Met the coolest doctor in ER!!

[Parabolan]

I did something really stupid.. i was on a business trip overseas for five days and i didnt have access to my daily morning amphetamine dose.. was horrible..

I come back home.. pop a pill.. go to work.. decide im not feeling it.. so i triple my dose "really stupid i know.. but i do just fine on that amount when i use daily for a long period of time"...

Full of energy.. talkative.. work like a machine.. all is well.. didnt even take my daily benzos..

Sometime in the afternoon.. i come back from a break... go upstairs.. and all of a sudden... BOOM!!!

My heart is pounding out of my rib cage... a panic attack like no other.. twitching.. feel like im gonna die in a second...

One of my colleagues rushes me to the ER.. a doctor shows up and says "what is wrong with you?" I could not speak.. my colleague tells him im having a "bad anxiety attack"..

Doc sat me down against my will.. and said "do u know what u need?" While taking my bp and pulse readings... i yell "20 mg diazepam IV right now!!"

and surely he did!! Asked the nurse to rush and prepare the shot.. I started calming down after IV administration and doc's guidance on how to breathe...

Finally... doc asks me "now.. what really happened? Your bp was 190/125 and ur pulse was 220 per minute!!".. i tell him everything...

Cool doc goes like "listen... u seem to be a smart professional... everybody needs a boost every now and then.. but do not risk ur life for it.. i have to keep u here until im comfortable with ur condition and vitals.. and im gonna register this as a severe panic attack.. but please stay safe!!"

An hour later he lets me go with a bottle of xanax... and writes a report stating my condition so i can show it to my employer "saying that i had a panic attack that was most likely the result of stress"...

I believe we need more physicians like this guy!!

Im a firm believer in Harm Reduction... so the morale of the story is... do not do what I did.. know ur limits and ALWAYS stay safe!!

 

[LucidSDreamr]

I heard a similar story on this forum from a girl where they refused to give her anything and she believes she has permanent damage and numbness on one side of her body...at least she didn't get high from a benzo in the hospital so I guess she's better off with permanent neurological damage

 

[Parabolan]

I heard a similar story on this forum from a girl where they refused to give her anything and she believes she has permanent damage and numbness on one side of her body...at least she didn't get high from a benzo in the hospital so I guess she's better off with permanent neurological damage

Now that's sad

 

[cj]

That is a great doctor

 

[spacejunk]

Yep, that's exactly what he should have done. It sucks that we expect doctors in the emergency dept to be judgemental and lecture us - but having known a few emergency doctors and nurses, i know there are lots of pragmatic and caring medical professionals out there.

I'm glad you got sorted out and looked after without further stress - and that you're ok.
Panic attacks are fucking scary, especially the physical side of things. It can really feel like you're dying.

 

[FuckinAcidMan]

Wow. He listened to his patient, gave you what you needed to stabalize, but made sure to emphasize proper use of these drugs, and kept you under observation until you seemed straight. It's like he did his fucking job properly that blows my mind man.

 

[CousinCocaine]

Damn right we need more Drs like that! I had something similar happen twice. I only took my prescription amphetamines at the exact dose I was supposed to. The first time it was a 50% dosage increase which caused me to start running a fever of 102+ degrees Fahrenheit, had tremors, blood pressure and heart rate got way too high and I started panicking when 2.5mg sublingual Klonopin didn't help. I was lucky enough to get a good doc that time who gave me 3.5mg IV Ativan in addition to the Klonopin he knew I'd taken and let me stay until I calmed down. The second time pretty much the same problem happened for some reason on a different amp that I had taken thousands of times even at doses 10-20x more without problem. Unfortunately I got a doctor who was a complete asshole who bit my head off, told me I didn't need to be there, only gave me a tiny dose of hydroxyzine and sent me on my way even though I was still in a living hell.

 

[aihfl]

I just went to the ER in Orlando basically begging to be admitted into the psych ward to be detoxed and they wouldn't fucking do it. I even asked them after they said no what if I said I was suicidal (I'm not, I just would have said it to get in) and they said they had no reason to believe I was suicidal. They discharged me with a very inadequate prescription to detox myself using Librium which I suppose is better than nothing. It's a lot better than being stuck in that hick hospital in Vermont where they had a cop handcuff me to a gurney and that was my detox, but as a college mentor used to tell me, better than shitty is still bad. At this point I'm detoxing myself the old fashioned way by tapering. At least I've been able to do it before, I just hope I have the willpower to be able to do it again for the umpteenth fucking time. Most ER doctors in the USA are complete shit.

 

[SamanthaB]

Hi,

Wow, what a wonderful story to hear, even though you had an awful personal experience with your drugs. You might want to give some thought to writing a letter to the doctor telling him/her exactly how you felt about the care you received. I doubt they ever hear it enough. The care you received was exceptional!!!

 

[CousinCocaine]

I just went to the ER in Orlando basically begging to be admitted into the psych ward to be detoxed and they wouldn't fucking do it. I even asked them after they said no what if I said I was suicidal (I'm not, I just would have said it to get in) and they said they had no reason to believe I was suicidal. They discharged me with a very inadequate prescription to detox myself using Librium which I suppose is better than nothing. It's a lot better than being stuck in that hick hospital in Vermont where they had a cop handcuff me to a gurney and that was my detox, but as a college mentor used to tell me, better than shitty is still bad. At this point I'm detoxing myself the old fashioned way by tapering. At least I've been able to do it before, I just hope I have the willpower to be able to do it again for the umpteenth fucking time. Most ER doctors in the USA are complete shit.

Sorry your going through a rough time. If you don't mind me asking what drug(s) are you addicted to? If the preschool Librium I assume it's either benzodiazepines or alcohol, it not as likely but maybe GHB/GBL or the very illusive barbiturates. If you can't handle detoxing yourself you can A.) look into rehab centers nearby that specialize in detoxification of the specific drug(a) you're on, or B.) and I would only recommend this as a last resort option, if it is alcohol, benzodiazepines, GHB/GBL or barbiturates you're addicted to ypu could go back and say that even taking the Librium given to you you had a seizure or multiple seizures. I think if someone detoxing has a seizure they are obligated to admit them throughout the detox process because these can in some cases be fatal, it probably won't be to the psych ward though, those are normally reserved for the very most dangerous mentally ill and are becoming harder and harder to get into due to extreme overcrowding. Most hospitals have an area filled with staff who specialize in medically assisted detoxification, or you might just be placed in a standard hospital room no different than anyone else's. During this time medications can be adjusted and you will most likely be kept under close observation, so they can act ASAP if you start having a seizure. It might not be for the entire process but at least until they're satisfied that you've stabilized and they'll most likely give you a higher dose of Librium or a stronger medication to take home (probably what they find to work for you best during your stay.) They're so serious about alcohol withdrawal in the hospitals in my area I overheard a doctor ordering IV phenobarbital for a patient who had jstopped drinking a few days earlier, they weren't having a seizure or even a panic attack he or she was just "not comfortable enough), the doctor even explained to the nurse it was their most used drug for alcohol withdrawal and this was just 3 years ago maximum! (I was honestly kind jealous because I've never had barbiturates that I know of) Again you should only lie about seizures as a last resort, even then I feel kinda guilty recommending it to anyone.

I had a doctor beg me to stay under observation for almost a month so I could "safely detox" (I was in fthere for something completely unrelated) and even tried to get a security guard to stop me from walking out after I had already signed multiple forms saying I understood I was leaving against medical advice. The security guard tried to block me and I told him to get the fuck out of my face before I broke his jaw (this was when I was bench pressing 150-200lbs a couple hundred reps up to 8 times a day during the week and almost nonstop on the weekends) when he realized I was serious and he couldn't get backup for at least 5-10mins he stepped aside, I apologized to him afterwards because I knew he was just doing his job and explained why I had gotte so angry. He completely understood and reported the doctor to their supervisor, for harassing me and trying to hold me against my will without good reason or even the authority. All this happened just because I had gotten drunk a couple times that week (something that wasn't a normal habit for me at all) and also used Vallium (or maybe Ativan) in recreational amounts a time or two prior to my visit and it showed in my blood or urine test, Since I was neither a minor or a danger to anybody they couldn't legally keep me there. It was so stupid I talked to another doctor in the parking lot about it and was honest to him about it, he understandably scolded me for abusing benzodiazepines especially with large amounts of booze but was surprised about how honest I was and was even kind enough to ask a judge to stricken the thing about going against Dr orders from my medical history after making sure I understand all the potential dangers of benzodiazepine abuse ( the judge also apparently found it stupid, and approved the request to remove it, by by the next day. I didn't have to go to court or anything )

Hopefully you get a more compassionate doctor if you go again and can get and stay clean.

 

[aihfl]

Yes, I'm detoxing off alcohol. I took 50mg of Librium last night. Holy moly that was a mistake. With the long half life of Librium it hit me like a ton of bricks this morning. I have a script for Ativan; I'm going to have that filled. It's more manageable with it's shorter half life. Now that I'm sober again, I just need to go see my own psychiatrist. Going to a rehab was out of the question with my high deductible health insurance policy.

 

[Atmozfears]

I've done this often. Ended up in the ER and came out with benzos. That was a high as fuck heart rate though. I remember last time I went to the hospital for x-rays on my back (broken during meth psychosis) and I was on meth and the nurse questioned me on why my heart rate was at 170bpm. I said "had a large coffee before coming"... yeah, she rolled her eyes.

 

[zombiesarepeaceful]

If only the drs would fucking give me any help when I go to the ER with chest pain from panic attacks, that would be great. I've never been addicted to benzos, for fucks sake I have benzos that are years old still sitting in their original bottles because I'm scared that I might need them just in case of an emergency. But then when it comes to taking them, unless it's a dire situation I hesitate to take them unless I've filled a prescription of them recently because I switch jobs a lot and don't want to piss dirty for benzos on a new hire drug test without a recent rx to show them. When I actually am able to see a dr who agrees to prescribe a benzo, I only take them a few times a week to prevent tolerance and addiction. I can be responsible them, but the stupid fucking stigma attached to them prevents people from getting them when they could really benefit from them.

I have been given benzos a few times in the ER, but generally it has been 'oh just calm down, we ran some tests and your heart is fine and you'll be fine'. Gee thanks, doesn't change what fucking landed me in here.

The last time I was in the ER with chest pain from a panic attack, they didn't give me anything to calm me down. Just did blood tests, chest xray, ekg, etc and told me well your heart is fine, but we don't deal with psychiatric issues here in the ER so you should see a psychiatrist. No shit I fucking am already seeing one but I need help with my current symptoms right now. Ugh. Fucking doctors. The funny part? The ER I went to even has a psych wing in the ER and not once did they offer a psych eval when I clearly told them I was having mental issues and that's what caused the chest pain. I guess since I'm not suicidal it didn't fucking matter to them.

/end rant