Aww second that is really sad, I'm so sorry
Truly: FUCK DOCTORS
My mom is caring for my grandmother who has Alzheimers, despite being confused sometimes and not being fit to be on her own any more my grandmother is happy, active and in excellent shape. The woman worked on a farm her whole life, she would chop wood every morning for her stove!
My grandmothers doctor kept recommending that my mother put her on anti anxiety meds because Grandma wasn't sleeping enough. She'd go to sleep and then wake up 3 hours later ready to start the day, confused as to why it was still dark out. After a few months of this my mother finally agrees. She gets the prescription, gives it to her and grandma goes to bed. All seems fine, three days later Grandma doesn't come out of her room in the morning which is odd, she's an early riser. Mom goes to check on her, she is half on and half off the bed, fully awake, whimpering too weak to pull herself up.
Mom drives her to the hospital, they say she's fine, that she now has Parkinsons (because overnight she is now shaking violently.) Everyone acts like "you know this is just nature taking it's course, she is in her eighties." But it just seemed crazy that her health would decline that rapidly. My mother suspects the new medicine is to blame and when she gets home she calls the pharmacy 1-800 number, "Can you tell me ifthis medicine would do this to someone in their 80s?"
The man on the phone takes pity on my mother and tells her the most bone chilling back story about this medicine. He says that this medicine is what nursing homes give to dementia patients to keep them easy to manage, docile. He says that it weakens them very quickly and their health declines because they stop eating. He says what eventually happens is that they become too weak to swallow effectively and so they aspirate liquid when they are drinking, this brings pneumonia and they die. BASTARDS
He tells her not to stop the medication suddenly but to give her smaller and smaller doses every day for a week til she is off. He says stopping suddenly can induce stroke like symptoms. (HOLY FUCK) My grandmother improves every day and after the week she is back to her happy (neurotic) self, no shaking, no mobility issues. This medicine put her in diapers in three days. Mom has been letting her drink a glass of wine before bed, grandma loves it and it helps her sleep through the night.
Fuck doctors and fuck big pharma.
