Side Effects

Modern medicine has come a long way helping many people and even prolonging life. But we are still reminded that doctors are really "practicing physicians" and modern drugs can affect many folks in different ways. A number of years ago my wife was really having trouble walking and her doctors thought she might have lupus. When the perplexed specialist stepped out of the examining room, I picked up his medical book and began reading case studies. Suddenly I found a case involving 13 patients at the Mayo Clinic who had taken the same sulfur based drug that my wife had been taking and they had the same symptoms as my wife. When the doctor returned I showed it to him. He agreed, drug-induced lupus. He promptly took my wife off this drug and soon she was walking again without any symptoms. Over the years we have watched that she didn't take any sulfur drugs. Then a month or so ago she developed similar symptoms once again. She saw doctors and had tests. Then last week, upon getting a refill of a water pill she was taking, she noticed a comment on the label that warned it should not be taken by those allergic to sulfur. She stopped taking it and again the symptoms have begun to ease. After I retired I wrestled for many years with strange headaches, dizziness and then the devastating loss of my voice. I saw many, many doctors with no help. Then I went to the world's best voice doctor in Philadelphia. He made me go through over 50 tests - some very expensive - and he found nothing significant. He made me travel there for both voice and music therapy, with little help. I was frustrated and decided to just live with it. Then a year ago, while discussing some other medical concerns, it was decided to change my diabetes meds. I stopped taking avandamet which I had taken successfully for nearly ten years. Slowly, months later, I began to realize that the headaches and dizziness had begun to disappear and my voice was getting stronger. Now it appears that my problems might have been caused by this drug, even though the warnings don't talk about such side effects. In fact there has been so much improvement, that last Thursday night at Pinebrook I sang baritone in a male quartet. That was something I always loved to do but haven't been able to do for five or six years. So while modern drugs are amazing, the side effects can result in numerous new and troubling problems. The moral of these stories is that you need to closely monitor your own health for not only are doctors too busy to do it for you, but there is no way that they can keep up with all the new drugs and their side effects. Ask questions, read, keep records, request copies of test results, monitor your care closely, and ask for wisdom and guidance from the "Great Physician", our Father in heaven who knows all about us. Afterall, He has loaned us our body and it isn't the body of our "practicing physician". Have a good, healthy day.