Take As Needed

When did we abandon our take as needed culture? I’ve been fondly remembering the time when I had control over my own health decisions. Has anyone else noticed they don’t write prescriptions that way anymore? Take as needed…now that’s genius. It makes me the decider. I very much like being the decider.

Don’t get me wrong I don’t want to tell everyone what to do, I just like it very much when I was in control of my own decisions. I got to hold the prescription in my hand and read it then make the ultimate executive decision. Where am I now, do I need to take this to relieve a symptom or can I get through the next hour or two just as I am? If I wait, how long and what do I wait for? More distress or perhaps (fill in your own thought here). The decision and any consequence is mine and mine alone which I gleefully accept.

Remember when doctors actually called you to follow up after a procedure? I had a couple of minor surgeries for “sports injuries”. Well if you must know I was walking and stepped off a curb and twisted a tendons and other supporting parts, hardly glamorous but I’m sticking to my “sport injury” story in this case. I was in pain before surgery but felt so good after surgery I was just reveling in my new pain free status. I consulted the prescription label for pain medication, usually labeled take as needed, so I get to decide I’m need or not in need. When the doctor called he also advised me to take one immediately because the pain would be returning but I was now giddy with power I never gave the prescription another thought. I’m now qualified to be a televangelist or a dictator but those positions are not readily advertised.

This is all a result of a conversation with my doctor over a current prescription. It is written take daily for a symptom that only occurs occasionally, so I make the executive decision to take as needed. To his credit the doctor listened to my rationalization and agreed to an extent that I am correctly using this medication as it is intended but will not authorize a change in the labeling. So who’s in charge here…not me…not my doctor…maybe the drug company that pushes this pill so it can make more profit? Hmmmm.