp; We looked it up online when we got back to her place, and it turned out I was taking Lipitor, the cholesterol drug, for that time.\u003C\/span\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cspan style=\"font-family: \u0026quot;Courier New\u0026quot;,Courier,monospace;\"\u003EI was frightened but also relieved that I was not going crazy or had something more serious.\u0026nbsp; \u003C\/span\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cspan style=\"font-family: \u0026quot;Courier New\u0026quot;,Courier,monospace;\"\u003EI got in touch with the pharmacist who was more than apologetic, offering to make it up to me in several ways.\u0026nbsp; I still am not sure if I will continue to get my medicine there.\u0026nbsp; Some of you may be shocked that I am even considering it.\u003C\/span\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cspan style=\"font-family: \u0026quot;Courier New\u0026quot;,Courier,monospace;\"\u003EThe reality is, mistakes are made, whether big pharmacies or small.\u0026nbsp; But my first thought was that I wouldn’t sue, knowing that this pharmacist, the owner, is a fellow believer (It’s my understanding to not bring fellow believers to court when disputes can be settled outside of it, 1 Corinthians 6:5-7).\u0026nbsp; I suffered some discomfort, but all in all, I will be okay.\u0026nbsp; This decision is not meant to make others feel less 'holy' or shamed for what they would do, I am simply stating my decision.\u003C\/span\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cspan style=\"font-family: \u0026quot;Courier New\u0026quot;,Courier,monospace;\"\u003EWhat would you do if your pharmacy swapped the wrong medicine?\u0026nbsp; Has this ever happened to you, and what came of it?\u003C\/span\u003E"},"link":[{"rel":"replies","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http:\/\/www.megancordell.com\/feeds\/374809395798428394\/comments\/default","title":"Post Comments"},{"rel":"replies","type":"text/html","href":"http:\/\/www.megancordell.com\/2011\/10\/touchy-topic-tuesday-wrong-prescription.html#comment-form","title":"3 Comments"},{"rel":"edit","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http:\/\/www.blogger.com\/feeds\/2992458009156144390\/posts\/default\/374809395798428394"},{"rel":"self","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http:\/\/www.blogger.com\/feeds\/2992458009156144390\/posts\/default\/374809395798428394"},{"rel":"alternate","type":"text/html","href":"http:\/\/www.megancordell.com\/2011\/10\/touchy-topic-tuesday-wrong-prescription.html","title":"Touchy Topic Tuesday:  Wrong Prescription."}],"author":[{"name":{"$t":"meg"},"uri":{"$t":"http:\/\/www.blogger.com\/profile\/09546619783461331433"},"email":{"$t":"noreply@blogger.com"},"gd$image":{"rel":"http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail","width":"32","height":"29","src":"\/\/blogger.googleusercontent.com\/img\/b\/R29vZ2xl\/AVvXsEilQL7twZTeVtE2hJkjT88LZPQZSB1wEGnttPaiLX5oQi6DHVW6PZqsK_RqoE5he6wtRnoJ2sOFfSSvWC0JvjaPm7nZ_t83cfPF5OkdtPC8Q5BLSgPfSTDQJDAMTZrXcQ\/s220\/IMG_5218.jpg"}}],"thr$total":{"$t":"3"}},{"id":{"$t":"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2992458009156144390.post-4791798768602209851"},"published":{"$t":"2011-09-27T13:28:00.000-07:00"},"updated":{"$t":"2011-09-27T13:30:15.101-07:00"},"category":[{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"anxiety"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"Medicine"}],"title":{"type":"text","$t":"Anxiety about Anxiety Medicine."},"content":{"type":"html","$t":"\u003Cdiv style=\"font-family: \u0026quot;Courier New\u0026quot;,Courier,monospace;\"\u003EToday is Touchy Topic Tuesday!\u0026nbsp; (And welcome to my new blog design, courtesy of \u003Ca href=\"http:\/\/www.funkyfaithdesigns.com\/\"\u003EFunky Faith Designs\u003C\/a\u003E! )\u003C\/div\u003E\u003Cdiv style=\"font-family: \u0026quot;Courier New\u0026quot;,Courier,monospace;\"\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003C\/div\u003E\u003Cdiv style=\"font-family: \u0026quot;Courier New\u0026quot;,Courier,monospace;\"\u003EI want to tell you a story about a girl.\u0026nbsp; This girl thought anxiety medications were bad.\u0026nbsp; She said they were being pushed by greedy pharmaceutical sales people and prescribed by doctors who were cozy with drug companies.\u0026nbsp; She thought they were for people who were weak-minded, looking for excuses and shortcuts to fix their problems.\u0026nbsp; She liked to judge people who took them, without knowing their situation in full.\u0026nbsp; That is, until she herself suffered a disabling nervous breakdown and was put in a psych ward.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nI’m sure you guessed by now that this girl is me.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nWhen I first started taking medicine four years ago, I felt guilty about it.\u0026nbsp; It went against everything I learned and everything I believed, and I felt weak and like I had somehow failed.\u0026nbsp; \u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nBut there are a few things I learned in the years since I began the medicine:\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n1) Sometimes you need to just get stable to get help.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp; The medicines were meant to help regulate chemicals in the brain so that you are able to function in a normal capacity again, even if for just a time.\u0026nbsp; A counselor once wisely told me that my ailment didn’t mean it was a life sentence.\u0026nbsp; \u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n2) The brain is a physical organ.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp; Unfortunately modern science has not yet discovered how to regularly test the chemical levels in the brains for people seeking mental health treatment.\u0026nbsp; Therefore, psychiatrists seem to be taking a stab in the dark as to which anxiety or depression medicine would best work for that patient, but one thing is for sure:\u0026nbsp; the brain can suffer dysfunction just like any other organ.\u0026nbsp; As I always say, anything that can go wrong in the body, probably does in someone.\u0026nbsp; Considering we live in the age of anxiety, it is certainly more prevalent to find people suffering these ailments, and we are more open to talk about it.\u0026nbsp; But just like someone suffering high blood pressure or high cholesterol needs to take a daily pill, so do people who are not efficiently regulating chemicals.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n3) Doctors do at times overmedicate.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp; Yeah, we all know the doctor who gave out the vicodin like it was candy.\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp; I still believe in some conspiracy because our health system is profitable, and where profit is to be made, there is greed.\u0026nbsp; However, I don’t think we should throw the baby out with the bath water.\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp; \u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n4) Counseling is effective at rewiring the brain.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp; Getting to the root of the issue is priority.\u0026nbsp; Why am I having this anxiety, and how do I cope when faced with it?\u0026nbsp; Counseling operates to help an individual learn these coping skills that are lacking, and sometimes train the brain to rewire itself so that medicine is no longer needed.\u0026nbsp; This is my hope for my own brain some day.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nWhat is your take on anxiety and depression medications?\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003C\/div\u003E"},"link":[{"rel":"replies","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http:\/\/www.megancordell.com\/feeds\/4791798768602209851\/comments\/default","title":"Post Comments"},{"rel":"replies","type":"text/html","href":"http:\/\/www.megancordell.com\/2011\/09\/anxiety-about-anxiety-medicine.html#comment-form","title":"0 Comments"},{"rel":"edit","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http:\/\/www.blogger.com\/feeds\/2992458009156144390\/posts\/default\/4791798768602209851"},{"rel":"self","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http:\/\/www.blogger.com\/feeds\/2992458009156144390\/posts\/default\/4791798768602209851"},{"rel":"alternate","type":"text/html","href":"http:\/\/www.megancordell.com\/2011\/09\/anxiety-about-anxiety-medicine.html","title":"Anxiety about Anxiety Medicine."}],"author":[{"name":{"$t":"meg"},"uri":{"$t":"http:\/\/www.blogger.com\/profile\/09546619783461331433"},"email":{"$t":"noreply@blogger.com"},"gd$image":{"rel":"http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail","width":"32","height":"29","src":"\/\/blogger.googleusercontent.com\/img\/b\/R29vZ2xl\/AVvXsEilQL7twZTeVtE2hJkjT88LZPQZSB1wEGnttPaiLX5oQi6DHVW6PZqsK_RqoE5he6wtRnoJ2sOFfSSvWC0JvjaPm7nZ_t83cfPF5OkdtPC8Q5BLSgPfSTDQJDAMTZrXcQ\/s220\/IMG_5218.jpg"}}],"thr$total":{"$t":"0"}},{"id":{"$t":"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2992458009156144390.post-7314282586134740537"},"published":{"$t":"2011-08-02T06:27:00.000-07:00"},"updated":{"$t":"2011-08-02T06:28:12.195-07:00"},"category":[{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"anxiety"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"Mental illness"}],"title":{"type":"text","$t":"The Hidden Scourge."},"content":{"type":"html","$t":"\u003Cdiv style=\"font-family: \u0026quot;Courier New\u0026quot;,Courier,monospace;\"\u003EPart of the reason that I named this blog 'mom, interrupted' was because I took it after the film\/book 'Girl, Interrupted,' where a young woman goes into a psych ward after she learns she has a mental disorder.\u0026nbsp; As many of you know, I have struggled with OCD since I was a child, which has led to anxiety and depression in my adult life.\u0026nbsp; Even though my anxieties are completely irrational, I still find myself facing them on an almost daily basis.\u0026nbsp; \u003C\/div\u003E\u003Cdiv style=\"font-family: \u0026quot;Courier New\u0026quot;,Courier,monospace;\"\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003Cdiv style=\"font-family: \u0026quot;Courier New\u0026quot;,Courier,monospace;\"\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003C\/div\u003E\u003Cdiv style=\"font-family: \u0026quot;Courier New\u0026quot;,Courier,monospace;\"\u003EWhen I tell people about this affliction, I often recount the time when I was in third grade and thought I was having a brain aneurism in the middle of Jewel.\u0026nbsp; I started screaming and knelt down, telling my mom and sister that they needed to call an ambulance.\u0026nbsp; They just walked away pretending they didn't know me.\u0026nbsp; You know...I don't blame them.\u0026nbsp; They knew I was fine, but I was convinced I was dying!\u0026nbsp; If I learned some new type of disorder, I had it.\u0026nbsp; Flesh-eating strep.\u0026nbsp; Skin cancer.\u0026nbsp; The list goes on.\u003C\/div\u003E\u003Cdiv style=\"font-family: \u0026quot;Courier New\u0026quot;,Courier,monospace;\"\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003C\/div\u003E\u003Cdiv style=\"font-family: \u0026quot;Courier New\u0026quot;,Courier,monospace;\"\u003ESince I've gotten married and had children, I still struggle from time to time.\u0026nbsp; Poor Rob has had to deal with me and my obsessive thoughts on too many occasions to count.\u0026nbsp; Last night was one of them.\u003C\/div\u003E\u003Cdiv style=\"font-family: \u0026quot;Courier New\u0026quot;,Courier,monospace;\"\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003C\/div\u003E\u003Cdiv style=\"font-family: \u0026quot;Courier New\u0026quot;,Courier,monospace;\"\u003EI laid in bed, fixated on some of my ailments, and Rob asked me to specify what they were.\u0026nbsp; I had a rattle in my lungs: lung cancer.\u0026nbsp; I had pressure behind my left eye: brain tumor.\u0026nbsp; I had cramps on my left side: ovarian cyst.\u0026nbsp; I had a pain in my left calf: bone cancer.\u0026nbsp; I had heart palpitations: looming heart attack.\u0026nbsp; And, to top it all off, I have been worried that I worry too much and will give myself an early stroke!\u0026nbsp; I can laugh about it now, but in the moment I am too absorbed in my feelings that I cannot get out of that mindset.\u003C\/div\u003E\u003Cdiv style=\"font-family: \u0026quot;Courier New\u0026quot;,Courier,monospace;\"\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003C\/div\u003E\u003Cdiv style=\"font-family: \u0026quot;Courier New\u0026quot;,Courier,monospace;\"\u003EThe root of it all is being completely out of control of the things that happen to me.\u0026nbsp; I think I can control them by worrying, somehow managing to 'catch it early' if something bad were to happen.\u0026nbsp; But in the meantime, I waste hours upon hours of my life, and my loved ones are affected negatively. \u0026nbsp;\u003C\/div\u003E\u003Cdiv style=\"font-family: \u0026quot;Courier New\u0026quot;,Courier,monospace;\"\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003Cdiv style=\"font-family: \u0026quot;Courier New\u0026quot;,Courier,monospace;\"\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nLast night I gave in to the worries and just brooded over the endless possibilities.\u0026nbsp; But some days I am victorious over the irrational, able to not let my feelings master my reason.\u0026nbsp; OCD and anxiety do not define me as a person:\u0026nbsp; they are not who I was created to be, and my whole life I will continue to battle these 'natural' inclinations because I don't want to settle that this is the way I am.\u0026nbsp; I want to trust Jesus when gives the wisdom and command to \"not worry\" in Matthew 6.\u0026nbsp; Worrying surely does not add an hour to my life, if anything, it takes it away.\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/div\u003E\u003Cdiv style=\"font-family: \u0026quot;Courier New\u0026quot;,Courier,monospace;\"\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003C\/div\u003E\u003Cdiv style=\"font-family: \u0026quot;Courier New\u0026quot;,Courier,monospace;\"\u003EIf you struggle with anxiety or depression, tell me about it here.\u0026nbsp; What do you do to cope?\u003C\/div\u003E"},"link":[{"rel":"replies","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http:\/\/www.megancordell.com\/feeds\/7314282586134740537\/comments\/default","title":"Post Comments"},{"rel":"replies","type":"text/html","href":"http:\/\/www.megancordell.com\/2011\/08\/hidden-scourge.html#comment-form","title":"1 Comments"},{"rel":"edit","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http:\/\/www.blogger.com\/feeds\/2992458009156144390\/posts\/default\/7314282586134740537"},{"rel":"self","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http:\/\/www.blogger.com\/feeds\/2992458009156144390\/posts\/default\/7314282586134740537"},{"rel":"alternate","type":"text/html","href":"http:\/\/www.megancordell.com\/2011\/08\/hidden-scourge.html","title":"The Hidden Scourge."}],"author":[{"name":{"$t":"meg"},"uri":{"$t":"http:\/\/www.blogger.com\/profile\/09546619783461331433"},"email":{"$t":"noreply@blogger.com"},"gd$image":{"rel":"http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail","width":"32","height":"29","src":"\/\/blogger.googleusercontent.com\/img\/b\/R29vZ2xl\/AVvXsEilQL7twZTeVtE2hJkjT88LZPQZSB1wEGnttPaiLX5oQi6DHVW6PZqsK_RqoE5he6wtRnoJ2sOFfSSvWC0JvjaPm7nZ_t83cfPF5OkdtPC8Q5BLSgPfSTDQJDAMTZrXcQ\/s220\/IMG_5218.jpg"}}],"thr$total":{"$t":"1"}}]}});