Can I Really Be Addicted To Tramadol?
If you think tramadol is a benign drug, think again. This past spring we met Gus, a middle-aged man from the southwest who was using large amounts of tramadol daily, originally for back pain. His doctor prescribed a certain amount, the rest he purchased online. He...
How Can I Get Off These Bloody Pain Medications?
A recent publication by Health and Human Services (HSS) reports that opioid prescriptions in the US peaked at 255 million in 2012 and decreased to 191 million in 2017. Prescribers—and the rest of the world—have become well aware of the unanticipated...
My Patient’s Most Shameful Secret
One of the most troubling aspects of my job as a medical addiction professional reared its head last week as I entered the exam room for a follow-up visit with Gordon.* Gordon has had a very successful career in banking. He is the 64-year old divorced father of three...
Pain Medicine: Is it Skewing Your Priorities?
I am in the luxurious position of spending most of my time doing exactly what I want to do. Of course, there are still toilets to clean, laundry, bills and taxes, but I love my day job and spend my free time cooking good stuff, doing yoga, practicing calligraphy and...
