Medication alone, or in tandem with talk therapy, plays a vital role in treating many mental health disorders. Finding the right medication to effectively manage the symptoms of disorders such as ADHD/ADD, depression and anxiety requires the expertise of a highly trained psychiatrist. People don't always react to psychiatric drug treatment the same way. What works for one person may not work for another. This variability makes medication management an essential part of psychiatric medical care and another reason to choose your psychiatrist with care. At Online Psychiatrists, you'll find a wide range of mental health services for those living in New York, New Jersey and Florida. These services include prescribing and managing psychiatric medications. Some types of medicine can be prescribed through telepsychiatry, while others may require in-person visits. Read more: https://www.onlinepsychiatrists.com/medication-management/ Online Psychiatrists 405 Lexington Ave, #2601, New York, NY, 10174 (646) 713-0000 https://www.onlinepsychiatrists.com https://www.onlinepsychiatrists.com/manhattan-psychiatrists-office/ Working Hours: Monday-Friday: 8am–6pm Payment: cash, check, credit cards. Google maps: https://goo.gl/maps/8iSs8BpARMdpjrgx7 https://plus.codes/87G8Q22F+MR New York Nearby Locations: Lenox Hill | Upper East Side | Midtown East | Upper West Side 10021 | 10022 | 10023
Okay, let's talk about drugs. I'm not talking about the drugs you might find on the street that are manufactured to make you high – that are also illegal. I'm talking about the drugs that are necessary to keep you healthy and perhaps, even alive. I'm also talking about the medications that are needed to help ease whatever pain affects your body. Many of these medications are so expensive that many people can't afford them. They find themselves in a difficult situation. Do you purchase your medication? Buy groceries? Pay your bills? What do you do? Last year, to control my diabetes, I was on three different diabetic medications: Metformin, Farxiga, and Janumet. While Metformin was reasonably priced, the total of all three medications cost $505.00 a month. That's right You read that correctly. FIVE-HUNDRED-FIVE dollars EACH month! Oh, and that is WITH my insurance. I can't even imagine what it would cost if my insurance hadn't paid the bulk of this astronomical cost. And yet, there are others that don't have the same insurance we have. Can you imagine trying to buy your meds and pay the rent? Especially if you're like me and your Social Security benefits are less than $1000.00 each month. Heck, with that little SS coming in, I couldn't even afford an apartment, let alone rent AND meds. The point I'm trying to make is the fact that most medications cost about 50 cents to manufacture. Of course, that doesn't figure in the cost of maintaining the equipment, the salaries for the line workers, or the scientists. What bothers me is the pay the corporate executives give themselves. Why are they making millions, if not billions of dollars every year. Most of the worker-bees might make approximately $1500 a week – if they're lucky, while the CEOs are making approximately $28MILLION each year. Doesn't seem fair, does it? At one time, I thought the CEOs of the big pharma companies made about $300-500K a year. Then, I decided to be a bit more accurate and look it up. You could have knocked me over with a feather! Not $2M a year but $28M a year! That's just not right! And to think they are walking home with a clear conscience knowing they aren't doing all that much to actually earn that kind of salary while their little peons are probably struggling to pay their bills. I sincerely doubt that they're even bothered by the fact that us little guys, especially the ones on Social Security are struggling even harder. I guess I just get frustrated when I see my medical bills constantly rising while my Medicare payments don't increase as rapidly. It's mind boggling to think they expect anyone to pay for the cost of these drugs and have a decent living. Maybe someday, someone might figure this out. But until then, the drug companies have us over a barrel and that barrel is wobbling, overflowing with water, and getting bigger by the day. There are also the age-related illnesses that require medical attention. Some are high blood pressure, stenosis, osteoarthritis, and a host of others that are just related to getting old. Hell, maybe the answer is Soilent Green. If you've never seen that movie, see if you can find it on HBO or maybe Netflix or perhaps one of your cable stations. I'm not saying I'm a fan of Soilent Greet but maybe when you think about the high cost of drugs, this is the direction the world is headed.
At first, I didn't know what to write for this. I always thought of my life as not that meaningful or noteworthy, but I have a story I want to tell. I had a friend, someone I cherished above many people. At that point, we had been friends for many years, nearly five or six I think. Lets call her Vivian, since I would rather not use her real name. Vivian's parents had told me to stay away from her. I could not visit anymore because of my sexuality. They have a belief that every person is gay or straight. You like one or the other, not both. We found a loophole and still messaged each other when we could. However, I am not a patient person and I really wanted to visit her, to see Vivian and enjoy all her sarcasm and humor. So, I came up with the brilliant idea to message her parents without consulting her first. A stupid and impulsive decision. I gathered my courage and sent a message to her mother from my mother's phone since they were friends on the social media platform I used. I got a reply quickly since she had not yet left for work. I was hopeful that maybe I could change her mind, since I know I really couldn't change the father's mind. At first, the conversation was rather light, not what I was expecting. But it got tense quickly, when I sent her a message she misinterpreted as me being rude. I had not meant to be rude or tell her how to punish Vivian, I just wanted her to listen to me and then decide if I was worthy to mingle with their daughter. By the end of the conversation, both myself and Vivian's mother were upset at the other. And Vivian was beyond angry with me. She told me very blatantly that I should have been patient and waited. All I did was upset her mother before work. I felt bad, I knew Vivian had the right to be upset and scold me a little. My own mother, however, did not agree. She started to argue with Vivian, only making her more upset. At this point, I went to the bathroom to calm myself from the nerves I had knotted in my stomach and veins. Within those few measly seconds, I lost my friend. The only person I really depended on and talked to. My world crumbled. My mother had said some very mean and hurtful words to my friend, which made me lose her. I lost my temper. I screamed at my mother, yelled hurtful words that I knew would cause her pain, and walked away. At that point, I did not care about her feelings or my consequences, just as she did not care in those few seconds. I had lost my friend, my best friend. I lost my two lovely cats, and I lost my will to live. All in one summer. Over time, due to the deep emotions that ran through me, I later experienced an emotional burnout. I did not care about anything. I would cause myself pain to feel alive. I had no will to eat, to get out of bed, to do anything other than sleep. Just when I thought, for a few days, I was getting better, my depression and anxiety started pumping throughout my body. I could not stand to be in public or I would start to cause self-harm to relieve the stress in my body. I would scratch and bite my arms and twist my fingers nearly to the point of nearly breaking. I could never stay in class because that alone would cause me to panic. My depression caused me to loathe myself. I hated my very being. If it were not for my therapist and medicine. My friends and family. I don't know if I would be here. I have a different cat named Stella, who is pigeon-toed on her back feet. I also have a guinea pig named Brutus, from Julius Caesar. I am on a different medication. I am finally starting to feel better. I am starting to feel alive again. To everyone else like me, these feelings can be handled. It is not easy to deal with these feelings, it won't just go away, but over time, you will feel better. So just keep marching through the dark, you will find the light.
Ugh fuck I hear the alarm clock go off again for the third time this morning. It's 9:39 am. Already late to take my meds shit. I get up out of bed look at myself in the mirror my hair all over the place “I gots to shower” I literally think to myself, I really crack myself up sometimes...Oh yea my pills I forgot it's like that sometimes. So I crack open my top drawer and reach for my pencil box with a bunch of cool stickers I bought online. Ah there it is. My pill organizer...fuck what day is it again?...Alexa, what day is it?...”Thursday, Februa”...fuck, fuck, fuck, I'm late to class. I crack open Thursday and I look in and...wait...just go make to make I have them all...Adderall for the ADHD, Gabapentin and Xanax for the anxiety, Zoloft for depression, Seroquel for the insomnia...oh wait that's for tonight...eh might as well throw some spice into today. I take a large gulp of coffee and off I-Ah before I forget let me take my morning bowl...shit I'm almost out, I hope my guys got some Blue Dream left. I look at my state flag, that big grizzly bear, and remind myself that I'm in the city of Angels how can I not have a smile on my face going out in this beautiful weather. *cough**cough* Oh yea.