Are Some Houston Pain Clinics Prescription Pill Mills?

I just hear her screaming in the background and she finally picks the phone back up and she said 'Wayne's ... they found Wayne dead in his bed.' They're legal, cheap and available all over Houston. Tonight, in the first of several reports, Local 2 Investigates prescription pill mills. via Click2Houston

[nick]

you people that want to judge these people for going to these places really make me mad I have had pain all my life I have horrible pain and before I found help with pills I was a horrible person I think you should focus on real crime but people are to scared to do that instead they mess with hard working people and do not understand the first thing about what is going on in peoples life I hope one day everyone of you are in pain that you can not make go away the kind that makes you go crazy the kind that makes you not want to play with your kids or work or do anything with your life then tell me how bad we are

[BCC]

Let me tell you something buddy I have had neck pain for two years and have never had depend on pills as my crutch. I leaned on god...Pills after a period of time will damage your internal organs if you don't overdose first. A real doctor would tell you that. These quack doctors are not concerned about your health just about the dollar. If you are in that much pain get the help you need from a doctor that will try to help you and not cover up your ailment with pills. Staying on the pills may help you, however then you have added another problem {addiction}..Which is a far bigger demon then the pain.

[Maximilian]

BCC wrote:

Let me tell you something buddy I have had neck pain for two years and have never had depend on pills as my crutch. I leaned on god...Pills after a period of time will damage your internal organs if you don't overdose first. A real doctor would tell you that. These quack doctors are not concerned about your health just about the dollar. If you are in that much pain get the help you need from a doctor that will try to help you and not cover up your ailment with pills. Staying on the pills may help you, however then you have added another problem {addiction}..Which is a far bigger demon then the pain.

I was on it for pain, and I'll take the pain any day of the week after life on methadone. There was no greater pain then being addicted to that nightmare.

[teotwawki]

Most are zombies stumbling around the streets of our towns pan-handling all those that prefer to work. Go to a real medical doctor.

[HARMD-VP]

teotwawki wrote:

Most are zombies stumbling around the streets of our towns pan-handling all those that prefer to work. Go to a real medical doctor.

I like your style and suggestion. Love, Mary

[pain patient]

nick wrote:

you people that want to judge these people for going to these places really make me mad I have had pain all my life I have horrible pain and before I found help with pills I was a horrible person I think you should focus on real crime but people are to scared to do that instead they mess with hard working people and do not understand the first thing about what is going on in peoples life I hope one day everyone of you are in pain that you can not make go away the kind that makes you go crazy the kind that makes you not want to play with your kids or work or do anything with your life then tell me how bad we are

Unless one has chronic relentless pain, its very hard for them to understand what it is and how it affects one's life. Please dont let this get to you. I understand how you feel and there are plenty more out there as well. Live your life to the best you can and dont let pain run it.

And I say what is wrong with a Pill mill if its helping people? Any doctors office can be considered a pill mill. Each and every doctor in America writes a prescription for something out of their offices daily. All doctors offices are pill mills. Pain clinics are no different. IF they are law abiding and helping people so what if they are there. Its the ones that are not we have to weed out so the stigma being created over pain management can go away.

[mike1975]

PP, I truly feel that a pill mill is deemed so because of the number of addicts feeding their addiction by going there. There's a difference from an office where a dr. is making an attempt to abide by the law and help people without feeding addiction and a pill mill. And no, all doctors offices aren't pill mills. Ask an addict who gets a script, they know what dr.s to go see and what dr.s not to.

[mike1975]

In my opinion........

[sliverone]

mike1975 wrote:

PP, I truly feel that a pill mill is deemed so because of the number of addicts feeding their addiction by going there. There's a difference from an office where a dr. is making an attempt to abide by the law and help people without feeding addiction and a pill mill. And no, all doctors offices aren't pill mills. Ask an addict who gets a script, they know what dr.s to go see and what dr.s not to.

EXACTLY!!
***Ask an addict who gets a script, they know what dr.s to go see and what dr.s not to.***
Commonly known and very true! As long as you got the bucks, they got a script pad...

[sliverone]

pain patient wrote:

<quoted text>
And I say what is wrong with a Pill mill if its helping people?

What do you say if it is destroying lives daily? The handful it may help is NOT worth the hundreds/thousands it does not. Reality is many sell their dope they get from the mills if for no other reason than the quantity received each month(they take a few a day and sell the excess, as you may already know). I knew a girl who had RSD, the pain mgmt. doc had her on ungodly amounts of oxycontin along with methadone and all kinds of lethal shit(if taken as prescribed and combined) for breakthrough pain. I ran into her a while back, surprised honestly she was still alive, and she had stopped going to the doc and was doing physical therapy instead...another testament that one in severe unrelenting daily pain doesn't have to resort to the regiment of drugs they prescribe nowdays. Just one of those things that make ya wanna go hmmmmm.

[Teotwawki]

pain patient wrote:

<quoted text>
Unless one has chronic relentless pain, its very hard for them to understand what it is and how it affects one's life. Please dont let this get to you. I understand how you feel and there are plenty more out there as well. Live your life to the best you can and dont let pain run it.
And I say what is wrong with a Pill mill if its helping people? Any doctors office can be considered a pill mill. Each and every doctor in America writes a prescription for something out of their offices daily. All doctors offices are pill mills. Pain clinics are no different. IF they are law abiding and helping people so what if they are there. Its the ones that are not we have to weed out so the stigma being created over pain management can go away.

I have chronic pain from psoriatic arthritis and have had for 3+ years. I take one prescription (NSAID) and follow non-drug regimines that work to relieve the problem such as chiropractics, orthotics, and yoga. The pill clinics feed the needs of a VERY FEW patients who really need them. Most are either druggies or if they have chronic pain are looking for the quick fix rather than anything that may take effort or dedication. Don't waste your life going through it wasted.

[pain patient]

teotwawki wrote:

Most are zombies stumbling around the streets of our towns pan-handling all those that prefer to work. Go to a real medical doctor.

I go to a real doctor. I dont pan handle, in fact if I could work, I would but I cant.

[pain patient]

mike1975 wrote:

PP, I truly feel that a pill mill is deemed so because of the number of addicts feeding their addiction by going there. There's a difference from an office where a dr. is making an attempt to abide by the law and help people without feeding addiction and a pill mill. And no, all doctors offices aren't pill mills. Ask an addict who gets a script, they know what dr.s to go see and what dr.s not to.

So all pain patients are addicts? Here we go again with the dependent/addiction issue.

[mike1975]

pain patient wrote:

<quoted text>
So all pain patients are addicts? Here we go again with the dependent/addiction issue.

hahahaha. No, pp, here we go with the difference in pill mills.

[pain patient]

Teotwawki wrote:

<quoted text>
I have chronic pain from psoriatic arthritis and have had for 3+ years. I take one prescription (NSAID) and follow non-drug regimines that work to relieve the problem such as chiropractics, orthotics, and yoga. The pill clinics feed the needs of a VERY FEW patients who really need them. Most are either druggies or if they have chronic pain are looking for the quick fix rather than anything that may take effort or dedication. Don't waste your life going through it wasted.

I am not wasted. I have tried other methods before I got on medication management. I have othrotics and I still have feet problems. I have developed Capsulitis and a Morton's Neuroma on top of plantar fasciitis and can barely set my right foot to the floor unless its wrapped and I have my cream pain medication to rub in (its a compounded mixture) and my pain medication I take daily for other reasons and multiple medical problems. Every six months I am in Physical therapy doing it over and over again with minimal results. See I do all that and have been doing it for almost 4 years now (I started PT in the end of 2004) You are lumping all pain patients into one category..and its not the case. I see lots of people from my clinic in therapy and doing things to help other than medications. Not all are the same. Yes there are some in it for just the money, but there are doctors out there who actually do care about their patients. Each month I go to the doctor I spend at least 45 minutes in there talking about what is going on. I keep a journal re; my pain each and every day to see where it might have gotten worse, or better and to go by that and see what can change to keep it better or improve it somehow. Its not all of what everyone is thinking. Pain clinics are strict. WE have UA's also. We have to sign contracts and if you screw it up, your treated such, you get kicked out and legal action might occur depending on what the deal was. Here if someone screws up, there is NO methadone clinic to run to...they are SCREWED and will have to detox w/out help...unless they are hospitalized from horrible withdrawals. In other states, they can go to methadone clinics if they have trouble with addiction. Not here. So not all clinics are in/out pill mills as this one in houston portrays.

[pain patient]

mike1975 wrote:

<quoted text>
hahahaha. No, pp, here we go with the difference in pill mills.

Touche' LOLOL

[mike1975]

So you agree there is a difference?????

[mike1975]

Well, I know that the pain management clinic here can be both good and bad. Remember the friend with all of the physical problems that I talked about a while back??? He was referred to the pain clinic here, and quit after the first visit because of the number of pain meds they wanted to put him on.
However, I also have a grandma who went there for injections in her knees, and loved it. I also have an aunt who went there, was prescribed methadone and several other prescriptions,(neurotin, etc., not sure what all she was on) and something didn't sit right with her. She lost the appropiate oxygen level in her brain, put a shoe in the microwave, a raw chicken in her dog's food bowl, and took something prescribed to a boy living with her, and ended up in the hospital. Needless to say, she was kicked out of pain management and was actually given enough methadone for a 3 week detox from 60mg/day to nothing. It's just hard to tell how someone is living, or what their intentions are, and that makes it hard on doctors. I wish pain management would get training concerning addiction, and behaviors. Not that none do, I'm sure there are some that do, I just wish it was required.

[Teotwawki]

pain patient wrote:

<quoted text>
I am not wasted. I have tried other methods before I got on medication management. I have othrotics and I still have feet problems. I have developed Capsulitis and a Morton's Neuroma on top of plantar fasciitis and can barely set my right foot to the floor unless its wrapped and I have my cream pain medication to rub in (its a compounded mixture) and my pain medication I take daily for other reasons and multiple medical problems. Every six months I am in Physical therapy doing it over and over again with minimal results. See I do all that and have been doing it for almost 4 years now (I started PT in the end of 2004) You are lumping all pain patients into one category..and its not the case. I see lots of people from my clinic in therapy and doing things to help other than medications. Not all are the same. Yes there are some in it for just the money, but there are doctors out there who actually do care about their patients. Each month I go to the doctor I spend at least 45 minutes in there talking about what is going on. I keep a journal re; my pain each and every day to see where it might have gotten worse, or better and to go by that and see what can change to keep it better or improve it somehow. Its not all of what everyone is thinking. Pain clinics are strict. WE have UA's also. We have to sign contracts and if you screw it up, your treated such, you get kicked out and legal action might occur depending on what the deal was. Here if someone screws up, there is NO methadone clinic to run to...they are SCREWED and will have to detox w/out help...unless they are hospitalized from horrible withdrawals. In other states, they can go to methadone clinics if they have trouble with addiction. Not here. So not all clinics are in/out pill mills as this one in houston portrays.

As far as "lumping all pain patients into one category"...No, just the ones stumbling around my town panhandling.

[Teotwawki]

pain patient wrote:

<quoted text>
I go to a real doctor. I dont pan handle, in fact if I could work, I would but I cant.

"I go to a real doctor."
Good, you see my point.