Saturday, July 30, 2005

Take A Chill Pill

Tommy’s wife here. I’ve hijacked his blog again. It’s just easier than maintaining my own.

Some of us hate to wait. We live such rushed days and can’t seem to fit it all in. Well what if waiting could actually help save someone’s life?

At Wal-Mart yesterday, I went to buy some medicine for one of my kid’s stuffy nose so I picked up a little plastic card and took it to the pharmacy counter where I had to give my name, address, phone, etc. Once that was in the system they gladly gave me the box of medicine and I was on my way to the check out counter. It took a total of about 3 minutes out of my day. From now on, I can go the pharmacy and give them my phone number, they will pull up my info and give me the medicine and maybe I’ll only be out about 1 minute or less.

I asked the pharmacy staff if they’d had a lot of complaints. She sighed and said, “Oh, you wouldn’t believe!” I expressed to her that I, for one, am glad that they are doing this. After seeing what the abuse of this product does to mother’s, husbands, wives, mommies, daddies, sisters, brothers, etc. I’m more than happy to wait! The pharmacist smiled and said thanks for understanding and that being patient was not the norm.

The medicine that I was purchasing – pseudoephedrine hydrochloride. It’s a very common non-prescription medicine to relieve nasal congestion. Because it’s so common, drug dealers have been buying large quantities and making a new product called crystal meth.
Recently some pharmacies, maybe made by the government I’m not real sure, have put some restrictions on the purchase of pseudoephedrine.

The drug dealers have been buying the non-prescription meds in large quantities and then they take it to their man-made labs and make this horrible, addictive drug out of it and sell it. Some of these dealers have labs in their homes and have harmed their own children or put them in serious jeopardy due to explosions from the lab process – not to mention that most sellers are probably users as well. You’ve seen it on the news, I’m sure, but what this drug does to people in only a matter of a few years is just so very sad. They get sores all over their body that they’ve done to themselves by feeling like they have bugs under their skin and trying to scratch them off. An addict begins to lose brain cells very quickly that are not replaced. They lose the ability to make logical decisions. So the longer they use, the more at risk they will be to never be able to live a normal life even if they quit using. The effects of this drug take begin to be realized in only a few months.
Click here ----> Link to get more information.

So, the chill pill prescribed to us is one of patience. We don’t always need to see waiting for something as a bad thing. We should slow down and take a chill pill and be willing to wait a few minutes for our medicine. We could be saving someone’s life! It’s crystal clear, don’t you think?

2 comments:

Jenny Hintze said...

I wonder if other places that sell over the counter medicines are going to start doing this. It's a no-brainer really. It's a shame it has to be done but if it saves lives, it is necessary.

People resent "what the world is coming to" and they get mad when they are inconvenienced by it but most people aren't willing to do anything constructive to help others or invest in their lives. Many people aren't even willing to invest in their own children enough but yet get mad when a couple of minutes has to be taken out of their day to save a life, maybe even someone they care aobut. Anyway, I'm now stepping down from the soapbox.

reflectionsofatexan said...

Yes, i've heard about this on the news. I believe all stored carrying the drug are now required by law to get buyer information and the number purchased each time. Its not the drug itself, but what is in it. "Cooks" (people that make crystal meth) are able to chemically break down the drug to get the portion they need to combine with other substances. Its a very dangerous process. I think we had a lab out here in Jones Creek in the last year and a half or so that got busted. I was kinda shocked since its just a 'village' with an convenience store,elementary school, and mostly retired couples, but then again, its also considered "country" with plenty of "hideouts" or so the newspaper said. Hmmm, I guess I should keep an eye out for "fireplace" smoke in the summer.
Mindy