Some people have a nightcap. Some people have a bedtime snack. Some people have a cup of tea. Some people have a cocktail.
I’m amongst the cocktail crew, but my cocktail is a mix of prescription, over the counter, and homeopathic meds that create a nearly-perfect balance to keep my various neurological, autoimmune, and mental illnesses at bay.
If you count them, there are 16 pills in the palm of my hand. Each and every one serving its own purpose, with a goal to wake up semi-rested in the morning. Dave sent me a meme once of Mr Burns from The Simpsons where all of his illnesses were propping each other up, and that letting any one of them take over would mean certain death. It made me laugh because that’s how I imagine this handful of pills – each one doing it’s specific job, allowing the next one to do it’s job, and between the lot of them, finding something resembling balance that lets me carry on with my life.
Questions asked of a person who takes this many pills:
- Why do you need that many?
- Aren’t you worried that you will come to depend on them for your health?
- Don’t you think you would get the same results with just yoga or meditation or exercise?
- Exercise is the best pain relief and anti anxiety medication! Have you tried running?
These questions are all well-meant but they are also annoy AF. Yes, of course I think I take too many! Yes, I do believe that I am dependent on drugs like levothyroxine and duloxetine to produce chemicals that my body cannot. Yes, I do think homeopathy and meditation and yoga and exercise and drinking more water are all important elements to a healthy mind/body/soul.
Which is why the 16 pills in my hand are made up of all different layers of health care from OTC to pharma to homeopathic.
And it is why I am sharing this here – to release the stigma of pain and illness management.
I am not ashamed of my medication and I don’t want anyone else to feel ashamed of theirs. Medication was created for a reason, and our bodies cannot always be depended upon to do what we need.
There is no shame in seeking professional medical and naturopathic advice. Help helps heal.
KaliDesautelsSpeaks 