Aside from diet, exercise and generally healthy living, one of the most important ways to treat a health problem, whatever it may be, is by medication.
When I was 25, my doctor started me on medication to treat my hypertension. I'd been warned after dealing with seriously elevated blood pressure for most of my pregnancy, I'd probably end up taking it for the rest of my life.
We tried a little of this and a little of that. At first, your classic diuretic. Nope. Then I tried a wonderful calcium channel blocker called Norvasc. The stuff was great. Blood pressure under control and I felt better all the way around. Interesting note, years later I read an article
that stated calcium channel blockers can be used for the treatment of mania.
Fast forward three years.... Norvasc stopped working and I moved on to a drug called Hyzaar. It's a combo betta blocker and diuretic. I've done well with it for several years.
I had to go through that same tweaking with my bipolar medication. We've tried five or six different drugs and finally settled on two. I've been taking those for the past two years. We tweak the dosage, but not the drug. There may be some latest, greatest drug out there for me, but I'm scared of them. After having all sorts of reactions, I don't want to risk it.
Do you ever feel that way about medication? Are you ever more scared of the side effects that than happy about the relief it could bring?
Is it worth... the switch?
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