Addicted or dependent? Is there a difference?

Would you sell your first born in order to buy drugs? If so you are an addict, plain and simple.

Do you depend on your doctor to write presciptions to help manage and control your pain so that you can have the best possible quality of life? Do you take your medications as presribed and expect your doctor to monitor your use of these controlled substances? If so, you are dependant. Please, read on.

Are you treated like a low life drug seeker because you are in debilitating chronic pain?

Marcus Welby, where are you?

I wonder what our favorite family doctor of that era would have done with these autoimmune diseases of Fibromyalgia, Myofacial Pain Syndrome,RLS, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome and the list goes on. I wonder if he would tell his suffering patient, "It's all in your head" and toss it into the box of wastebasket diseases? Or, do you think with his totally compassionate heart he would say, "Together we'll find the answer to this and a way to alleviate your pain. We won't give up."

Another great TV doctor, Dr. "Bones" McCoy of the USS Enterprise would never have allowed even one of his patients to suffer in pain and agony. His compassion was too great and overwhelming to say, "You just need to lose a few pounds and be more active; it's all in your head."
"Beam me up Scottie!"

The chronic pain patient in today's society is longing for compassion and personal involvement to our health care. We don't have Marcus Welby or the great 23rd century physician, Dr. McCoy. We need compassionate 21st century doctors to not only care about our pain, but to believe that we are truly in pain.

Due to my late husband's profession we had to move often. In the past 30 years I have had 3 extremely compassionate and understanding physicians who actually took the time to listen to what I had to say and were genuinely concerned with helping me become as healthy and mobile as possible.

These doctors did not profess to know a lot about my "invisible" diseases but they were willing to work with me and learn with me, as it was a very new experience for all of us. Sadly though, I have had many experiences with doctors that I call the "God Complex Physician." Those physicians with the "God Complex" do not like to listen to what the patient has to say nor do they want their authority questioned in any way. I think they tend to forget that the patient has the right to ask questions concerning

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