Is your doctor an enabler?
Consider the prescriptions in your medicine cabinet/pill-minder box. Is one of those medications something that your doctor renews over and over again for you? How about that something-or-other that seems innocuous enough because you take the lowest possible dose?
Are you like many of us out there who struggle to fall asleep? The anxiety of worrying about whether or not you’re going to fall asleep being a sufficient reason for your doctor to prescribe a benzodiazepine to help you along the way? When did you first tell your doctor about your sleep struggles and how many months or years have passed since he or she prescribed a measly dose of Ativan, Valium, Xanax or Klonopin?
Each time the refill runs out and you call your doctor to renew the prescription, does she do so, even without meeting with you in person to discern whether or not it’s still needed? Your doctor is an enabler.
Your doctor might be putting you at risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease. That itsy bitsy dosage you take nightly for months and years on end? It’s not a harmless prescription if it gives you a fatal disease – which Alzheimer’s is.
Now that you’re aware of the risk, make sure your doctor is aware and don’t let him or her poo poo that risk; instead, ask her to wean you off that medication so that you can have control over this one potential cause of developing a disease that you absolutely do not want to get.
You’re in charge, not your doctor. Don’t assume that her constant renewal of such medication means it’s okay. You’re an informed patient now; it’s time you took steps to remove this Alzheimer’s risk from your life.
Living: the ultimate team sport 